# Gene, Light Roast



## Mr Karlsen

I have been roasting for a bit on my (unmodded) Gene roaster, and I am having a hard time hitting some nice, light roasts.

I am using a washed Colombian, 1500-1800m - using 250g, no pre-heating, and cooling down to 100C in the Gene, and then externally until they are cool.

I tend to hit 1st crack after about 13-14 minutes, and my problem is that if I keep roasting after 1st crack my beans start to get burned. So, I fear that I either underdevelop the beans or burn them..

My best tasting try so far, hit 1st crack at 14 min and lowered the temp 5C right away, and started cooling only 25 seconds after 1st crack. The beans seemed to be a bit uneven, and some of them too dark/scorched.

- Do the beans continue to develop while in the cooling phase? eg. could I start cooling right at 1st crack? (just seems super early to me).

I could use some tips on how to achieve better light roasts on the Gene, thanks!

Mr. Karlsen


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## Batian

If the machine was bought from Bella Barista you should have some additional notes written by davecuk of this forum.

If it was bought secondhand, try going back to the seller to see if they bought from BB and have the notes.

Those notes are really helpful in getting a feel for the machine and will go a long way to solving your problem.

BB will not send the notes out unless you buy the machine!









'Fair do's' really.

You Columbian coffee is likely to be a 'soft' bean and would probably do well with a 'Gentle Rise' profile.

Failing getting the notes, re post........


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## ajohn

I'd suggest you try this approach from the Gene manual









Not at all happy about the taste notes in that but time to some stage may come into it as well.

But bear in mind that using 230C could take the beans to 2nd crack if left in long enough. You might find 220C an interesting one to try if you want first crack, time likely to be circa 20min for plenty of cracks. Plus maybe heat proof gloves to get them out immediately. Toolstation etc welding gauntlets.

John

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## Rob1

You didn't say what temp you get up to just that you drop by 5c...

Do you notice burning earlier in the roast such as when the beans are moving from yellow to brown?


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## Mr Karlsen

Thanks for the input!

I will definitely look into trying the gentle rise profile.

I'm sorry I forgot to mention my temp setting (I meant to do this..) - I have used set temps in the range of 235-238C, and then dropped by 5C when I hit first crack (sometimes happened before hitting end temp).

It could seem that this temp is a bit high? (I got this from reading many other forum posts).

I have not noticed any burning early in the roast, and I did try to keep an eye out for this.


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## Rob1

Are the beans progressing evenly through development, as in turning yellow all at the same time, browning all at the same time, and hitting first crack together for an obvious start to first crack (like a couple of pops and then within 30 seconds a whole load of them). If first crack does progress like that does it tail off in the same way or does it seem to be over very quickly? Lowering your temp effectively turns your heating element off until the roaster cools to the temp you have set it to so if you drop by too much you could cool the beans and stall the roast (a reason to carry out the dimmer mod).

If progression is even and you aren't getting burning to the tips of the beans as the temps increase I'd just say go for a 235c setting and drop by 5c just before first gets going and another 5c when it has finished it's most active phase and you're just expecting stragglers to pop (when does it reach 235c when you roast?). You need to provide times and temperatures to get any help really, as well as details of how the roast progresses. Your temp setting just tells me you've limited the temp to 235c-238c, not that the roaster ever reached that temp.

It could be that after first your beans will just burn and progress very easily in which case the only solution really would be the dimmer mod.


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## Mr Karlsen

It seems that the beans do develop quite evenly along the roast, up until they starting nearing 1st crack.

Here are some fotos of my most recent roast, which is quite representative of most of my roasts. (I did try to follow the gentle rise profile, although it seemed to have not made that much of a difference).

I had a set temp of 230c, and held for 1 min 15 secs (this is around minutes 12-13.15) the beans were already getting very brown at this stage, but 1st crack didn't happen until around 14 minutes (I did hear some outliers around 13:40).

So at 13.15 I set the temp for 240, and kept this till the end of the roast (almost). It only reached 235, then I started cooling as beans were starting to get too dark.

The problem(s) I am having, is that the beans seem to get too dark already when 1st crack happens. And the roasts also tend to get quite uneven (this particular roast seemed to get a bit more uneven than previous ones).

I feel like I want to end the roast sooner, when judging just by the color during the roast, but that would mean I would end the roast when 1st crack is just happening..

Below are some pictures of my little log, where you can see temp progression etc. and a few pictures of the beans.

