Gas or electricity

[Username]

So I've decided on a 4" SD Dash column. It'll be mounted on a 50 L Sanke.

I need to make a call on how I'm going to power the still now. I've a 9kw propane burner, also considering 2 x 2.4kw elements with a controller on one.

I already have the burner, but am leaning towards the electric elements as I reckon they may be easier to control the power and as a result the still.

Would love to hear people's thoughts on this, pros, cons, over or underpowered?

[HDNB]

Larry will be so happy.

Go electric, you'll never look back.

[bluefish_dist]

Electric. It's really nice to know your input power. It also makes leaks less of a danger.

[acfixer69]

Electric is the way to go. Safe cheaper and I can't stand the roar of the gas burner for hours.

AC

[Kareltje]

I have two 10-L stills that I can combine to make a boiler-thumper combination. They fit nicely alongside each other on my kitchen stove, fired with natural gas. Easy, cheap, handy. Can run slow enough to use my air cooled condenser.

I have a large 80-L boiler heated with two electrical elements, about 1 and 2 kW. I use it outside in my garden for strip runs. To do that with gas, I would need a mobile gasburner with tank.

Electricity can be automated, for example to shut it down automatically. But for that you need extra knowledge and skills.

[rumbuff]

Electric! I have a 3" 4 plate flute, and I can run it at 75% of 5500 watts. Did a full run of bourbon the other night in 2 hours, warmup, stabilised and ran complete. So much quicker than gas, and you can do it indoors.

[Bushman]

Switched to electric and never looked back!

[Desvio]

Started with gas, upgraded to 110v for a while, kind of a wash there....

Then went 240v running 5500w and will never look back. But still have the option to cap it off and throw it over a fire, but i'll be a cold day in hell if I ever do that.

[Saltbush Bill]

Started with gas ...still use gas , and unlikely to change, its a safe as you make it, don't take risks.
Electricity prices here in AU are crazy.

I can't stand the roar of the gas burner for hours.

Hell what sort of burner did you have AC ? ....I cant even hear mine.

[acfixer69]

Started with gas ...still use gas , and unlikely to change, its a safe as you make it, don't take risks.
Electricity prices here in AU are crazy.

I can't stand the roar of the gas burner for hours.

Hell what sort of burner did you have AC ? ....I cant even hear mine.

Was a brinkman propane turkey fryer. I got funky hearing. Probity affects me more then most. Natural gas burner I hear nothing. I love the ease of electric.

AC

[cranky]

I prefer electric as well. I run a single 5500W element in a 15.5 gallon keg. There are lots of benefits to electric, it's easy, fast, reliable, finely adjustable, can be run inside without leaving a door open and I don't have to keep getting propane bottles refilled, which where I live can get quite expensive.

[Chixter]

All my strips are done over propane. The spirit runs i use an electric band 110v with an scr controller. But I run an 8 gal pot still, nothing big.

[Antler24]

Yeah it's faster, safer, more efficient, finer control but the costs savings sealed the deal for me. Propane around here is crazy expensive, $42/25lb tank. Elements, cords, controllers, fittings, etc seems pricey compared to just using a propane burner, but I did the math and paid for itself before the first spirit run.

[nuntius01]

i have a keg and two sixth barrel thumpers and run a 5500w element. works awesome. once you go electric you will never go back

[HDNB]

Yeah it's faster, safer, more efficient, finer control but the costs savings sealed the deal for me. Propane around here is crazy expensive, $42/25lb tank. Elements, cords, controllers, fittings, etc seems pricey compared to just using a propane burner, but I did the math and paid for itself before the first spirit run.

wow. i thought they were crazy asking 23-25 for a 20lb'er here. electricity is a no brainer, at 0.08 per Kwh, a spirit run costs about a buck for a run, propane would be 7 or more.
plus you don't have to drag that friggin' tank around.

[Antler24]

Yeah it's faster, safer, more efficient, finer control but the costs savings sealed the deal for me. Propane around here is crazy expensive, $42/25lb tank. Elements, cords, controllers, fittings, etc seems pricey compared to just using a propane burner, but I did the math and paid for itself before the first spirit run.

wow. i thought they were crazy asking 23-25 for a 20lb'er here. electricity is a no brainer, at 0.08 per Kwh, a spirit run costs about a buck for a run, propane would be 7 or more.
plus you don't have to drag that friggin' tank around.

Yeah Its crazy. If I wanna drive 3hrs to the city and have my own tanks I can get them filled for about $14, but I'm rarely in the city, and even at that price your saving at least $5 a run with electric.

[Kareltje]

Yes, in these cases I would rather go electric too. For me it is different: I calculated that 1 kW from gas or from electric cost me about the same.

[shadylane]

Yes, in these cases I would rather go electric too. For me it is different: I calculated that 1 kW from gas or from electric cost me about the same.

Just a thought, Compared to gas, how far do you have to drive to get more electricity

[markieb]

if you take into account your time to go collect the gas or buy the bottle to then go get the bottle exchanged/filled the fuel to travel there the hassle of lugging the gas canister about the pipes and burners im glad i followed hound dog's advice when he said go big and go electric you wont have to look at upgrading in 6 months time.only issue i do have now is fitting a drain port and a filler port so i can empty and refill with ease when doing a big run them copper pipes get bloody warm as does the backset dont ask how i know

my electric costs £3 a run which im happy with

[Kareltje]

Yes, in these cases I would rather go electric too. For me it is different: I calculated that 1 kW from gas or from electric cost me about the same.

