Byron thank you for your informative video. I purchased one of these poppers, disabled the tstat and roasted many batches successfully being a new roaster. However my last several batches I could not get past the 1st crack, not near dark enough. I was stumped as to why, the temps have dropped recently as I do this on the garage. It finally hit m after watching your tips, originally I placed on my workbench and plugged into an a close outlet. I moved to the floor to make chaff easier to clean and used an extension cord; bingo, the cord would not allow it to get hot enough to finish the roast. Great lesson learned. Now I need to fabricate a lid/cover as mine has melted. Thanks again.
You missed my favorite method to increase roast temp: Put your roaster in a cardboard box! A box will contain the hot air blown from the popper and increase temp. Tall, thinner boxes will increase temp more than short, wide boxes so you can really dial it in with some practice. Boxes also contain chaff.
If your beans aren't going through the different stages of roast in the beginning, i.e. yellowing/drying and not reading first crack, it's not getting hot enough.
Hi, I have a quick question. Based on my learning from other videos, the roasting temperature profile is before putting the beans into the hopper, the temperature is heating up to about 400F. However I viewed all of the videos that uses Fresh Roast roaster machines, the beans are inside the roaster before turning on the machine. So, what is your thoughts on this? Shall we heating up the roaster first before putting beans in the hopper?
Most of the heat used to roast in air roasters is from the air being blown through the bean mass. Although the roaster itself gets pretty hot, conductive heat doesn't play much of a role so preheating isn't as important.
Using an extension cord and/or a power strip can help. Also, try roasting a smaller batch size. We haven't heard of anyone adding fins but if you try it, let us know how it goes.
I purchased a vintage poppery II,...from what I understand, the vintage made in USA ones have a higher wattage,....meaning hotter roast. It's in the mail, but I have high hopes I will have excellent coffee!
Are you using our Popper is a Coffee Roaster, or another machine? If it's the former, please reach out to info@sweetmarias.com, and we can help you troubleshoot!
Huh. My issue with the WBAC is it getting TOO hot. I've had some (really, really gross) 3 minute FC roasts in it. I've found that i have to put it over a grate to give a better airflow and let it cool off a little.
thesch Using a grate is a good idea. We also recommend using a long extension cord and a power strip to slow your roast down a bit. Roasting outdoors without the plastic hood will cool things down a bit too.
I saw someone add "a $15 variable speed router controller" in order to control the voltage/temperature he wanted to roast. I'm thinking that's the winning ticket. it's a sponsored sweet marias unboxing video, where the guy also talks about the homemade popcorn popper roasting method he uses. Must watch. I have no association with any of these guys, just researching myself. th-cam.com/video/_RbUCO_MM20/w-d-xo.html
+Stephen Sarine We are usually able to get great roasts without any modifications. It really depends on the levels of electricity in your home and the ambient air temperature. Some folks who live in older buildings or in colder climates have removed the thermostats in their poppers in order to get them up to temperature. Our forum is an excellent place to learn more about popper mods. www.sweetmariascoffee.com/forum/index.php
Hi Paulette. Sorry to hear about that. Was it one of the popper we have sold in the past (Westbend or Nostalgia)? Although we have experienced some warping under heavy use, we haven't seen them melt, especially the Westbend.
@@SweetMariasCoffee . Yep. that's exactly where it is. I just finished roasting 4 batches!!! Oh the wonderful aroma. I wish I could have a cup right now!!!
Skipping the extension cord to get a higher voltage?? ... please forgive me for pointing out, that in electrical engineering there are precise formulas to calculate the resistance that longer copper cable lengths create, dropping thus slightly the voltage;-however, any notable difference is over several meters, meaning a short 2 - 3.5m extension cable has hardly any veritable impact on increasing resistance. Instead, open the popcorn making device you have, and remove then bridge or "unattach" with care the safety feature which is an installed thermostat on the outer part of the popcorn making drum ... which usually is simply glued to the cylinder receiving the popcorn. This safety feature is simply there to make sure the device does not overheat and therefore shuts it down as a precaution, and by consequence inhibits you from reaching certain desired roasting temperatures. (As always, a certain amount of common sense and attention is advised!) In addition, adding more coffee beans reduces the heat of any drum roasting or simple popcorn making device (Read: turn around point). As a simple analogy: if you boil water and drop a small amount of vegetables into the water or a large amount ... makes all the difference in dropping drastically the water temperature and proportionally the time that it takes for the water to reach again its boiling point. Last, blocking the airflow of any device, is not really recommended unless you want it to overheat seriously in a short amount of time, with the interesting result of having to buy a new one ...