I appreciate you taking the time to help me out!

  

.

..


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## Rob1

It's difficult to say really, the beans could be being burned by temps around 235c or they could be burned just because of the heating element on/off action. If you follow my advice above you might get better results, then again you might need to keep the 230c limit, or maybe neither will stop the burning in which case you really need to do the mod.

I can say you should not have kept going at full heat after first started as your notes show. You might have had a slightly longer roast if you didn't increase the temp at all...the problem with giving advice is what you need to do varies. Some beans will really take off at first crack and others will.need pushing through, so for some you need to predict when it's going to happen and adjust the heat before it even starts, for others that will stall the roast. That said it doesn't look like your roasts are taking off that badly considering you kept blasting them with full heat through FC so adjusting heat when FC starts is likely going to work for you.


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## Batian

Have you checked your power supply? Using one of these helps make decisions:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ENERGENIE-Energy-Saving-Power-Meter-for-any-UK-Household-Appliance-UK/351796331471?hash=item51e8b203cf:g:hecAAMXQEgpTDixv

I also seem to remember something about the heater elements being different for UK models and elsewhere in Europe, 240v for UK and 230v for mainland Europe?

Check you have the mainland Europe model not the UK model---sticker on underside.

A forum member in Italy(?) had this problem last year.


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## Mr Karlsen

Thank you for your input!

Rob, I did a roast after this one trying to follow your advice - the beans came out a lot less uneven, but still getting burned. I will be trying some roasts at 230c later.

In Denmark we have 230V - and my Gene model is also a 230V. Could this be impacting my results?

I have not checked my power supply yet, but this is on my to do list as well as probably trying to do the dimmer mod at one point.


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## hullcity

Mr Karlsen said:


> In Denmark we have 230V - and my Gene model is also a 230V. Could this be impacting my results?
> 
> I have not checked my power supply yet, but this is on my to do list as well as probably trying to do the dimmer mod at one point.


It's supposedly 230V in France as well but I usually have nearer 240V or even as high as 244V. You really should get a power meter for your socket to rule out that variable. You can also see how stable your line voltage is (or not, in my case). I can get anywhere between 229 to 244V depending on the season, plus there is a lot of fluctuation (10V) during the roast. The dimmer mod combats that as well as giving a bit more control over the roast.

Good luck and keep at it!


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## Batian

As you have the 230v model, that can be ruled out.

Next check what voltage you are actually getting. I have a poor supply at peak periods, so I plan my roasting for off peak. You may have to do the same or invest a fortune in a voltage stabiliser!


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## iroko

Try ending your roast 20/30 secs before you think you should as your beans will still be roasting a bit after you hit cool down, and as above a voltage meter is a good idea.


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## Mr Karlsen

Thanks everyone.

So, I just ran 2 test roast with the voltage meter. Throughout both, it kept very steady at 227-229. I suppose this is a good thing?

I will try again later, to check if I just got lucky.

But I am still getting quite uneven roast eg. half the beans looks great, the other half looks somewhat burned. And I do get a char taste when I cup all of these.

Will do a roast or two later tonight, with a lower temp - probably 230c? And I will post the results after.


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## Rob1

I'd advise you to do the mod asap to avoid wasting more beans, but of course try limiting at 230c first.


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## Mr Karlsen

Okay, so I did another roast. Voltage was extremely steady at 227v all the way through.

I did not go higher than 230c - and I was not at 230c for a long time as I kept the roast around 220-226 for most of the roast.

But still getting an uneven roast, with a lot of burning..

So I assume, that it is the switching on/off that could be causing the uneveness as well as burning?

- I will be looking to do the dimmer mod now.

If I have to mention something positive from my Gene-career so far, is that I have been able to keep it consistent!

Consistently uneven and burned, but hey.


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## Mr Karlsen

Update: I am pretty much done installing the dimmer mod, and just testing it right now - and it seems to work!

At least when I switch on the dimmer I am able to control the wattage and I get no errors and the gene seems to run great. Good news.

One question: When I have the dimmer 'off', the wattage is steadying around 2300ish. Is this the normal range when a dimmer is not on? seems high to me?

I did not check this before, and I am a complete electronics noob.

I am in Denmark, where we have 230V and have the 230v version of the gene.

