Home Distiller

Hi guys. I'm Phil, diesel mechanic, engineer, ex underground miner, from the beautiful Hawkes Bay in New Zealand. I've been distilling for years, and have always come back to this site for problem solving, you guys are an amazing resource. Thanks to you guys I now solely birdwatchers. I'm part way through building my new still, previously I was using a 50 litre beer keg with a 65mm boka, 1 metre column packed with half stainless wool and half broken up car windscreen. It was working well, with a gas burner, but I wanted more so have built a 100 litre boiler with a 3kw element. This set up works live a dream, but I'm having a problem which I will address in the appropriate section.
I look forward to hearing from you, and bouncing around new ideas.
Thanks
Phil

Welcome in. Not sure about in nz but u.s. windshields are two layers of glass with a layer of plastic laminated between.
Welcome in though. Please read the site rules in regard to plastics.
Edited to add...
Of course, the side windows are just tempered glass so they are safe.
Be safe

Welcome. It's good to have another Kiwi here.

jb-texshine wrote:Edited to add...
Of course, the side windows are just tempered glass so they are safe.
Be safe

Just a word of caution to go along with this... I would be hesitant to use tempered glass from modern vehicles as most have tinted glass and you can't be sure what that tinting comes from or whether it could leach into distilled spirits... Safety, first and foremost...

Sorry, I should elaborate. It's the side glass from an early 90s vehicle and I have been distilling through it for about 6 years now

Tempered glass will break into small cubes nd I cant see any reason that could not be used for a packing medium.
New Zealand is a beautiful country mate ... wish I could retire there.

willee wrote:Tempered glass will break into small cubes nd I cant see any reason that could not be used for a packing medium.

It does work but I'd go with older car windows or tempered patio door glass... I had some patio door glass that I tried once but I should have tumbled it to knock the sharp edges down... Just didn't like it... Plus is seemed to pack too tight and channeled...

I just smashed it on the ground, scooped it up and put it in a sealed bucket with a few rocks and some water and rolled it round the lawn. Sieved it through a colander whilst running water thru it. Figured even if any shards made it through that process, they certainly wouldn't make it up the still, and certainly not through the carbon filter. Stainless wool is still better I think, but I ran out and figured with a column height of 1 meter I could afford to run both. Results agree with me. Now to sort out the stalling when it reaches tails..

Kiwi_phil wrote:Now to sort out the stalling when it reaches tails..

Turning it off when the shit hits the parrot sounds pretty good to me

NZChris wrote:

Kiwi_phil wrote:Now to sort out the stalling when it reaches tails..

Turning it off when the shit hits the parrot sounds pretty good to me

It's still coming off clean at 85% when it stalls tho.

What is the charge temperature when it happens?

What is the SG of the backset?

I haven't used a thermometer since the kids broke it a few runs ago (pre new boiler) back set sg? I'm not clever with terms. Is that the sg of what's left after it stalls?

Backset is what is left in the boiler at the end of the run. If there is no alcohol left in it, there is no point in flogging it.

SG = Specific Gravity

rad14701 wrote:

jb-texshine wrote:Edited to add...
Of course, the side windows are just tempered glass so they are safe.
Be safe

Just a word of caution to go along with this... I would be hesitant to use tempered glass from modern vehicles as most have tinted glass and you can't be sure what that tinting comes from or whether it could leach into distilled spirits... Safety, first and foremost...

Good point!