Actually, I discovered it for myself (even before watching the video). My first roast ever took 10 minutes to first crack using extension cord- 2nd try - 4 minutes plugged in the wall to a different outlet. Granted on the first outlet, there wa TV and computer connected and blew a fuae right at the first crack timeframe. Those popcorn poppers are power hogs!
There isn’t any significant voltage drop, rather these devices draw a lot of current, like your hair dryer. Plugging it into wall socket directly instead of via the power board means other appliances won’t be drawing current from the same outlet as well. Your house voltage stays the same at 110v in North America, or 220-230v in other countries. If you draw too much current you’ll just trip the circuit breaker (or blow the fuse) in your distribution box outside your house. In countries with a 230V supply, the amount of current drawn is half of that on a 110V circuit, assuming the same power rating (watts).
I just finally burned out my West Bend Air Crazy popper, purchased for $20, after 6 months of continuous roasting, for hours on end just about every day. I only use 1 butter dish full of beans per roast and I'm roasting until the second crack. Note: everything worked fine until I noticed the outer plastic melting/burning where the heating element resides inside.
Byron thank you for your informative video. I purchased one of these poppers, disabled the tstat and roasted many batches successfully being a new roaster. However my last several batches I could not get past the 1st crack, not near dark enough. I was stumped as to why, the temps have dropped recently as I do this on the garage. It finally hit m after watching your tips, originally I placed on my workbench and plugged into an a close outlet. I moved to the floor to make chaff easier to clean and used an extension cord; bingo, the cord would not allow it to get hot enough to finish the roast. Great lesson learned. Now I need to fabricate a lid/cover as mine has melted. Thanks again.
Have you tried disassembling the popper to examine the impeller (fan) part? My popper sucked in enough chaff to restrict airflow.
@somercet1 The extension cord was my issue. Learned the same thing from a water pump. Didn't work.
You missed my favorite method to increase roast temp: Put your roaster in a cardboard box! A box will contain the hot air blown from the popper and increase temp. Tall, thinner boxes will increase temp more than short, wide boxes so you can really dial it in with some practice. Boxes also contain chaff.
Great tips.
And really helpful responses from your fans.
I bought two poppers from good will. They work great. Have been roasting for three years. Buy my coffee beans from you guys. Always great service.
How do you know you need the popper to be hotter? Just getting into this, excited to learn!
If your beans aren't going through the different stages of roast in the beginning, i.e. yellowing/drying and not reading first crack, it's not getting hot enough.
Hi, I have a quick question. Based on my learning from other videos, the roasting temperature profile is before putting the beans into the hopper, the temperature is heating up to about 400F. However I viewed all of the videos that uses Fresh Roast roaster machines, the beans are inside the roaster before turning on the machine.
So, what is your thoughts on this? Shall we heating up the roaster first before putting beans in the hopper?
Most of the heat used to roast in air roasters is from the air being blown through the bean mass. Although the roaster itself gets pretty hot, conductive heat doesn't play much of a role so preheating isn't as important.
Any way to decrease the heat? Living in Europe, so my power outlet is double yours 😉. Also, would adding extra fins inside do much?
Using an extension cord and/or a power strip can help. Also, try roasting a smaller batch size. We haven't heard of anyone adding fins but if you try it, let us know how it goes.
Air poppers made in Europe should be designed to operate at the same temperature on 240v as a US model on 120v.
I purchased a vintage poppery II,...from what I understand, the vintage made in USA ones have a higher wattage,....meaning hotter roast. It's in the mail, but I have high hopes I will have excellent coffee!
What to do if my popper shuts off early, doesn’t allow me to get much development?
Are you using our Popper is a Coffee Roaster, or another machine? If it's the former, please reach out to info@sweetmarias.com, and we can help you troubleshoot!
Chaff does indeed get sucked in. I had to clean out my popper when it began blocking the air into the roasting chamber.
