Knowledge base

The locations of the air and bean thermocouples are somewhat unique to each coffee roaster design. The bean thermocouple probe is typically located towards the front of the drum where it is most likely to be in direct contact with the beans as they are roasting. The air thermocouple probe can be more difficult to physically locate, but it is typically located in an area of airflow immediately after the drum and is not in direct contact with the beans as they are roasting.

After you identify the locations of the air and bean thermocouples, you must consider the various stages of your roaster's operation to properly interpret their readout. Regardless of locations, the air and bean thermocouple readouts should be within 5-10 degrees Fahrenheit of each other (and the room's ambient temperature) at the beginning of the day before the heater is activated in the roaster. Once the heater is activated in the roaster and your product has been charged into the drum, the air and bean temperatures will begin to vary from each other. Typically, the air temperature is a forward indicator of future bean temperature when the hot air is steadily supplied to the drum. Professionals measure the difference between air and bean temperatures to project the bean temperature rate of change throughout the roast to achieve their desired flavor profile. A faster roast is often achieved with a greater difference between the air and bean temperatures. With advancements in technology, the difference between air and bean temperatures can be automatically managed with a customized computer profile for ease of operation and consistent quality.

Roast Master is a software application developed by US Roaster Corp for use with Hot Air Drum Roasting Equipment. Roast Master actively monitors the performance of your roast and automatically adjusts the operator controls to achieve a desired roast profile. With this software in place, after the roast has begun, the operator can focus on other aspects of business with the comfort of knowing that the roast will complete without issue. Take full advantage of the Roast Master and get more done! Watch a short demonstration of the Roast Master on our YouTube channel.

Auto-Roast Overdrive is a function on US Roaster Corp equipment that allows the burner temperature to increase if the roast temperature gets behind. The operator specifies the temperature that activates Auto-Roast Overdrive. Contact us for documentation and training on Auto-Roast Overdrive.

A Sample Roaster is a stand-alone miniature version of a larger roaster. The Sample Roaster is designed to roast approximately 1 lb of green coffee. Many operators use a Sample Roaster to test new coffee bean suppliers and blends before committing to large quantities. The USRC Sample Roaster is a perfect companion for perfecting your blend. See videos of our sample roasters on YouTube.

US Roaster Corp manufactures a Blower Loader Table capable of measuring and distributing pallet quantities of green coffee beans in a safe, efficient, and space saving environment.

A Destoner is a setup of commercial grade equipment designed to remove (heavy) foreign objects from the primary product. Rocks are a foreign object that are commonly found in a bag of green coffee. It is important to remove any rocks from coffee as early in the processing as possible (e.g. before roasting, before grinding). Failure to remove foreign objects prior to grinding will result in damaged grinder rolls/burrs and lost productivity. US Roaster Corp custom builds Destoners and all other coffee production equipment and would love to help you out today!

Studies have shown that Iron, Nickel, Cobalt, Chrome, and other metals can be found in samples of roasted coffee beans. If these metal fragments in your coffee are not removed they can cause unnecessary wear and tear on your grinder and ultimately end up in your favorite blend of coffee! At US Roaster Corp, we filter the roasted coffee beans with a series of rod magnets when we test our grinders.

See these walkthroughs from US Roaster Corp: YouTube: front bearing replacement (part 1), part 2.

See US Roaster Corp on YouTube for a walkthrough on replacing the fan motor on your roaster.

See US Roaster Corp on YouTube for a walkthrough on replacing a fuse on your roaster.

See US Roaster Corp on YouTube for a walkthrough on adjusting the drum on your roaster.

See US Roaster Corp on YouTube for more on the Mini Rev fuel-efficient, environmentally friendly sample roaster.