- Mr Karlsen


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## DavecUK

No theres something wrong with your watt measurer, the gene would draw around 1250 -1300W tops usually. I used to use the dimmer mod to give around 1170W when roasting in warmer weather. Perhaps the dimmer is affecting the wattmeter being used....because even when off it still sucks a small amount of power (30W), unless it can actually be completely switched off and not just turned down.


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## Mr Karlsen

Yes okay something must be up with the watt measurer..

Did a test (empty barrel). Started with dimmer Off and let the temp rise to 145 - reached after 1 minute. Then I brought in the dimmer, and brought the wattage down to 1300ish, and that caused the temp to fall. The sweet spot for keeping the temp steady was around 1600.

The watt measurer does seem to be consistent, but for some reason shows higher than it should?

So what should my approach be? Get a new watt measurer? Will that even help - it does seem to show correct measurements for other appliance if I test it there.

And is it safe to run with what I got at the moment? I wont burn down the gene if the wattage the measurer shows are actually correct?

Sorry for the many questions, I am not quite that skilled with my electronics. So thanks for trying to help me out!


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## ajohn

Has anyone measured how much the temperature varies when the Gene is regulating it as it comes without any modifications?

John

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## Rob1

What do you mean?

As in what is the temp swing like on the display when the element cycles on and off? Or what is the temp measured in the drum and in the bean mass when the element cycles on and off? Display is 3-5c.


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## ajohn

Rob1 said:


> What do you mean?
> 
> As in what is the temp swing like on the display when the element cycles on and off? Or what is the temp measured in the drum and in the bean mass when the element cycles on and off? Display is 3-5c.


I set mine for 220C and did a roast and didn't notice the display changing but wonder about actual temperature of the air flow.

John

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## Rob1

Someone mentioned measured air temp at the heating element and just adjusting the dimmer based on that, reasoning being that voltage varies and you won't have to worry about it if you just aim for a consistent heat coming off the element. It's a little mod that might be easy to do without disassembly of the heater box, I say might because I've sealed mine with high temp rtv sealant but before I did I could see tiny gaps in it and the thermocouple that's fitted in it rattled around a bit so I'm thinking you could easily squeeze another wire in there. There are other solutions, for example you could replace the electronics entirely if you want and have element temp and exit air temp instead of whatever the gene readout is. The temperature of the air flow will drop when the element cycles off, that's guaranteed, I just can't say by how much or what your air temp is at the element at the time. Drops in temp when the element cycles on and off do show up on my thermocouple in the drum or at least they did until it went out of action.


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## ajohn

Rob1 said:


> Someone mentioned measured air temp at the heating element and just adjusting the dimmer based on that, reasoning being that voltage varies and you won't have to worry about it if you just aim for a consistent heat coming off the element. It's a little mod that might be easy to do without disassembly of the heater box, I say might because I've sealed mine with high temp rtv sealant but before I did I could see tiny gaps in it and the thermocouple that's fitted in it rattled around a bit so I'm thinking you could easily squeeze another wire in there. There are other solutions, for example you could replace the electronics entirely if you want and have element temp and exit air temp instead of whatever the gene readout is. The temperature of the air flow will drop when the element cycles off, that's guaranteed, I just can't say by how much or what your air temp is at the element at the time. Drops in temp when the element cycles on and off do show up on my thermocouple in the drum or at least they did until it went out of action.










Some one was me. I've too much kitchen and one or two other things to do before I have time to fit a thermocouple. Have the bits to fit it internally with a socket to connect a meter too it. Also a Chinese 2kw so called speed controller to fit internally as well. That may have a get's too hot problem so a bit suck it and see Also a switch to short that out for full power as with in circuit it will always use up some power..

Main problem with getting on with and it also trying another roast is also some where to do it at the moment.

I tried the suggested roasting ideas and just had problems with burning so decided to use a bit higher than what appears to be OK for Ily, 220C. No problems getting 1st crack but more darkening than intended due to the cool down time / or just a maybe appearance through the glass. Can't comment in taste as it was a bean I have never bought fresh roasted. I didn't try the Gene manual method as other attempts suggested that starting at 230C would probably roast the beans more than I wanted. Hard to say without trying it. I also feel that I Improved the roast by cleaning out all of the dust and fluff from the input "filter". That would have influenced air flow. 3rd hand Gene.

John

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## Mr Karlsen

Right, so I successfully installed the dimmer and it works perfectly, and after fiddling with the wattage measurer this also works correctly and shows the right wattage (12-1300w when dimmer is off).

