Howdy all. In preparation for the arrival of my R2 I am working to get the ventilation solutions in place. Does anyone know if the exhaust and cooling tray adapters from the R1 will work on the R2. I feel like I read somewhere that they are the same but I cannot find where I saw that. Any recommended suppliers on Etsy? Thanks!
Are you referring to the adapters BillC came up with?
I think that he is referring to the STL models that Aillio has developed.
I don’t know if they are the same for the R2.
Thank you for correctly interpreting my question, this is exactly what I was wondering. I’ll email Aillio and then post the answer here in case someone else has the same question.
Oh my bad, I didn’t know those existed
Hello begreenbrian.pnPV,
Wondering if the R1 exhaust adapters did indeed fit your R2?
Will have an R2 Pro delivered soon, so if you or anybody else has some insight into whether the 3D printed exhaust adapters are the same for R1, R2, and R2 Pro, that would be very helpful.
Or does the R2 Pro already ship with these adapters included?]
Thanks for any further insight!
I have an R2 Pro and can attest to the fact that it did not include adapters. Keep in mind that one of the adapters is to connect the fan exhaust to a hose, but with the R2, Aillio recommends against that in most cases. The current preferred method of venting the fan exhaust is to have a solution similar to a range hood with an air gap between the fan exhaust and whatever apparatus is sucking air (register, hood, hose, etc.) You can refer to the R2 Pro manual for a clear explanation of best practices for venting the fan exhaust.
As for the cooling tray, I believe that adapter is the same as in the R1, but the curveball is that R2 Pro owners will receive the new pro cooling tray at some point in the near future and it’s not clear whether the adapter will fit.
Very good to know! Thank you so much for clarifying, based on your experience.
Indeed, keeping an air gap between the roaster and an actively vented duct (inline motorized fan somewhere downstream) seems like the best way to go, to avoid build-up of roast exhaust inside the roaster, and to avoid any kind of competing push-pull effect between the roaster exhaust fan and the inline ventilation duct fan.
I was considering the exhaust adapter to allow for a more channeled/streamlined flow of roast exhaust, with an airgap between the roaster exhaust adapter and an 8" to 3" duct reducer overhead, that would be connected to a 3" ventilation duct, with an inline fan further downstream (further away to allow for some cooling of the exhaust before it goes through the inline fan).
Based on your insight, I’ll wait to receive the R2 Pro, and see if the exhaust adapter is even necessary for my proposed ventilation set-up. Makes sense to wait on the upgraded motorized cooling tray too, before having the cooling tray adapter 3D printed as well.
Thank you again @ibnabouna!
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FWIW, this is how I’ve set up the R2 Pro with ventilation in my spare garage. Many of the choices were informed by seeing some of the other amazing setups here, especially the work of @billc and others who built remarkable solutions for ventilation, chaff, and more. I find this setup works very well and I don’t have any smoke whatsoever in the garage during roasting.
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Hi @ibnabouna I love your setup but even more I love your username and the Saint’s image under your name.
Is it Saint Antonious by any chance and are you a son of a priest as your username suggests?
If so, ask Abouna to remember me in his prayers.
Kind regards
Gaby
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Good eye, Gaby! Very nice to meet another Copt who shares this hobby/passion. The icon is of Abba Moses after whom I am named. Yes, I am a PK, as well. May they all remember us! Please feel free to PM as I’d love to hear more about you and your hobby.
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@ibnabouna That looks like a very nice setup! I think I see an airgap with a square fume hood type setup above the bullet, leading to a chaff collection box or filter of some kind (black rectangular box in the middle, with ducts leading to & from it) and an inline fan, possibly with variable control, and then perhaps venting to outside. Am I interpreting any of that correctly?
Is the inline fan plastic or metal? Any issues with higher temperatures or darker roasts (if you do them)?
Are you venting the cooling tray to the same square fume hood that you’ve constructed?
I’ll take a look at @billc and also other posts to gain some insight into other user setups. The ingenuity of coffee people never ceases to amaze!
We’ve got a pretty robust ventilation system already in place, since we’ve been roasting for our cafe (Stronghold S7’s, average batch size 725g) for the last several years, but I’m eager to learn what works best for the R2 Pro, and very excited to expand upon my roasting knowledge/experience with this innovative small batch roaster.
Thank you again for sharing your insights.
