I had delayed cleaning my I-Roast 2 coffee roaster until I noticed about 5% of the beans were still yellow and had not roasted. A seasoned roaster is good, but a home coffee roaster needs to be thoroughly cleaned at a certain point. Although I used an I-Roast 2, the following information applies to the original I-Roast Coffee roaster.
Before we go through the cleaning methods, let me break down the I-Roast 2 into its components. From top to bottom:
- Chaff collector lid – the top part
- Chaff filter mesh – circular ring under the lid
- Chaff collector base – fits on top of the roasting pot
- Glass roasting pot – where the beans go
- Power base assembly – the guts of the roaster that plugs into the wall
The power base assembly (#5) can be cleaned with a paper towel or wet wipe. Nothing more. Do NOT soak the power base assembly in water or put it in the dishwasher. The rest of this article will focus on cleaning the other parts (#1-4).
From left to right: Chaff collector lid (#1), Chaff collector base (#3), Chaff filter mesh (#2)
The I-Roast 2 glass roasting pot (#4) before the cleaning.
As you can see from the photos, my coffee roaster was a mess. I ended up using three different cleaning methods to bring back the shine. All three methods are valid. Use one or a combination—whatever works.
#1 Puro Caff or Espresso Machine Cleaner
I soaked the parts in a bucket of hot water, poured in some Puro Caff, and waited twenty minutes. With a rag, I was able to get them somewhat clean, but not clean enough. It was time to bring out the big gun.
#2 Oven Cleaner
At this point, I sprayed the parts with an oven cleaner. After letting it sit for 20 minutes, I could remove almost everything. It just needed a tiny bit more cleaning.
#3 Dishwasher
I placed all the parts on the top rack of the dishwasher and ran a cycle. That was all it needed to regain its “almost new” look.
Almost new! It’s time to start the seasoning process all over.
Having a roaster that is too clean or too dirty is not ideal. The best results come from the middle ground, where the roaster is seasoned. This is why I waited until I started getting uneven roasts before I did the three-stage cleaning.
Resources
I-Roast 2 Coffee Roasting Guide – INeedCoffee article by Chris Arnold.