# Gene Cafe Roaster 250g - Opinion



## MediumRoastSteam

I've seen the BB clear out list and the Gene Cafe Roaster 250g caught my attention.

I never roasted coffee before, so I am wondering a few things, and I hope someone with experience could give me some advice:

- What's the likelihood of getting it wrong?

- How long does it take to roast 250g, to a medium/dark level?

- Is it the roast reproduceable?

- Is it worth the while for someone like me who drinks 2 espressos cups a day?

Thanks!


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## Rob1

.1) By following advice available on the forum and in the coffeetime.wiki you will benefit from experience of others and greatly reduce your chances of having a bad roast. By modifying the roaster for greater heat control you'll reduce the chances again.

2) Inc emptying chaff collector (not deep clean), sweeping out the vents of the drum, weighing out your coffee, preparing to log roast progression, cooling beans, weighing and storing about 40 mins. (10 prep + 15 Roast + 10 cooling + 5 weight and store). While the cooling cycle is running you can be saving logs and making notes on roast progression if there's anything you want to change for the next roast.

3) Not really without a power and energy monitor to account for fluctuations in voltage and recommended modifications.

4) That's subjective. Depending on how expensive to coffee you're buying is it could take a long time to see returns, if ever. If you're interested in roasting and will enjoy the process then it's worth it IMO. You can take any given coffee and roast it for espresso or brew rather than relying on whatever somebody else is producing, and you can explore different profiles to bring out different flavours.

When you say two espressos you mean doubles right?


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## MediumRoastSteam

Yep, two doubles  @Rob1


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## MildredM

I can't comment on the specifics for that roaster but I can say if you have a hankering to dabble in roasting, then go for it! When you crack (!) it and get really good results it feels great


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## Norvin

@Rob1 has answered your points better than I can and I haven't had mine for very long, I have only done four roasts so far, but can give a few observations.

I am working my way through the second batch at the moment, it could be better but it is still very drinkable. If you follow the suggested roast profiles you shouldn't produce anything undrinkable. I look forward to slowly getting more proficient at producing batches to suit my taste.

The dimmer mod is very easy and cheap to do, I got the dimmer from eBay for about £12 and made the rest up from spares, you will need a power monitor if you don't already have one. I understand that this mod has been superceded by a cheaper power controller mod not detailed on the Wiki, but I found that out after I had ordered the bits. One tip, after assembling the bits I tried to test it on the bench with a multimeter. It showed no continuity and I was convinced that I had been sent a duff dimmer. After much fiddling and bad language I then remembered that I had read that the dimmer doesn't pass current below a certain level. I assembled it again and tested with a lamp in place of the heater and everything worked! That should have gone in the muppetry thread.

Allow for shrinkage when comparing costs of beans but it is probably still financially worthwhile, but for me that isn't the main reason for having it. It's a great new toy, they seem to sell on eBay for about the same as Bella are/were selling it in their sale, so even if you don't get on with it, you shouldn't lose much money.

Go on, you know you want one.


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## MediumRoastSteam

Question: How smokey does it get? I live in a modern housing estate, where unfortunately houses are quite close together. If I get one of those, I am thinking of using it mainly outside or in the shed, so the smoke can vent out. I don't think there is any prospect of keeping this inside the house with a vent to the outside (lack of space).

Two questions:

- What's the likelihood of the neighbourhood getting annoyed with coffee roasting smell / smoke every other week? That doesn't bother me, but it may bother others. I am a very considerate person. 

- Would my proposed roasting places (outdoors or in the shed) be advisable?

Thanks everyone for the replies so far, much appreciated.


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## DavecUK

MediumRoastSteam said:


> Question: How smokey does it get? I live in a modern housing estate, where unfortunately houses are quite close together. If I get one of those, I am thinking of using it mainly outside or in the shed, so the smoke can vent out. I don't think there is any prospect of keeping this inside the house with a vent to the outside (lack of space).
> 
> Two questions:
> 
> - What's the likelihood of the neighbourhood getting annoyed with coffee roasting smell / smoke every other week? That doesn't bother me, but it may bother others. I am a very considerate person.
> 
> - Would my proposed roasting places (outdoors or in the shed) be advisable?
> 
> Thanks everyone for the replies so far, much appreciated.


The small amount of beans in the Gene won't generate enough smoke to bother anyone when you're roasting outside.


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## MildredM

I agree. It's minimal. I used the Behmor and Hottop indoors, right under the extractor fan. There was a hint of roast coffee scent outside, enough for the postie to comment one day that the coffee smelled good!