Huh. My issue with the WBAC is it getting TOO hot. I've had some (really, really gross) 3 minute FC roasts in it. I've found that i have to put it over a grate to give a better airflow and let it cool off a little.
thesch Using a grate is a good idea. We also recommend using a long extension cord and a power strip to slow your roast down a bit. Roasting outdoors without the plastic hood will cool things down a bit too.
I saw someone add "a $15 variable speed router controller" in order to control the voltage/temperature he wanted to roast. I'm thinking that's the winning ticket. it's a sponsored sweet marias unboxing video, where the guy also talks about the homemade popcorn popper roasting method he uses. Must watch. I have no association with any of these guys, just researching myself. th-cam.com/video/_RbUCO_MM20/w-d-xo.html
Have you found that you have had to adjust/remove the thermostat?
+Stephen Sarine We are usually able to get great roasts without any modifications. It really depends on the levels of electricity in your home and the ambient air temperature. Some folks who live in older buildings or in colder climates have removed the thermostats in their poppers in order to get them up to temperature. Our forum is an excellent place to learn more about popper mods. www.sweetmariascoffee.com/forum/index.php
I tried your suggestion putting the cover on- it melted the it !!!!
Hi Paulette. Sorry to hear about that. Was it one of the popper we have sold in the past (Westbend or Nostalgia)? Although we have experienced some warping under heavy use, we haven't seen them melt, especially the Westbend.
Sweet Maria's Coffee It’s a nostalgia and I guess warping/deformed is a better way to describe it! It still works fine
@@iampaulettetahan Ah, got it. Yes, it's normal for them to warp a bit, especially near the end where there are vent slots cut into the plastic.
@@SweetMariasCoffee . Yep. that's exactly where it is. I just finished roasting 4 batches!!! Oh the wonderful aroma. I wish I could have a cup right now!!!
@@iampaulettetahan You totally can but it will taste a lot better if you brew your cup tomorrow. Happy roasting!
Skipping the extension cord to get a higher voltage?? ... please forgive me for pointing out, that in electrical engineering there are precise formulas to calculate the resistance that longer copper cable lengths create, dropping thus slightly the voltage;-however, any notable difference is over several meters, meaning a short 2 - 3.5m extension cable has hardly any veritable impact on increasing resistance.
Instead, open the popcorn making device you have, and remove then bridge or "unattach" with care the safety feature which is an installed thermostat on the outer part of the popcorn making drum ... which usually is simply glued to the cylinder receiving the popcorn. This safety feature is simply there to make sure the device does not overheat and therefore shuts it down as a precaution, and by consequence inhibits you from reaching certain desired roasting temperatures.
(As always, a certain amount of common sense and attention is advised!)
In addition, adding more coffee beans reduces the heat of any drum roasting or simple popcorn making device (Read: turn around point). As a simple analogy: if you boil water and drop a small amount of vegetables into the water or a large amount ... makes all the difference in dropping drastically the water temperature and proportionally the time that it takes for the water to reach again its boiling point.
Last, blocking the airflow of any device, is not really recommended unless you want it to overheat seriously in a short amount of time, with the interesting result of having to buy a new one ...
Actually, I discovered it for myself (even before watching the video). My first roast ever took 10 minutes to first crack using extension cord- 2nd try - 4 minutes plugged in the wall to a different outlet. Granted on the first outlet, there wa TV and computer connected and blew a fuae right at the first crack timeframe. Those popcorn poppers are power hogs!
There isn’t any significant voltage drop, rather these devices draw a lot of current, like your hair dryer. Plugging it into wall socket directly instead of via the power board means other appliances won’t be drawing current from the same outlet as well. Your house voltage stays the same at 110v in North America, or 220-230v in other countries. If you draw too much current you’ll just trip the circuit breaker (or blow the fuse) in your distribution box outside your house. In countries with a 230V supply, the amount of current drawn is half of that on a 110V circuit, assuming the same power rating (watts).
I just finally burned out my West Bend Air Crazy popper, purchased for $20, after 6 months of continuous roasting, for hours on end just about every day. I only use 1 butter dish full of beans per roast and I'm roasting until the second crack. Note: everything worked fine until I noticed the outer plastic melting/burning where the heating element resides inside.
This shall be known as the high voltage popping video.
If you can find one of those old school poppers from the 1970s they run hotter.