 Diedrich Coffee RoasterA machine for roasting coffee. Or the person operating it! The basic requirements for a coffee roaster are a heating element that gets suitably hot and a mechanism... Found! This poor 12 K machine was stuck in the back of a semi for who knows how many years. It’s an older IR 12, maybe even a California machine before they moved to Idaho. |
 I have gotten pretty good at moving roasters around, and chose to use my pickup to haul it home, instead of the box truck. Forklifts are a blessing… |
 To most people, this roaster would look like a disaster, but I could tell that the machine was not used for that long … just used very, very poorly. A sight like this is horrifying. They didn’t even use B-Vent – this is single-wall galvanized pipe, maybe 16 gauge. |
 Here was the main issue – due to a few chaffChaff is paper-like skin that comes off the coffee in the roasting process. Chaff from roasting is part of the innermost skin (the silverskin) of the coffee fruit... fires and lack of cleaning, the blower fan was completely frozen up. I knew the fan and motor might need replacing, but hoped that it was simply stuck with residue. The later turned out to be the case… |
 This is the “cooling tray” perf. metal – not much cooling going on here…. |
 Under the perforated screen in the stirflex – wow – never cleaned. Some people never should have been allowed to touch a roaster. |
 Here is what the left side looked like with the panels off. |
 Here is what the right side looked like after cleaning. We spent about 2 weeks tearing the machine apart, cleaning everything, lubing everything, and reassembling it. Cleaning a really neglected roaster is no small task. It is knuckle-busting work. If you had a chance to buy a dirty roaster for $4000 less than a clean one … ˆ would go for the clean one. |
 The new Van Packer venting system, SS interior and mill finishSimilar to aftertaste, but it refers to the impression as the coffee leaves the palate. Aftertaste is the sensations gathered after the coffee has left the mouth. We... exterior, 6 inch ID, with velocity cone (no roof cap), and moisture drain. This is the latest type of roaster vent to maximize airflow, more along the lines of a motorcycle exhaust system than the way we used to think of roasters … like a rotating pizza oven! |
 Moving the roaster into position under the new Van Packer venting system … I don’t look to happy here… The vent system was self-installed and I bought it via Ponderosa. You need to weld a bit to install it yourself. |
 The installed roaster from above. You can see the custom 5 inch smooth 90-degree bend Boyd at Ponderosa made for me. That makes for better airflow and better maintenance. It is welded to the Diedrich. In the foreground you can see the support bracket I welded to fully support the weight of the stack, so it is not hanging by the roof, or being held up by the roaster. |
 One casualty in the process (well, besides my blackened fingernail when I pinched it under the roaster) … it was Judy’s hedgehog toy stuck in the wheel of the Crown lift. Oh well … |