I did 4 roasts tonight, and being able to have much greater control over the temp was really nice. However.. All of the roasts remain super uneven / burned.. Pretty much similar to the pics on the first page (and some even worse).

I tried different things with each roast, for example; one roast did not go higher than 219c - still half burned.

I even tried to E-dump one batch to see if the burning was occuring in connection with the cooldown - This did not help at all, lol.

Will try cupping all 4 in a few days, but not expecting much based on the burning.

Its quite frustrating I must admit. Could the bean be a cause? - It is a Colombian Supremo from Huila, and I have only been roasting this one bean so far. I will be getting some new greens soon to try this out.

If you have any tips or things/profiles I could try to help mitigate this problem I would be greatful.

Mr Karlsen


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## Rob1

What was your wattage? I just did a roast and ran at full power until 223c and switched the dimmer in to 1130w until first crack rolling which happened at about 234c. I then moved to 1100w until fc ended (about 30 seconds) when I moved to 1080w and then 30 seconds later to 1030w until the end of the roast which was 2:30 after FC rolling. The roast is very even with very very slight signs of burning to the very tips of some beans. The roast finished just before second crack at about 232c BT (based on near identical previous roasts).

You say the beans burn some time after first crack and develop evenly until then...it could be poor quality greens but I think you'd see it in the development of the roast. When you didn't go over 220c what was your wattage draw?


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## Mr Karlsen

That sounds like a good roast! When you run at 1130w, how long does it take to get from 223c to first crack at 234c? And at what time was your first crack and end time?

I have been really trying to pay attention, and see if the beans develop evenly during the roast. Some of the defects will look slightly burned quite early, but other than that the rest seem to develop quite evenly.

For the one that didn't go over 220c, I kept the dimmer on from the start and ran with a lower wattage from the start (to see if the beans were getting too much heat in the beginning). I ran at about 1150w until I hit 219, which only happened after 13 minutes due to the lower wattage.

I didn't note the wattage I lowered it to when it hit 219, but I think it was somewhere between 1050-1100.

I didn't hear first crack on these, and due very slow rise in temp, I dropped at 15:50min.


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## Batian

Hearing 1st crack is essential. I am not sure about the slow rise temperature being significant as to ability to hear the crack?

Many people do have problems with hearing 1st. It is often due to inexperience combined with noise from the machine and other background noise. But once you have some experience, it is surprisingly easy to pick out despite the distractions.

Using a cardboard tube as hearing aid will help. I found a good place to place the tube on or near is the shoulder of the chaff box. Watch out for the moving drum---you may poke your ear out! The tube from a roll of kitchen foil is good.

An engineers stethoscope may help, ( £6 to7 of fleabay) but some people find them uncomfortable and therefore a distraction at a critical time.


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## Rob1

Mr Karlsen said:


> That sounds like a good roast! When you run at 1130w, how long does it take to get from 223c to first crack at 234c? And at what time was your first crack and end time?


I'm not sure really, I don't roast based on that kind of information anymore. I've had 5kg of this bean and roasted with a BT probe installed in the gene so I just followed the previous profiles for past roasts and get repeatable results. I only have logs for the temp measures from the probe which gives me precise times, but I don't log the gene readout temp and time anymore, only the temp at which I make changes with the dimmer. I did used to just make changes based on the BT temp but I found this lead to inconsistencies as the roast progressed through and beyond first crack.

I would guess somewhere around 10-11 minutes until 223c with the first pops of FC at around 13 minutes and rolling at 13:30. The roast would have finished on 16 minutes if that's the case. This information is of little use to you though as you aren't aiming for a roast this dark and you aren't using the same bean. I didn't share what I did with my roast so you could follow it, I was just describing a way to use the dimmer mod.



> I have been really trying to pay attention, and see if the beans develop evenly during the roast. Some of the defects will look slightly burned quite early, but other than that the rest seem to develop quite evenly.
> 
> For the one that didn't go over 220c, I kept the dimmer on from the start and ran with a lower wattage from the start (to see if the beans were getting too much heat in the beginning). I ran at about 1150w until I hit 219, which only happened after 13 minutes due to the lower wattage.
> 
> I didn't note the wattage I lowered it to when it hit 219, but I think it was somewhere between 1050-1100.
> 
> I didn't hear first crack on these, and due very slow rise in temp, I dropped at 15:50min.


