belanger, my experience with insulation materials is extremely limited but there's a thread here(somewhere) on the topic, I hope someone with insulation knowledge would chime in and help you choose one of the two materials you mentioned.

I used a lowly duct insulation roll, something that probably nobody should use with a roaster as I don't think it can handle the heat; at all. But that's what I currently have access to.

Re your fan/cooling inquiry, as you probably know, the Hottop-B fan is manually controllable/programmable but it also automatically kicks in at the end of the roast when you push the Eject button.

coffee.me wrote:I don't have access to a good material so I used duct insulation. I covered all the external stainless with it; covering all holes except the bean chute and external openings behind the element.

max, would you mind posting some pictures of how you insulated your roaster? that would probably be helpful as a starting point for others.

thanks.

My HT is now uninsulated, that duct insulation didn't last for more than a few months, I wasn't expecting it to anyway, it simply didn't take the heat and started releasing fumes/smoke at high power levels.

Sorry, I didn't take any pics when it had the coat on!

On the positive side, I've moved on to a different roasting approach with impressive results: still no fan and no insulation, but applied a new mod and I'm using much larger batches. . . . I'm hoping I'll get a chance to post about it soon.

On the positive side, I've moved on to a different roasting approach with impressive results: still no fan and no insulation, but applied a new mod and I'm using much larger batches. . . . I'm hoping I'll get a chance to post about it soon.

sounds intriguing...am looking forward to hearing about your new approach.

Max

I too am looking forward to reading your newest ideas about hottop roast profiling with higher loads.

My current roasts using 170gm loads based on this thread you started are really improved and I am greateful for your contributions. I am interested in insulation and if I could find a good metho to attach it I think this stuff mentioned above could be the ticket.

Fiberglass paper +1200F. 16" x 10' x 1/8" is 23$ (McMaster 9323K21)

Thanks again