I hear Ya
Also compared to gas, how far do you have to drive to get more electricity

I hear you too.
The natural gas is brought home to us through a national grid.
Alongside the electricity and the water and mostly tv/internet/telephone.
The drawback is, that I am stuck at my kitchenstove. If I want to run my still in my shed, I too will need bottles of butane, and getting them would cost me driving. Or an extension of my gasgrid, which is difficult to explain. An extension of cables I can make myself.

I sometimes wonder: could it be possible to distill enough surplus alcohol to fire your still?

[Antler24]

Yes, in these cases I would rather go electric too. For me it is different: I calculated that 1 kW from gas or from electric cost me about the same.

I hear Ya
Also compared to gas, how far do you have to drive to get more electricity

I hear you too.
The natural gas is brought home to us through a national grid.
Alongside the electricity and the water and mostly tv/internet/telephone.
The drawback is, that I am stuck at my kitchenstove. If I want to run my still in my shed, I too will need bottles of butane, and getting them would cost me driving. Or an extension of my gasgrid, which is difficult to explain. An extension of cables I can make myself.

I sometimes wonder: could it be possible to distill enough surplus alcohol to fire your still?

Can't you just have a simple valve and connection installed, and run a hose to your she'd when in use?

Not sure about alcohol fueled still but I'd love to build a wood fired still based off a volcano stove, aka the "Kelly Kettle". That would be awesome for my cabin back in the country!

[HDNB]

I sometimes wonder: could it be possible to distill enough surplus alcohol to fire your still?

ooo...perpetual energy machine. the dream of sci-fi geeks everywhere.

[The Baker]

Kareltje said, ' If I want to run my still in my shed, I too will need bottles of butane, and getting them would cost me driving. Or an extension of my gasgrid, which is difficult to explain.'

I put a grill (we call it a barbecue....) under the eaves at the back of my house.
Bloody thing was set up, in the shop but it arrived in five boxes and took two days to put together. But that is another story!

Anyway I got the optional wok burner that sits on the side; and the whole thing is connected to the natural gas pipe.

Works fine for my 20 litre pot still, full or nearly full gas to heat up, turn it down a fair bit to distil.
The framework carries that weight fine, heavier would need extra support.

Geoff

[Username]

Glad to see I got a bit of a discussion going on this.

it seems like everything else in life there is no one answer

Not made up my mind yet, but I'll get there eventually

[Yummyrum]

I started with electric on my smaller rigs and I loved it ..... safe quick and easy .... but a dog on CM .
When I up sized to a keg I had to go with LPG gas .Like Salt bush said electricity is dear here compared to gas . Especially when you are running higher power levels .
$100 and your up and running with gas . For us Aussies the most we can pull from a standard power point is 2400 watts so to go higher involves getting a sparkie ( registered electrician ) to run a higher current curcuit . Then there is the cost of elements and covers , controllers etc .

Now I have been lamenting about my gas powered Flute behaving like a dog because of fluctuations in the burner . Still not sure the cuase but beginning to think its a dodgy High Pressure Regulator . Using gas I run out doors due to safety reasons but that causes other issues regarding breezes affecting columns and the flame itself . I need to improve both shrouding and insulation of the column .

However . Electricity isn't the be all and end all for me either as being rural , I have serverely fluctuating voltage . One of the reasons I rn my LM/ VM column in VM mode is that the voltage fluctuations didn't cause me so much grief .

Sorry no more definitive answer but maybe some more info on which to base your decsision

[Kareltje]

About the maximum power you can get: my fusebox in the house has 3 fuses of a max of about 3 kW each. But I have two elements in my boiler, so I plug in one element in one group and the other in another group. And it works!
But that is a simple pot still, so I do not care much about fluctuations in powersupply.

[Kareltje]

I forgot something, that has not been mentioned: if you use electrical elements inside your boiler, you should be very careful not to boil your kettle dry! You need to have always enough fluid in your boiler to cover the elements.
And there is some risk of scorching. In externally fired boiler you can install a stirrer, which is more difficult when you have internal elements.

Funny, how much aspects there are of such a simple question.

[acfixer69]

I forgot something, that has not been mentioned: if you use electrical elements inside your boiler, you should be very careful not to boil your kettle dry! You need to have always enough fluid in your boiler to cover the elements.
And there is some risk of scorching. In externally fired boiler you can install a stirrer, which is more difficult when you have internal elements.

Funny, how much aspects there are of such a simple question.

Why would a stirrer be more difficult? I just would be designed to clear it or them. Same as to clear the bottom.

AC

[Kareltje]

Why would a stirrer be more difficult? I just would be designed to clear it or them. Same as to clear the bottom.

AC

An externally fired boiler has a clean, empty bottom. A simple rotating chain can clear the bottom.
When internal elements heat the slurry, the scorching is on the elements and they need to be cleaned or wiped every so often.
Cleaning these protruding elements is more complicated than cleaning a simple bottom.

[acfixer69]

Why would a stirrer be more difficult? I just would be designed to clear it or them. Same as to clear the bottom.

AC

An externally fired boiler has a clean, empty bottom. A simple rotating chain can clear the bottom.
When internal elements heat the slurry, the scorching is on the elements and they need to be cleaned or wiped every so often.
Cleaning these protruding elements is more complicated than cleaning a simple bottom.

If doing a slurry the internal elements would never be used.

AC