Lower power and less heat until first crack will give you a less energetic and slower crack which you might have difficulty hearing. I'm not sure what you mean by that last part re dropping at 15:50. If you aren't burning the beans early in the roast I wouldn't pull the power back as you'll just increase maillard flavours (unless you want to do that). I drop the power as late as possible to achieve whatever I'm trying to achieve: in my above profile that's a roast that has developed close to second crack and without drying out. I have tried with the same bean in the past to extend first crack, and I've also tried to extend development time beyond 2:30 and ended up with bad roasts either lacking in flavour or with bitter notes. If I were aiming for a light roast I'd want to extend first crack which means I'd be looking to limit my temp to around 230c and would have different wattage reductions rather than ones designed to carry through first and finish at a higher temp without increasing ROR.

Your problem right now is burning, not getting to first or controlling the roast beyond that, and not roasting for too long...scorching despite not going over 219c and despite low power draws. It might be time to post a picture of the greens.

Are you roasting with ducting attached? Is it a second hand roaster and if so have you cleaned it? You wouldn't be blocking the vents on the bottom with anything would you on the surface you're roasting on?

My voltage is always around 245 so I'm over the spec of the heater and should have to use lower wattages than you to get the same results...


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## Mr Karlsen

Rob1 said:


> Your problem right now is burning, not getting to first or controlling the roast beyond that, and not roasting for too long...scorching despite not going over 219c and despite low power draws. It might be time to post a picture of the greens.


You pretty much boiled it down here, what the problems are..

Here are pictures of the greens Im using:

I really only know how to look for the more visible defects - so I would have no clue what to be looking for with the beans.

  

  

  



Rob1 said:


> Are you roasting with ducting attached? Is it a second hand roaster and if so have you cleaned it? You wouldn't be blocking the vents on the bottom with anything would you on the surface you're roasting on?


Got a brand new roaster, with the large chaff collector and no extra ducting. It is standing on top of my stovetop, so there shouldnt be any blocking there.


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## Rob1

Do you get a lot of chaff/silverskin collecting at the air outlet grate? They look a little dark to me, maybe a few are immature? You'll be a better judge http://www.cafedecolombia.com/clientes/en/regulacion_nacional/exportadores/2831_calidades_de_exportacion/

What you're seeing could be the silverskin burning on the surface of the bean if it doesn't shed...


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## Batian

Is the chaff clearer working freely? A blocked/partially blocked exit from the drum may cause an increase in drum temperature?

Some beans can be more chaffy than others.

At this point, a reminder to take care with the rubber buffer and not to run empty, which causes the rubber buffer to break up sooner than expected.


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## Mr Karlsen

There seems to be no problem with the chaff clearer, not a lot of build up there.

There does seem to be some immatures amongst the beans, but I am not that great of a judge.

I've now tried also roasting different batch sizes, 230g, 200g and it makes no difference on the appearance at all.

Wattage is around 1270 when dimmer is off. And I bring it down to around 1150 to keep the temp steady.

If my roasts hit 230c max, or 220c max seems to make no difference on the burning/schorching issue.


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## Rob1

Why keep the temp steady? Mine drops and always has after bringing the dimmer in, that doesn't mean the bean temp drops, in fact it continues to rise just at a slower rate. If you're getting burning after first crack you need to decrease the energy they are exposed to and focus on that. More information is needed regarding the profile and temps and roast progression at your different settings (i.e. is first crack duration more or less the same with the dimmer set to 1150w vs full power vs other settings (1100w? 1050w?), does it seem like first crack is taking off and you don't have control so you're struggling to slow the roast down?).

From the pics you've posted so far the roast doesn't appear to be really uneven just scorched and I think a lot of that is the silverskin stuck to the bean. I barely remember having beans like that myself but I would try giving them a long time to 'dry' with a low wattage setting and gene temp limit of 149c, if the skins don't shake loose from that or the normal full power (or whatever) profile after that then pass. Probably just accept it's bad greens. Maybe in another roaster you could increase airflow and blast the skins off but that isn't an option with the gene.


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## Mr Karlsen

Hey Rob, thanks again for all the input - really helps a lot.

Very good point about the steady temp. Something to think about there.

I think one of my (other) main issues besides the burning, is that I really struggle hearing first crack. I seem to only be able to hear it, when I roast up to about 230c and then I may only hear like 5 loud single cracks.

I've been using a tube, placed either on the exhaust or closer to the drum and it does not help me at all..

