A few novice question .

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Thumpgagbobby
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A few novice question .

Post by Thumpgagbobby »

Hey guys sorry for posting in the wrong forum section ,

I'm very new to all this checkout my other post in the new members area if you are looking for a little more information about my setup .

I have a few questions to ask .

1. This is a brand new still both pot thumper and reflux never used before , I here people saying you need to do a first run can some explain this a little more for me. Like a cleaning run ????

2.its really not that easy to source grains and stuff here .
I've found cornmeal coarse maize meal are these ok to use in a corn mash recipe the grains are something I'm struggling to get my head around
Tthere is so many variants and some are just very hard to find and very overwhelming .
I'm looking to make rums whisky gin and vodka can anyone help me with the best grains for these
I see things like flaked rye or regular rye
It's hard to no what's the right one

3 Are there any grains I shouldn't be using ?

4. Is there a simple method for working out how much grain you should actually be using
As mentioned I have a 26 gallon still
How do I even begging to work out a mash recipe I've watched a lot of videos and people are not keen on giving out the information . For example how much corn meals (lbs) sugar (lbs) and yeast should I be using to make enough mash for my 26 gallon still.

5 . What's a safe limit to fill the stills up to ?

7. This is the one that's worrying me the most , fermentation !
I understand about the tempetures and waiting for the mix to cool down and so on before adding certain ingredients .
Once I've made the mash and it's ready to ferment can I move this into a food safe barrel and just close the lid tight .
And keep checking on it
I'm reading bad things about air locks .
The temperate in the house is a nice warm temp .
No worry a on it being cold .
The fermentation part is the only bit I, KIND off worried about .
I can order 3 smaller cements room barrel if you think this is going to help me .


I think that's all I have to ask arm
I really appreciate anyone taking the time to help me out .
I have a lot of books on the way but sometimes id of struggle to understand so please bear with me .
ShineRunner
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by ShineRunner »

Start out by reading all of the new distiller reading. http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewforum.php?f=46 especially cranky's spoonfeeding thread.

I know there is a lot of information out there, but take your time and learn how to do it right. I would stick to one source of information to avoid all the confusion. If you get your recipe from here, we can help. If not, we may not be familiar with it and unable to help. Look in the tried and true recipe section.

Your still is pretty large for a beginner, but it can be done. You're just going to have to ferment a lot in order to fill it. On the airlock, what have you heard is bad about them? Brewers use them all the time? Now, if you're using a bigger barrel to ferment in, you can just leave the lid on loosely. The co2 has to escape. If it is tightened down, it can't escape and will build pressure until it escapes somehow..

Lastly, almost everything you've asked has been asked many times before. Learn to use the HD google search. There's a link in my signature and it's the most useful thing you can use around here for searching for your answers.

Good luck and be safe.

SR
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bilgriss
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by bilgriss »

+1. Take the time to go through all that stuff. It will answer the questions you've asked, and give you a list of new ones you haven't considered yet. Do all that before actually firing anything up, ask those follow up questions, and you'll be ready to get started.
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by Pikey »

This is not that hard, but you have a lot to learn. I suggest you do a wine ferment first, for confidence sake if nothing else. get a litre each of grape juice 1 red, 1 white. Tip in a food grade bucket add 1.5 lb sugar a lemon squeezed, a tea bag (leave this in for a few days) top up to 5 litres and add a wine yeast - you can use baker's yeast if you're not fussed, but Don't use turbo. Cover wit ha transparent plastic sheet, held down with a String band with both ends tied to a rubber band, so it stretches around the rim. Leave nature take it's course and watch it fizz and bubble - listen to what it sounds like and when it stops, taste it. if it tastes "dry" it is about done and should clear later into something very light pink and drinkable.

That is the process in a nutshell of fermentation. IF you do not allow the CO2 to escape it will burst whatever you try to use to hold it in with - That's what the string and rubber band are for.
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Truckinbutch
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by Truckinbutch »

You are exceeding the speed limit . Most , if not all , of your questions can be answered by doing your required reading .
Help Stamp Out Spoon Feeding ! ..................
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by ShineonCrazyDiamond »

Truckinbutch wrote:You are exceeding the speed limit . Most , if not all , of your questions can be answered by doing your required reading .
Help Stamp Out Spoon Feeding ! ..................
Is there a shirt? :lol:
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Truckinbutch
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by Truckinbutch »

ShineonCrazyDiamond wrote:
Truckinbutch wrote:You are exceeding the speed limit . Most , if not all , of your questions can be answered by doing your required reading .
Help Stamp Out Spoon Feeding ! ..................
Is there a shirt? :lol:
Interesting question . Perhaps Varocketry could explore that for us . A portion of all shirt sales donated directly to HD .
If you ain't the lead dog in the team , the scenery never changes . Ga Flatwoods made my avatar and I want to thank him for that .
Don't drink water , fish fornicate in it .
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thecroweater
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by thecroweater »

Guys this is the novice distillers section. The links are helpful other comments not so much.
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Still Life
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by Still Life »

Thump~
A very useful tool is the HD Google Search at top of page.
Open it; leave a space after the URL; type in a word or term (like cleaning a still)

Just a suggestion: Before jumping into an all-grain, get your still cleaned, then find a non-grain recipe in Tried & True Recipes (on the main index page.)
A nice simple sugar wash is Birdwatcher's: http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5018 ...follow the recipe, and scale it to your fermenter size.
Another easy & good recipe is Odin's Cornflake Whiskey (below, in my signature line.) That's what I learned on, and it's awesome.