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## tonerei

Am in the same boat re gene roaster.They seem expensive at full price and from looking on the net suggestions seem to be they don't last very long. Are there other better alternatives? One weakness seems to be the cooling function. Is there a way of improving that? What is the power monitor? This hobby seems like computer audio! Tinkering required to get to the top of the class!!


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## Rob1

They don't last very long? Hmmm had mine since August 2013. Cleaned out the dust net about four times (due again soon) and the chaff collector three times. Have never lubed the gears. E stopped for a while to cool but stopped when I realised there was no difference and it could cause damage to the roaster. I've roasted over 50kg of coffee in it and most of those roasts have stopped either at the start of second crack or just before, though I've been roasting a little lighter for the past 10kg or so. The only sign of failure I've had is the need to replace the high temp sealant around the heating element box.

Edit: You could try building your own.


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## johnealey

You can speed up the demise of a gene (or any other heated item) by operating it outside of its design constraints in the case of the gene by dumping the beans at a high temperature mistakenly thinking this is a good thing: it isn't and makes no difference in the cup. Let it run through its proper cooling cycle and they are pretty bulletproof.

If you want advice from owners of a gene in the real world (such as the above) you will find owners on here willing to share their experiences and a quick red through of the todays roast thread will give you some solid pointers re roast times etc plus there is a link to the coffeetime wiki for the power mod when you get comfy with the std roaster

Hope of help

John


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## tonerei

Thanks for the advice especially re cool down. I will have a look around the various threads and take on board the various suggestions.







Involved in enough building mayhem with hifi and have had my share of mishaps. Wont be taking on the challenge of building my own roaster.


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## MatthewBw

That advice is very handy and is perhaps putting me off a second hand one as you never know how the owner has used it I guess.

I have been looking at the Kaldi which are more manual ones too, although not much about them on here.


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## DavecUK

tonerei said:


> Am in the same boat re gene roaster.They seem expensive at full price and from looking on the net suggestions seem to be they don't last very long. Are there other better alternatives? One weakness seems to be the cooling function. Is there a way of improving that? What is the power monitor? This hobby seems like computer audio! Tinkering required to get to the top of the class!!


The pre march 2007 Genes were problematic, but there were significant revisions made for the Bella Barista model including a 240V heating element I insisted on. Most roasters sold are still in operation 10 years later. I knew of many that were roasting 4 batches a week for almost 10 years without a problem. It's one of the single most reliable electronic items BB sell, they get hardly any warranty problems with them and they sell a LOT (much more than most on this forum would think. There are 1000s of genes out there in the UK.

I only know of 1 roaster that has had 240V heating element failures and that was being use commercially roasting all day almost every day and constantly emergency stopped for speed. The cooling function is fine and emergency stop does not need to be used. Most of the negative comments are for the US 110V roasters which have been misunderstood, badly retailed and probably have an actual 110V heating element in which will be overvolted in most states. My own Gene Cafe would be 10 years old now and I imagine is still going strong in the hands of it's current owner (forum member).

They are not needy on cleaning and need little maintenance save the odd spray of silicon lube.

This was my roaster when I sold it at 7 years old (as usual with my stuff it had been looked after) and really did look almost new (not because it had not been used), In fairness, I guess it had not received as much use as 7 years because I had had other larger roasters! during the period. However lets say at least 4 or 5 years use from a normal coffee drinker. It also did all the test roasting as it was the review model. It also never gave a single problem in all the years I had it.


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## MediumRoastSteam

I'm definitely considering getting one of these soonish.

Would it be advisable to roast inside the house (i.e: Kitchen or garage, or even upstairs in the spare room?), and have some sort of flexible flue extension that would vent the smoke out of the window?

Thanks!


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## Norvin

MediumRoastSteam said:


> I'm definitely considering getting one of these soonish.
> 
> Would it be advisable to roast inside the house (i.e: Kitchen or garage, or even upstairs in the spare room?), and have some sort of flexible flue extension that would vent the smoke out of the window?
> 
> Thanks!


 Depends on your circumstances.

A hose venting through the window will always work well. If you have a cooker hood that vents to the outside, you could roast under it. If you attach a hose you may not be able to hear the cracks very well, and the sound of the hood fans will mask them too.

I have mine in an outhouse where I can do other things while keeping an eye on it (you shouldn't leave it unattended). I have positioned it on a work surface near an open door with the vent next to a wall, I have convinced myself that I can hear the cracks better there as the noise is reflected off the wall.