Of course this limits me greatly, as then I am really just roasting based on the color and that does me no good at the moment.

Here are some more pics, of one of the roast I did 2 days ago - I just cupped these and this roasted tasted the 'best'. But still has quite a lot of a charry taste to it.


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## Mr Karlsen

Rob1 said:


> From the pics you've posted so far the roast doesn't appear to be really uneven just scorched and I think a lot of that is the silverskin stuck to the bean. I barely remember having beans like that myself but I would try giving them a long time to 'dry' with a low wattage setting and gene temp limit of 149c, if the skins don't shake loose from that or the normal full power (or whatever) profile after that then pass. Probably just accept it's bad greens. Maybe in another roaster you could increase airflow and blast the skins off but that isn't an option with the gene.


I will give this a go. Sometime next week, I should receive some new greens and then I will see how they behave!


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## Batian

ooops


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## Batian

Just a fall back, and I am sure you would have mentioned it, but please confirm you are not pre-heating and/or letting the green beans sit still in a warm drum after another roast has been emptied?


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## Mr Karlsen

Batian said:


> Just a fall back, and I am sure you would have mentioned it, but please confirm you are not pre-heating and/or letting the green beans sit still in a warm drum after another roast has been emptied?


No pre-heating, I cool in Gene down to 100c and cool down externally until beans are not hot.

Beans are really only in the drum, when the machine is running.


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## ajohn

This is what I got after cleaning the machine and the chaff collector Gene set at 220C in circa 20min plus cooling time. No burnt taste which may have been ok if I had used 20g of it but not really my sort of bean.









Colour much closer to the lighter brown some show but darker than the very light a few show. Flash and beans don't seem to work too well colour wise for me.

I am pretty sure they darkened more during cooling and I allowed several mins of 1st cracks so well into first crack. I used a moderately priced amplifier and mic over the end of the vent ducting to hear the cracks. A rechargeable thing off Amazon that isn't as loud as they suggest but adequate for this use.

Keeping the air path clean could be important but I would have thought problems would slow the roast down as the Gene's heater will spend more time off if the air flow is reduced.= less energy in







As I haven't actually measured the air temp though I don't know what it's doing

I tried this approach as the suggestions from a gent in this forum just resulted in burnt beans but I hadn't cleaned it out. Temperature set 10C higher than what I saw on an Ily video also based on this site which is concentrating on bean temperature.

https://legacy.sweetmarias.com/library/using-sight-to-determine-degree-of-roast

The site had intended to try and do something about colour accuracy but it never happened. The shot at the top where all stages are shown looks to be pretty good to me though going on my usual fresh roasted bean which is described as well into 2nd crack. The colour of them fits in well with the chart. They were more or less black from my previous supplier. I tidied the shot up a little as I feel it's better than the other bean colour charts that are about.







Degree of brownness not the actual brown.









I know this has all bean sorted out but several things make me think hang on a minute so while I may finish up using the machine as others do I may find a better way of using it. I'm inclined to think for instance that preheating is essential in order to mimic conventional roasting even comparing with commercial hot air machines. How much, what temperature pass.

John

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## Rob1

No amount of pre-heating will allow you to mimic a conventional roaster. You speed up the early part of the roast but not the later stages. The limitation of the gene is how long it takes to heat to first crack after the beans start yellowing.


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## Rob1

If it makes you feel any better this is a roast from Django coffee. I'm giving up on espresso with it but I've had it in the Sowden with no bitterness or burned flavours at all despite its mottled appearance. Some beans just develop this way even when first crack is finished. The sweet Maria's pictorial is useful but different varietals/origins can have different appearances at the same temps. If you can't hear first crack you'll be able to smell it or see it progress by the smoke coming out of the roaster. It sounds like you're hearing the start of first crack but not rolling?


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## ajohn

No. Few cracks followed by lots and then none. I did mention degree of browness not the actual colour.

John

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## Rob1

@ajohn sorry I wasn't clear my comments were aimed at mr. karlsen AKA the op.


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## Mr Karlsen

It does help a little, heh, I just need to keep at it then! Try some things out and will try some other beans too.

Won't be able to roast again before the weekend, but will give an update when I have news.

But yeah, still got problems hearing first crack. Sometimes hearing a few loud cracks which I assume is the start, and then I do hear a little bit after - but I think it is difficult to determine whether it is the cracks or not and for how long it goes on etc.