Those easy non-grains will familiarize you with many aspects of distilling and get you used to how your still operates.
Plus, if you encounter a problem these recipes are easy to troubleshoot.

Nice cheap Baker's yeast is also a good choice. It likes a warm ferment, but is forgiving of cooler ones, too ---just takes a little longer.

I've only been at this game a very short time, but I recall the overwhelming confusion & fear of getting started.
Odin's Cornflake taught me a LOT in its simplicity. And brother, if I can succeed at this, ANYONE can.

Take a deep breath. Relax. Search & research. Go with an easy recipe. You'll make it!
Thumpgagbobby
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by Thumpgagbobby »

Hello everyone thanks oh very much .
Reading stuff is not always so easy I'm slightly dyslexic and sometime the au stuff is explained can really help .
I no I bought a big still for a beginner but I don't like to mess about ,Mathis is something I want to tale serious.
My still has arrived I won't be running it until I'm completely sure .
I have been doing s lot for research I kind if left out all the femmtstioj part .
I was planning on a sugar wash to clean the sill first.

The still I have is the mile high flute with six copper stacks .
Also pot still with thumper ,

I am slowly going through lots of posts
Some of this very overwhelming .
The problem I have I sourcing grains in the UK regardless of using them now
It's not common here to get cracked corn rye and so on l
For instance I can find malted barley but there are 100s of types
AsI going to cause myself problems using the wrong grain or will it just taste horrible
Flaked rye , rye ,malted .
It's so confusing
I just don't want to mess things up .

Appreciate all the feedback guys
Pikey
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by Pikey »

Cracked corn - no but "Flaked maize" you can get at pet food wholesaler (Horses) - malt ? - Something like "Maris otter" ie the cheapo beer making malt is least denatured by the roasting etc.
Rye - dunno.

[Edit - If you want to go with "Flavour" rather than producing alcoholic water - Why don't you do UJSSSM - that is very similar to my first washes and use "Flaked maize" (Maize to us (UK) means what "Corn" means to USA ) - Yoou'll get flavour and something to play with, do cuts on and oak if you want - plus it's ecenomical because you use most of the same maize flakes over and over. 8) ]

[Edit 2 - I think I paid about £14 for 20 kg flaked maize last time I bought some.]
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by thecroweater »

Yeah look I don't mean to be insulting but the dysexia thing comes up a bit to often. Albert Einstein was dyslexic along with 15 to 20% of the world's population, its only as much of a disability as ya let it be :thumbup:
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by The Baker »

thecroweater wrote:Yeah look I don't mean to be insulting but the dysexia thing comes up a bit to often. Albert Einstein was dyslexic along with 15 to 20% of the world's population, its only as much of a disability as ya let it be :thumbup:
I see the mention of dyslexia not as a bid for sympathy but a simple explanation of a minor reading difficulty.

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skow69
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by skow69 »

Thumpgagbobby wrote:I no I bought a big still for a beginner but I don't like to mess about ,Mathis is something I want to tale serious.
My still has arrived I won't be running it until I'm completely sure .
I have been doing s lot for research I kind if left out all the femmtstioj part .
...
I am slowly going through lots of posts
Some of this very overwhelming .
...
It's so confusing
I just don't want to mess things up .
Ya know, tgb, there is no shame in running a small still or small batches while you learn the ropes. You sound pretty paranoid. Small batches are easier to manage when something goes south on you, especially if you are unsure of what to do about it. "Overwhelmed" is not a good state to be in when running a still.
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by HDNB »

The Baker wrote:
thecroweater wrote:Yeah look I don't mean to be insulting but the dysexia thing comes up a bit to often. Albert Einstein was dyslexic along with 15 to 20% of the world's population, its only as much of a disability as ya let it be :thumbup:
I see the mention of dyslexia not as a bid for sympathy but a simple explanation of a minor reading difficulty.

Geoff
not to derail further, but someone has to explain to me the difference in and why it's easier reading freshly typed words as opposed to reading archived typed words.
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Truckinbutch
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by Truckinbutch »

No derailment , just an honest question .
If you ain't the lead dog in the team , the scenery never changes . Ga Flatwoods made my avatar and I want to thank him for that .
Don't drink water , fish fornicate in it .
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BDF
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Re: A few novice question .

Post by BDF »

HDNB wrote:not to derail further, but someone has to explain to me the difference in and why it's easier reading freshly typed words as opposed to reading archived typed words.
My guess is that since reading in general is harder, it would also be harder to sift through search results quickly to find what is relevant to particular questions, and even more so when one is new to the subject and feeling overwhelmed. Whenever I do a search for something, 95% or more of the results are unrelated to what I'm looking for, are out-dated, use my search terms in an unrelated context, or had different goals in mind. It would take quite a bit longer if I couldn't near instantly skim past results I can tell from summary or a few words aren't what I'm looking for.

A link to a good consolidated starting point, like the spoonfeeding thread, would cut down on the unnecessary reading for a newbie with dyslexia that is harder to filter out.
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