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## Robbo

I bought mine second hand about 18 months ago and have roasted about 60-70 kgs through it since then. Sometimes 4 or 5 batches one after the other.

Ive always used the cooling cycle down to 100degs without dumping the beans early or preheating.

Being an electrical engineer and a general tinkerer i have had the thing in pieces when i bought it and again when i did the dimmer mod. I can tel you now its a robust piece of kit made of quality components and should last a very long time if used properly.

The only maintenance i do is to thoroughly clean out the chaff collector and drum every 2-3 months. Smoke isnt much of an issue. I have a vent going out of the window.

The thing that takes time to learn is how the different types/origins of coffee behave during roasting. The Bella Barista 10kg green beans deal is a good way to learn. You get 2kg of 5 different origins. Which is 8x 250g batches of each coffee.

They are great value if you consider the resale value and how much youll save on buying greens compared to roasted. Plus you have the bragging rights to say you roasted it yourself!


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## Rob1

Coffee compass and Rave sell the greens they roast so you can buy a bag of roasted and a KG or two of greens to play with to try and get close to what they're producing. I'd always recommend at least 2kg of beans so you can find the roast that works best and repeat it a few times.


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## tonerei

Thanks Dave, Robbo. I have been roasting with 3 popcorn makers but one died a death, Now down to 2. A friend does it this way and got me in on it. But definitely if I want to continue looks like the gene cafe is the realistic way to go. Thanks again


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## MediumRoastSteam

Quick question: If you were to make a flexible flue so I could vent the smoke out of the window, how would you go about and making one? What are the materials involved and where would you buy it from? Thank you!


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## DavecUK

MediumRoastSteam said:


> Quick question: If you were to make a flexible flue so I could vent the smoke out of the window, how would you go about and making one? What are the materials involved and where would you buy it from? Thank you!


You simply buy something like this stuff

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Flexible-Aluminium-Ducting-Hose-Round-Ventilation-Tube-Flexi-Duct-Flexipipe-/252104526688?var=550947671843&hash=item3ab299cb60:m:m8EhbP1zsJp189SyoTmQGEg


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## Rob1

I use an exhaust duct from an old dryer. You need to make sure it isn't too long.


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## tonerei

Got to Bellabarista on Friday and certainly enjoyed the visit. The industrial park well not a really good description as it is a really quaint collection of red brick units with a wide variety of shops and really nice coffee shop/delicatessen compliments the Bellabarista shop. DaveL is as helpful as many others here have pointed out. He spent a long time with me going through the various coffee machines in the range and honing in on what he felt would work best for me. I ended up buying the genecafe machine they had left from their sale. Has a bit of a glitch with the heat up cycle. Cuts out when it hits 100degree's. Seems there is a new 2017 pcb fitted but it is a 2016 model. Turning off and back on and the machine then heats normally. Hopeful it should work out and a nice saving on a full price model. Looking forward to getting to know it and hopefully work my way up to the mods when I get comfortable with the roasting process. Dave recommended the Classika for my preference of espresso's but I was rather taken with the Quickmill Verona he used initially. Anyway that is for the future.


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## MediumRoastSteam

tonerei said:


> Got to Bellabarista on Friday and certainly enjoyed the visit. The industrial park well not a really good description as it is a really quaint collection of red brick units with a wide variety of shops and really nice coffee shop/delicatessen compliments the Bellabarista shop. DaveL is as helpful as many others here have pointed out. He spent a long time with me going through the various coffee machines in the range and honing in on what he felt would work best for me. I ended up buying the genecafe machine they had left from their sale. Has a bit of a glitch with the heat up cycle. Cuts out when it hits 100degree's. Seems there is a new 2017 pcb fitted but it is a 2016 model. Turning off and back on and the machine then heats normally. Hopeful it should work out and a nice saving on a full price model. Looking forward to getting to know it and hopefully work my way up to the mods when I get comfortable with the roasting process. Dave recommended the Classika for my preference of espresso's but I was rather taken with the Quickmill Verona he used initially. Anyway that is for the future.


I was thinking about this - looking at videos, appears that some models cooled down to 60C (and then switch off) whereas newer ones do so at 100C.

I'm wondering whether this is the cause for f the cut-off, almost like as if there's something extra component there, like a thermostat which should be changed too to match the PCB?


