Behmor 1600....

[StillShaving]

I've seen home roasters die prematurely due to exclusive dark roasting.

Darker roasts also result in higher emissions. There is more to the life of a roaster than the heat.

Interesting point. I wonder if its the smoke depositing on the surfaces and either acting as an insulator or conductor which contributes most to the premature failures? The Behmor user manual stresses over and over to clean roaster well, even sending it through an empty roast cycle after every 5 roasts, which I presumed was to help burn out any remaining chaff or coffee bits to minimize the build up.

So besides occasionally taking the covers off to clean out any trapped chaff, I wonder if it is worthwhile to spray sensitive parts with something like Electro-Wash. Though that may not be strong enough to clean off smoke residue.

 

[letterk]

Personally, I think the cleaning cycle affects the quality of roast more than the longevity. Whenever I started to notice the beans stalling, the culprit was always it being dirty. Don't just clean the roasting chamber. You also need to take off the side panel and smoke suppressor grill and really get in there with a vacuum. What I found is that you get a lot of dust buildup inside and it can affect airflow, changing what the temp sensors read. I also use SimpleGreen to make sure the areas around the temp sensors in the roast chamber are free of oils.

Joel, I'd be interested if you can post your roast times, especially 1st and 2nd cracks with the bean type and weight. I'm curious if they've dialed it in a bit since I got one (one of the early units). I've always thought it a bit slow and think it's the cause of a few boring roasts over the years.

 

[mouscacha]

Joel, I'd be interested if you can post your roast times, especially 1st and 2nd cracks with the bean type and weight. I'm curious if they've dialed it in a bit since I got one (one of the early units). I've always thought it a bit slow and think it's the cause of a few boring roasts over the years.

I have to agree with you on this.

 

[StillShaving]

Personally, I think the cleaning cycle affects the quality of roast more than the longevity. Whenever I started to notice the beans stalling, the culprit was always it being dirty. Don't just clean the roasting chamber. You also need to take off the side panel and smoke suppressor grill and really get in there with a vacuum. What I found is that you get a lot of dust buildup inside and it can affect airflow, changing what the temp sensors read. I also use SimpleGreen to make sure the areas around the temp sensors in the roast chamber are free of oils.

Good feedback. Curious about how often you found that the side panel should be taken off and cleaned out with a shop vac? Was it roughly every 10 roasts, 20 roasts, or ??

Joel, I'd be interested if you can post your roast times, especially 1st and 2nd cracks with the bean type and weight. I'm curious if they've dialed it in a bit since I got one (one of the early units). I've always thought it a bit slow and think it's the cause of a few boring roasts over the years.

My understanding from some reading I did on the coffee forums, was that the profiles have not changed. That a community of people had built up knowledge on how to work within the limitations of the machine, by doing things like using less beans that the stock calibration called for, and matching certain profiles and preheat cycles to particular beans, so changing it would probably cause issues. But it would be great if he produced a new model that included extra profiles, where the new ones were based on long time experience with the machine.

 

[FLTiger]

The more I read about home roasting, the more conflicted I get--I find it both intriguing and off-putting at the same time.

 

[mouscacha]

FLTiger, don't get us wrong. Homeroasting is in no way "off-putting!" It's just you become such a stickler for getting your coffee just right. It's like shaving!

 

[thanks]

FLTiger, don't get us wrong. Homeroasting is in no way "off-putting!" It's just you become such a stickler for getting your coffee just right. It's like shaving!

Big +1! Even roasts that are way "off-target" end up being some of the best coffee I've ever had.

 

[letterk]

Good feedback. Curious about how often you found that the side panel should be taken off and cleaned out with a shop vac? Was it roughly every 10 roasts, 20 roasts, or ??

I probably opened the side panel every 15 roasts or so. But I have a slight modification inside to keep the sensor cooler. I think that lets in more dust than normal, so others may not have to do it that often.

My understanding from some reading I did on the coffee forums, was that the profiles have not changed. That a community of people had built up knowledge on how to work within the limitations of the machine, by doing things like using less beans that the stock calibration called for, and matching certain profiles and preheat cycles to particular beans, so changing it would probably cause issues. But it would be great if he produced a new model that included extra profiles, where the new ones were based on long time experience with the machine.

Yes, and I've done them all. But I've noticed, even on the highest settings, a small batch, voltage checks, and my internal sheet metal tweaks, it just doesn't pump in heat fast enough for some beans. My biggest complaint is not that it can't get to a certain temp, but that it takes too long to get there and it goes to quick once you're there.

 

[mouscacha]

But I have a slight modification inside to keep the sensor cooler.

Behmor mods??? Do tell!

 

[DogHair]

FLTiger, don't get us wrong. Homeroasting is in no way "off-putting!" It's just you become such a stickler for getting your coffee just right. It's like shaving!

It essentially ruins you. After a few months of good coffee restaurant coffee becomes pretty much intolerable. It's amazing what passes for coffee in some places. Yuk!

 

[mouscacha]

Hah! I know! My wife can't stand starbucks anymore!

 

[letterk]

Behmor mods??? Do tell!

The document from Behmor states "DO NOT POST ON THE INTERNET!" all over it.

 

[mouscacha]

The document from Behmor states "DO NOT POST ON THE INTERNET!" all over it.

Darn! It's an insider thing, huh! That's alright, I better not touch another electronic component for a while anyway. My wife freaks that the house will burn down one of these days...

 

[letterk]

Darn! It's an insider thing, huh! That's alright, I better not touch another electronic component for a while anyway. My wife freaks that the house will burn down one of these days...

If you promise not to tell your wife, PM me.

 

[Rughi]

I think I've found more positives about the Behmor in this thread and its concurrent RIP Behmor thread than I've ever read before. A roaster that barely struggles to 2nd crack is mostly what I've read about it, but the modding spirit moves me.

Roger

 

[StillShaving]

IMO its price/performance and relative ease-of-use are its best qualities. My biggest annoyance is with the preset roast times, as I wish the roaster would allow extra time to be added during the roast. I understand the safety concerns but seems the machine controls could be locked down so that user could only add 30 seconds or so whenever there is less than 30 seconds to go on the roast cycle. That would prevent someone from walking away and forgetting about the roast. Instead one must reduce the amount of beans or do a short preheating cycle to cheat at the beginning of the roast cycle.

I did a couple of 7 oz batches today and found out how the ambient temperature affects the roast time. This summer I started roasting on the outside deck at 80-90 F degrees and was calibrated for that. Today it was only 60 degrees, and almost did not make it. Time to move back indoors.

 

[miket]

Honestly, I think the TurboCrazy can result in better coffee.

Interesting comment. Please explain further.

Mike

 

[joel]

I think I've found more positives about the Behmor in this thread and its concurrent RIP Behmor thread than I've ever read before. A roaster that barely struggles to 2nd crack is mostly what I've read about it, but the modding spirit moves me.

Roger

I was able to get well into 2nd crack with mine on Friday, roasting 1lb. Maybe mines "super powered" but I haven't had any issues with dark roasts. With that said, it fill my house with smoke when roasted that dark, which is pretty irritating.

 

[mouscacha]

I also got into second crack with time to spare this weekend. Got my first French roast using the behmor. My wife said she likes the flavor of the French roast, even though I prefer the full city better. Needless to say, I'd rather a happy wife and French roast, than the dog house with a nice cup-a-Joe.

 

[DogHair]

I found power requirements make a big difference. Roasting on the kitchen counter I have no problem reaching 2nd crack. Using the receptacle on the back porch I almost don't make 1st. Shutting off the A/C and/or dryer makes a noticeable difference.