Yes, perfectly, that’s exactly how it’s set up. The black rectangular box is a filter box made by AC Infinity, which is also the manufacturer of the variable-speed inline fan that does most of the work. The filter is essentially an open box with duct hose fittings on either side. You place an air filter similar to what homes use for HVAC systems inside at an angle and it filters the air that passes through. Filters have different MERV ratings for how much particulate they filter; my setup has a filter with a MERV 13 rating, which is on the upper end of efficacy. It does a good job in filtering things from the roaster smoke. Here is the specific product:
https://amazon.com/gp/product/B0921XRFLX/?ie=UTF8
I believe it is plastic. So far, no issues with heat when I roast Full City+. Here is a link to the specific fan I have:
No, there is a large metal Y-connector that branches out a 6" hose to the square fume register and a 4" hose that I ran underneath the machine to the cooling tray. As of now, there is a 2-3" air gap between the end of that hose and the cooling fan, but in the future, I might get the 3D-printed adapter and make a direct connection.
It sounds like you have some big plans for your new setup. I can’t wait to see what you come up with!
@ibanbouna Thank you for all of the insights into your setup!
As a commercial albeit very small batch roastery, our inline (variable speed control) fan and ductwork is all metal, commercial grade, hard-wired, and installed by pros several years ago, but the inline fan speed settings and indirect connections to our roasters is where I’ve had to experiment and devise the ideal setup.
“Ideal” is a continual work in progress… as I’m pretty sure you may have found with roasting… it is an obsessive pursuit of continually trying to do better, and trying hard to bring out clean, distinct, complex, and balanced flavors, with the hope of showcasing all the hard work that coffee producers put into their crop, and with the hope that our customers will discover something new, and hopefully enjoy our vision of small batch coffee & baking… even during those frenetic, line-to-the-door, 8:30am rushes, as people stop in on their way to the office.
Duct work and fan speed are not as sleek and eye-catching as all the electronic gadgetry imbued on the latest electric roasters, but I am noticing differences in the cup that can be traced back to the inline fan speed setting and possibly even the arrangement of the flexible ductwork leading from our roasters to the rigid metal ductwork. This experience is based upon roasting with our Stronghold S7 roasters, and I’m eager to experiment and learn more about roasting with the R2 Pro.
One big challenge with our rigid ductwork is accessibility and cleaning & maintenance-- with our rigid duct running 16 feet high, and venting outside-- as we are in a commercial high rise building, with high foot traffic just outside our door. Chaff and roast residue builds up inside our ducts, and I have to keep these clean to ensure safe & consistent roasting performance. Keeping these ducts clean is an arduous and time consuming process (I’ve got chimney sweep and commercial grade duct cleaning equipment used by pros). I’ve been looking at filters and filter housings, as currently we have none. It’s helpful to see that you’ve had no issues with your filter set-up. I am familiar with MERV ratings, as well the V-bank (2 filters positioned at 45 degree angles to each other) filter design, and I will consult with one or two of our customers, who are HVAC engineers, and who have helped design important parts of my current setup… as the requirements for safety need to be very high in a commercial setting, in an urban area. Main concerns are airflow, the ability of the inline fan to perform as needed, heat tolerance, heat-build up as the filter gets clogged, and how often to monitor and clean the filters, to keep things running as safely and efficiently as possible.
Running a cafe for nearly 20 years with my wife has been rewarding and also quite challenging, but the foray into roasting for our cafe over 7 years ago has been one of the most fulfilling aspects of our evolution as a family owned & operated cafe bakery & roastery. Many times we have felt quite vulnerable and alone on our journey, but during our most challenging times, we’ve realized the amazing strength of the community that we’ve built slowly over time… with so many people willing to offer their expertise, insights, and support at times when we’ve really needed it, even if we didn’t fully realize it at the time.
Having only performed a few initial roasts with the R2 Pro, I am thrilled by the opportunity to learn and hopefully sharpen skills that have been developing over years, and I am quite surprised & inspired by the depth, breadth, and helpfulness of so many Auillio users, who are openly exchanging thoughts & experiences, with the common goal of becoming better.
Your photo and responses have helped inspire me to burn the midnight oil here over the last 2 nights, after we closed our cafe for the day, as I reconfigured our current set-up, to accommodate the addition of our R2 Pro. I’m attaching a photo of those efforts, along with my gratitude for your insights and sharing of your experience. Grateful cheers!
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I think you should look at what @billc did with his cyclone setup using a small shop vac to collect the chaff. It apparently performs amazing. His post details all the hacks he made.
Hi @ibnabouna hope your roasts are going well.
I sent you a couple of PMs a few days ago Abouna.
Hope they came through.
Kind regards
Gaby