TostaCaffe Roasters

[moreyr]

I disagree.  So far, up to 7 lb was in the 20 minute range.  the machine is rated for 10lb and i threw in 13 in error.  that is not a small error,that is 3 lbs over the max, almost 30% over. if i had not been so tired, after a long day of work , i would have known that before i started.  I saw that the drum was to full and i did it anyway so once the beans started to expand there was not romm for rotation in the drum.  The temp probe is in the core of the beans and the beans (expanded to critical mass) acted as insulation. the inside reading was not in any form reflective of what was going on on the outside, and so a fire.  Tomorrw I will roast a ten lb lot and I will let you know. 

[John F]

I disagree.  So far, up to 7 lb was in the 20 minute range. 

I was going by this..

I started doing 4-5 lb roast and depending on the what’s, they took between 17 - 26 minutes.

And guessing it was the 5# batches pushing 26 min. Maybe you are adjusting the ramp and get 7#'s done in under 20?

[moreyr]

actually what I discovered was how it pulls electricity.  You  need to have 2 dedicated circuts for this unit.  This way you keep the front and rear elements on seperate lines.  I thought that the front called for more juice so I had the exhaust fan and drum rotation moter put onto the same circut as the rear element.  That was wrong, they had to be on the front one which pulls less juice.  Once I reversed the order it had a big effect.  I am learning each step the hard long way which is the right way, trial and error will get me there in less time.  What I can tell you is that I have a following craving my beans.  I have a few stores starting to take me in and a tv station and radio show that wants to do a story on me.  Not rushing to do it, I want to be comfortable in what I am doing first.  It is a big jump to go from a Bemor into this kind of unit.  This forces you to really learn how to roast and not follow programs.  So, now everything gets logged and gets entered into my excel sheets for graphing and analysis.

[moreyr]

ok, I did 2 batches today.  I had to stop as Florida weather is killing with rain these days.  In any event, I roasted a  5lb batch and an 8 lb batch.    The 8 lb took around 26 min.  I for one have no problem with that.  My cooling pan is right next to my roaster so i just put on my gloves and take the drum and dump them right into the pan.  There is a blower under the pan sneding the air up.  I take my hands and run them ti the beans to distribute the air.  I am also playing with another fan (cyclone) over to the side.  the 2 combined cool the beans very fast and remove the chaf.  I am starting to experiment with pre heating the unit too as I think that will cut the roast time a bit.  In any event, the end result was two batches of beautiful beans.  I am going to buy a shed to put outside my home so the weather will stop dictating my roasting times.  As with anything that is new, each time I roast I learn something new

[peter]

Do you recall how much time the 5# batch took? 

[moreyr]

5lb seem to run around 23 min, but I am certain that I can get them down a few by pre heating

[JimsJava]

5lb seem to run around 23 min, but I am certain that I can get them down a few by pre heating

Thank you for keeping us updated on your discoveries with this unit. I truly have been interested in getting one, but was a little concerned about the roasting time. I had an exchange of e-mails with the TostaCaffe maker and when I questioned if the 30+ minutes for roasting a full capacity batch was possibly baking the coffee beans he went off on a bizarre tangent that my loyalties were with "Big Oil" and that because I was "parroting the Big Oil line", any further e-mails were a waste of time. Probably not the best way to garner business...

I even replied to this one e-mail and offered to send him 5 pounds of a coffee from my stash, have him roast it as a 5# batch and then send me back 1 pound to try. No reply. Just blown off.

So, I truly am glad to have a thorough, objective review of this roaster. As you use it more, would you also please comment on the durability of the parts, wires, electronics, heating elements? I had comments from one owner of an older TostaCaffe that some of the wires became brittle with production use, but perhaps this has been addressed by the manufacturer.

Let me know how the warm-up affects the 5# roast time.

Thanks!

[peter]

5lb seem to run around 23 min, but I am certain that I can get them down a few by pre heating

Thank you for keeping us updated on your discoveries with this unit.
Let me know how the warm-up affects the 5# roast time.

Thanks!

Yes, thank you for your investment of time and money, and keeping us informed.