new bean cooler: works great!

my old post-roast bean cooling method was time-tested and ancient: dump the beans from container to container, one container per hand, until "cool". this worked but not quickly. it's nice to have a fast bean cooler because it reduces some variables (post-roast-roast, for example). plus, this method doesn't remove much chaff and it takes a long time.

so over the weekend i picked up some screen door screen and a 5 gallon bucket. i fired up the dremel to remove the bucket's bottom and i located a large floor fan. i rotated the fan such that it fired vertically, put the screen over the fan, and the bucket over the screen. it worked fine on a "test" run but this morning was my first actual roast-run.

it worked even better than expected: it blew chaff up and out of the bucket and all over my patio (good) and it cooled 12oz (green) of beans in about 45 seconds. when i say "cooled" i mean it made them cooler than ambient, which is something impossible to achieve with the old method. in fact, i'd never even reach ambient with the old method: i'd get bored first and give up.

so far so good. now i have to see if it makes a difference in the cup.