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## johnealey

If have read correctly, you are roasting inside underneath an extraction hood with no additional pipework on the large chaff collector? if so then you should also a large increase in smoke at first crack as well as a change of smell, a little more smokey / roasty than prior to first crack. If you are roasting as above then you may struggle to hear any first crack noises above the sound of the gene itself and the extractor fan so may want to try and find somewhere outside where you have a few less aural distractions.

Hope of some help and no doubt others will be able to expand on the above (one you get the hang of the power controller you will find the gene more, shall we say, how it probably should have been, much more controlled / consistent roasts)

John


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## iroko

As above, roast outside in a sheltered area with just the chaff collector, you should have no trouble hearing 1st crack.


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## Mr Karlsen

I thought I would give an update as I have done a lot more roasting over the past weeks.

I'd been roasting 3 different coffees, but still had huge problems with scorching and being unable to identify 1st crack.

Recently, I tried to go back and try an approach, which was also suggested in this thread (when I had tried it earlier on, I wasn't quite successful). I wanted to try the approach where I kind of dry out the beans at a lower temp for some time. So I let the temp rise quickly to about 140ish, and then turned on the dimmer and tried to keep the temp around 150c until I hit minute 6 (from start of the roast). Then switched the dimmer off, until I reached 1st crack and then turned the dimmer on again and set the wattage to around 1050w, until I ended the roast.

It turned out that this approach was highly successful for me. The beans got A LOT less scorching, developed much more evenly and I am now also able to identify 1st crack much more clearly (this might be due to more roasting experience though).

It has improved the taste of my coffee, as I now don't either burn, underdevelop or bake my coffee as much.

So, thanks for all the input in this thread. I feel I have taken my roasting game one tiny step forward.


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## Hasi

Great stuff mate!

In a good roast profile you want to see an ever inclining temp at an ever declining rate of rise (RoR). You don't want to see temp stall or skyrocket at any time after turning point (TP).

Even if you track your temp by hand (e.g. every 30s), drawing a simple curve on paper will be worthwhile to see where you can still improve your technique!

Happy home roasting


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## Voocash

@Mr Karlsen I found your topic because I'm now struggling with the same things. I use brand new machine and don't have the dimmer mod which I haven't read about yet. 
I only made few roasts but not having much of a success/tasty coffee roasted. I've used two types of greens but after roasting the flavour seems to be equally bad from both varieties which then make me thinking that it is down to the process not a raw material.

Hows your progress now? have you got better results with lightly roasted coffee?

Thanks! Voo


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## Lovic

Same question


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## Voocash

@Lovic I've managed to get decent results for light roast. I will be posting update at some point on this forum. I just need to do a cupping this week and I will let you know. But I already tried 3 batches and they are very satisfactory.


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## Lovic

@VoocashThank you for your feedback ! Did you finish also the dimmer mod ? These 3 last batches were roasted without the dimmer ?


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## Voocash

@LovicI started doing dimmer mod but I didn't finish it yet. Machine is in original state, untouched.


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## Voocash

@Lovic I just posted an update.

https://www.coffeeforums.co.uk/topic/50233-gene-roasting-troubleshooting-to-eliminate-garlic-flavour-coffee/?do=embed&comment=735902&embedComment=735902&embedDo=findComment


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## Coax

Mr Karlsen said:


> Right, so I successfully installed the dimmer and it works perfectly, and after fiddling with the wattage measurer this also works correctly and shows the right wattage (12-1300w when dimmer is off).
> 
> I did 4 roasts tonight, and being able to have much greater control over the temp was really nice. However.. All of the roasts remain super uneven / burned.. Pretty much similar to the pics on the first page (and some even worse).
> 
> I tried different things with each roast, for example; one roast did not go higher than 219c - still half burned.
> 
> I even tried to E-dump one batch to see if the burning was occuring in connection with the cooldown - This did not help at all, lol.
> 
> Will try cupping all 4 in a few days, but not expecting much based on the burning.
> 
> Its quite frustrating I must admit. Could the bean be a cause? - It is a Colombian Supremo from Huila, and I have only been roasting this one bean so far. I will be getting some new greens soon to try this out.
> 
> If you have any tips or things/profiles I could try to help mitigate this problem I would be greatful.
> 
> Mr Karlsen


 Hvilken lysdæmper brugte du, har også en gene og skal prøve den ombygning med min.. pft


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