Brothers Dave and Mike invented their first solar coffee roaster in Oregon in the spring of 2004. It was that fateful year that the two found themselves living at home with their parents for the first time in six years.

Mike, an apprenticed coffee roaster, wanted nothing more than to start his own coffee shop but couldn’t afford an entry-level coffee roaster.

David, inventor and special effects artist, wanted to start a new business involving solar energy. One night at the local brew pub, the brothers struck on an idea: find a way to roast coffee with the sun!

They combined their knowledge of traditional coffee roasting and solar energy technology, and Solar Roast Coffee was born! Working through nights and weekends, their first solar coffee roaster consisted of an old satellite dish covered with plastic mirrors.

They fashioned a rotating drum from a stainless broccoli steamer, and 12 volt car window motor. When aligned to the sun, the array of mirrors concentrated a large area of sunlight onto the side of the blackened roasting chamber, raising the temperature to several hundred degrees Fahrenheit. The motors and electrical fans were driven by a small solar panel....

go on reading