Contemplating Buying a Coffee Roaster … but

Ernie1

https://ikawahome.com/ ?

JHCCoffee

Ernie1 https://ikawahome.com/ ?

Thanks. But it only produces 100g of coffee. So that’s 4.5 roasts to produce 1 lb of coffee!

JHCCoffee

My min is 200g.

Ernie1

JHCCoffee

Sorry I realised after I posted it the capacity wasn’t 200g.

However as I understand it it only takes 10-12 mins to roast 100g and you can feed continuously up to a few kg. So all you’d need to do is drop another 100g in while it’s on.

I’ve been thinking about getting one and they seem quite confident that you can do ‘60 back to back roasts’ which is obviously 6kg a day. Admittedly not the fastest but if you were really roasting 6kg a day you’d probably be looking at a different roaster.

For a smokeless unit in a very nicely designed package I think it’s hard to beat their offering. Some people complain that custom roast profiles come at the cost of an app subscription but I think if it works as well as advertised it’s a very neat solution.

Again, for those of us without the option to vent in any way, it seems ideal.

MediumRoastSteam

Im yet to see how it’s physically possible for a coffee roaster to not produce smoke. Unless you don’t roast he beans, of course. I’d take smokeless with a pinch of salt.

I never seen or used one, but I had a few roasters, including a Sandbox Smart, and that produced smoke even with 100g roasts, which is its nominal capacity. The Behmor in fact did not produce visible smoke as it had an afterburner (e.g: it burned the smoke to a very high temperature creating micro particles). The room was left with an unpleasant smell for a few days.

Maybe the Ikawa dissipates smoke fast, maybe it has filters which will “trap” the smoke, I don’t know. But it will produce smoke as a by-product of roasting. It’s impossible for it not to happen.

MWJB

MediumRoastSteam Ikawa reviews say there is no visible smoke, but it can still trip smoke alarms so roasting under an extractor hood is common.

Ernie1

I agree it seems impossible for it to be smokeless but as above it does seem to be quite true. Maybe the slower speed of roasting and the capacity help filter the smoke quickly enough.

If it can indeed roast 60 100g batches back to back without smoke that would be very impressive.

Given the high price I’d expect to see people reviewing it as untrue if the smokeless claim was false.

MediumRoastSteam

Ernie1 Given the high price I’d expect to see people reviewing it as untrue if the smokeless claim was false.

I’m sure it’s a well designed product. Even on their website they explain how it works. But it’s about extraction, rather than suppression. Ultimately, the smoke has to go somewhere and, if you roast in a poorly ventilated environment, ultimately you’ll end up with smells and smoke.

Just because it’s expensive doesn’t mean it’s magical. But it’s likely a lot of effort and r&d had been put in to minimise the roast smoking.

The cynical in me, however, has a different opinion: it’s an expensive product, and people are unwilling to express the real opinions about it given the price paid for, so, when they come to sell it, the value of the product is kept high. That’s my view at least..

IMMV.

Ps: https://www.home-barista.com/blog/ikawa-home-roasting-system-review-t86206.html

Definitely not smokeless.

Ernie1

I didn’t mean it was magical because it was expensive, just that I thought people might complain if it didn’t do what it said after they’ve paid so much.

I know if I’d spent £1000+ on something that didn’t work as advertised I’d be complaining for sure.

MediumRoastSteam

MWJB - same with the Behmor, however you’d usually roast 250g or so, so you’ll get more smoke. Invisible, arguably more harmful, and it stinks.

I can say it because I had one, and I’d advise no one to roast indoors, even though it’s advertised as such. Unless, of course, you have an extractor fan so powerful which can effectively extract all the (invisible) smoke outside.

InfamousTuba

You can’t use an ikawa without having it by a window or under a kitchen extractor. It is definitely less smoky than other roasters but without ventilation it would be a hazard.

The home version of the ikawa doesn’t have as much control as the pro version but you can still roast well on it, and it is very hands off.

It is still more of a sample roaster so you would have to work out how much coffee you would go through and how many roasts that would require.

We switched to the roest l100 because it has increased consistency and better workflow but the ikawa was still very good and no real problems with the pro model

JHCCoffee

Ernie1 However as I understand it it only takes 10-12 mins to roast 100g and you can feed continuously up to a few kg. So all you’d need to do is drop another 100g in while it’s on.

Thanks for the guidance.

So to roast 1 lb, it would take 50 minutes?

I consume about 1 lb per week and like to rest my beans at least 2 weeks, so am I right in saying it would require 100 minutes (almost 2 hours) to produce two 1 pound bags? That’s a lot of time. Am I missing something here?

Cuprajake

Home roasting is fun. It’s an itch I scratched I came to the conclusion buying is best for me, as you roast alot at the start and not all are brilliant 😂

JonWoo187

JHCCoffee Of course many variables at play, but what I’ve read about the roaster in question is if you plan to go darker expect to cut the batch down to around 75 grams to offset that. Then of course factor in 16-18% loss due to moisture burning off, depending on development level obviously. Overpriced turds for those that want push button convenience, but to each their own.

MediumRoastSteam

JHCCoffee Am I missing something here

Nope. It’s a sample roaster.

MWJB

JonWoo187 What home roaster would you recommend for an apartment dweller, who can’t vent the smoke outside?

JonWoo187

MWJB Good question… if I was in that situation likely a GeneCafe and make a way to vent outdoors… either via an oven/range vent if it does vent outside and not simply recirculate OR use a piece of flex duct and push the exhaust out of a window. Where there’s a will there will always be a way. Regardless of what some roaster claims are with afterburners, etc. coffee will produce some smoke and of course messy chaff. I did apt living for yrs and roasted right on the 2nd floor balcony. Cleaned up any mess with a cordless blower and all was good.

Amberale

I have used a Kaffelogic Nano7 for the last couple of years.
I generally roast 4 × 100g batches on Saturday or Sunday morning while I do the cryptic crossword.
This takes a bit less than an hour and is then vac packed and rested for a week.
It gives me a bit over 300g of roasted beans and 16+ shots.

The new boost kit easily copes with 150g loads and is supposed to work with up to 200g.

I have only roasted inside once( in the laundry ) and it stank out the house.
There is no visible smoke but there is that distinctive coffee roasting stink and the Studmistress is not a coffee fan so I roast outside on the deck.
Plenty of Nano owners roast indoors under rangehoods but a lot also have weird/ugly venting contraptions.

The push button trud works brilliantly.

Ernie1

Useful thread! I’d have probably bought that Ikawa thinking I could just use it without venting! Glad I found out that’s not possible before buying.

I do agree it seems hugely overpriced. It’s just tough to find one that’s convenient for those of us without easy access to venting and also let’s be honest most home roasters look like someone’s reversed a narrow gauge steam engine into your house and connected a length of plastic tumble-dryer tubing.

I’m not averse to getting stuck in and would actually prefer one with more control than the Ikawa.

If only Probat or Diedrich made a countertop sample roaster…

That Roest one looks great but also pretty pricey. I’m guessing it’s aimed at commercial roasters doing samples than home roasters.

@Amberale i do like the look of that one. So you just run the power cable to your deck?
Roasting on the patio is definitely feasible for me so that would be a good solution.

Doram

FWIW, I used a Gene Cafe for a few years in an apartment. Used to put it on the window sill. The neighbours one commented that I “seem to like toast”. There was some smell inside too, but nothing that I couldn’t live with. Of course this is personal.

I now do it on the garage doorstep, venting to the garden, and obviously that’s more convenient.

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