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## tonerei

Not sure I am new to this it would be great if it was something simple like a thermostat. Funnily enough when I turned it on first it appeared to have gone as the roaster just heated up without any error code. But when I roasted it was back. Just means I have to turn the machine back on at that point. I understand now what all the talk about profiling. dimmer mod etc is about. My first roast was a little too long and trying to judge when to end it and go into the cool down is a bit of an art. Delighted with it the two roasts are nice and even compared to the mess and noise with the pop corn makers.


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## G.F.

I had it for a couple of years and I think it's very descent roaster to starting home roasting.


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## NAJB

I bought my GC in 2013 and it has worked without any operational fault for nearly 500 roasts. One small chaff smoulder (entirely my fault, a failure to empty the chaff collector) the only blemish and even them it was an easy machine to clean. A friend with an older but less well-used GC has had a T/C and heater failure.

500 roasts at a price of around £350 plus about 150kWh (about £20) or less than £1 per 220g bag. I think it has earned its keep.

Mine continues the cool-down cycle until 60C is reached.

A good introduction to a more controllable roast, it replaced a HotTop that was starting to die. Judging when to finish the heating cycle is a bit of a challenge as the beans continue to roast whilst cooling air is introduced.

It is now used to roast trial batches as I use an Amazon; rather inexpertly.


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## tonerei

MediumRoastSteam said:


> I was thinking about this - looking at videos, appears that some models cooled down to 60C (and then switch off) whereas newer ones do so at 100C.
> 
> I'm wondering whether this is the cause for f the cut-off, almost like as if there's something extra component there, like a thermostat which should be changed too to match the PCB?


A few months later coming back to this post as it didn't make sense to me at the time and your thinking is most probably right. My machine cools down to 60C. Strangely for most of my roasts I have no problem with the 100C cut out. It operates the complete cycle as you would expect. But as per usual something weird always occurs! Recent roast the unit kept giving the error code for one roast no matter the temperature. I somehow got through the roast but it must have lasted 30mins. It has been fine since.

Like many others here I would highly recommend the roaster. Not aware of any other unit at a similar price point.


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## MediumRoastSteam

tonerei said:


> A few months later coming back to this post as it didn't make sense to me at the time and your thinking is most probably right. My machine cools down to 60C. Strangely for most of my roasts I have no problem with the 100C cut out. It operates the complete cycle as you would expect. But as per usual something weird always occurs! Recent roast the unit kept giving the error code for one roast no matter the temperature. I somehow got through the roast but it must have lasted 30mins. It has been fine since.
> 
> Like many others here I would highly recommend the roaster. Not aware of any other unit at a similar price point.


On that topic, I noticed that, on my gene:

- if I tap the cool down button once, it cools down to 60;

- twice and cools down to 100 (fast cool down cycle).


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## iroko

Same Here

One press standard cool down,60.

Press twice fast cool down, 100.


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## tonerei

Ah thanks lads I will give that a go I would hope mine operates the same.


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## Tsangpa

How easy was it to get reliably good results with the Gene cafe?


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## MediumRoastSteam

Tsangpa said:


> How easy was it to get reliably good results with the Gene cafe?


That's a good question.

I've only had the gene for a few months and only roasted 4 kilos of coffee in total. Saying that, I have roasted relatively easy beans, like Brazilian, Peruvian, Colombian and Sumatran. I also had the opportunity to have the same beans roasted by a professional roaster. Are they better roasted by a professional? Yes, it is indeed. What's the fun in that though? 

To date, however, I haven't had a bad roast. They are not "wow", but they are good, so that answers your question positively.

Now, if you had asked "Can you reliably get a good roast and obtain the same results over and over?" Well, I don't know yet, as I only recently modified my grinder to allow me better temperature control.

Look at the "Today's Roast" thread, or even on this thread. You'll see that there are a few of us here, very happy Gene Cafe owners. 

Hope that helps answering your question.


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## Redlorryyellow

Think this will be my next purchase.


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## Coffeejon

Tsangpa said:


> How easy was it to get reliably good results with the Gene cafe?


Having had 2 of them, they are great value, especially if you can get one 2nd hand. As far as reliably good results, make sure you write down your roasts, pre-heat exactly the same & clean yr chaff filter regularly, then you can get very good reliable results.


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## DavecUK

They are a great little introduction to the hobby of roasting. At which time you can either sit happy with the Gene and drink all your coffee from it, or also buy from larger commercial roasters as well. If you find you really like it....you can decide whether to take the hobby to the next level. At which time you start looking at other, usually larger roasters.


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