I think I need to get a Variac

[EricBNC]

I roasted some of the Ethiopian Geredawha N2 recently distributed here by ecc using the Wearever popcorn popper with a tin can chimney and the chaff collector from my Melitta roaster. Considering that unmodified it will send beans into 2nd crack in something like 5 - 6 minutes, being able to get a nice 11 minute roast (not into 2nd crack) is pretty neat!

[mp]

I roasted some of the Ethiopian Geredawha N2 recently distributed here by ecc using the Wearever popcorn popper with a tin can chimney and the chaff collector from my Melitta roaster. Considering that unmodified it will send beans into 2nd crack in something like 5 - 6 minutes, being able to get a nice 11 minute roast (not into 2nd crack) is pretty neat!

You were controlling that with the Variac Eric?

 

[EricBNC]

Yes. I dialed up the juice till it hit 103 volts on the Kill A Watt read out. As first crack was finishing I dialed back to 97 volts and left it there till the roast was complete. 

[Aromajunkie]

I've been thinking about getting a variac. Right now I use a redneck attenuator to slow down the roast. A 100 ft H.D. extension cord. 

[rgrosz78]

Ok ... after a 13 day wait I've finally got my Kill-A-Watt. I don't know too much about this stuff but the KAW works like a champ and is very easy to use.

I took a couple of readings of my upstairs outlets and it read 121.3 volts.

More importantly I took the reading of the power-bar where I plug my roaster into and it also read 121.3 volts.

I'm now ready for the next step. How is it that I should proceed?

Plug your roaster into the Kill-A-Watt and turn it on. Then see how much the voltage drops with your heat at 100%.

[mp]

Ok ... after a 13 day wait I've finally got my Kill-A-Watt. I don't know too much about this stuff but the KAW works like a champ and is very easy to use.

I took a couple of readings of my upstairs outlets and it read 121.3 volts.

More importantly I took the reading of the power-bar where I plug my roaster into and it also read 121.3 volts.

I'm now ready for the next step. How is it that I should proceed?

Plug your roaster into the Kill-A-Watt and turn it on. Then see how much the voltage drops with your heat at 100%.

Thanks rgrosz78.

Right now I've got my distiller on that power bar running. The KAW is reading 118.7 volts right now. It did say 115.2 volts when I first turned it on. The distiller uses 580 watts to run.

Does this tell you what you need to know or do I have to actually put the roaster on to properly assess?

Thanks.

 

[mp]

Ok Chris.

This distiller goes to 10:30 pm.

First thing tomorrow morning I'll put on the roaster, take the initial roast voltage, and keep recording it every 2 minutes.

Would that do the trick?

 

[mp]

I did a roast this morning with the roaster plugged into the KAW. What I ended up seeing surprised me.

For the first 10 minutes or so of the roast the voltage did a constant jumping up and down from 120.3 volts to 114.3 volts.

After the first ten minutes it went to 120.3 and did not budge. I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't see it with my own eyes.

The wattage on the roaster is 1020.

So how about this performance?

 

[mp]

Thanks Chris.

When it is doing the cycling it is a constant cycling. What I mean is that it is like it has a preset course and hits almost always the same readings down and then up. The cycling is constant and it does not favor staying at a lower voltage or a higher voltage or even a voltage that is in between the higher and lower. This is what I found rather odd when I was looking at it. Once it settled down to 120.3 it was absolutely constant with no variance at all.

Ok, I'll try another roast on a 20 amp circuit breaker and report back.

 

[fffolks]

After monitoring my line voltage with a kill-a-watt I have decided to get a variac. My question is, what size variac do I need for my hottop? I have done a lot of research, but can't seem to find this answer. Maybe my electrically challenged mind just doesn't get it. 

[mp]

After monitoring my line voltage with a kill-a-watt I have decided to get a variac. My question is, what size variac do I need for my hottop? I have done a lot of research, but can't seem to find this answer. Maybe my electrically challenged mind just doesn't get it. 

If you look at the first post you will find that "the big 3 are Staco, General Radio, and Superior Electric.". I don't think you'll find anyone that knows about Variacs here on this site will argue the quality of anyone of these units. If you can find a reasonably priced 20 volt version of one of these manufacturers it should work like a champ for you.

I hope that helps.

 

[fffolks]

Thanks, I have definitely settled on a vintage American made variac. I just wanted to make sure that size matters. There are lots of the 10 amp and below available, but very few at 20 amp or above. There is also a fairly big jump in price between 10amp and 20amp, so I wanted to make sure that bigger was better before I bought one. It sounds like it's time for me to quit being cheap, again. 

[mp]

Thanks, I have definitely settled on a vintage American made variac. I just wanted to make sure that size matters. There are lots of the 10 amp and below available, but very few at 20 amp or above. There is also a fairly big jump in price between 10amp and 20amp, so I wanted to make sure that bigger was better before I bought one. It sounds like it's time for me to quit being cheap, again. 

That is where patience and perseverance will pay big dividends for you

They do come up from time to time; you just have to jump right on them when they do.

 

[bmock]

My bad, deleted this post. Found what i was looking for

Thanks