New Addition/Adoption To The Family! My Still & It's Sweet!!

[Greig56]

Success at Posting This at Last!! Now This Is my Biz!!! 4' of copper!! -2' of 3" followed by 2' of 1 1/2" attached to an 18" Liebig of 1" over 1/2"on top of my modified burner keg! The T-fitting and Liebig will disconnect for cleaning/storage! I've hung the liebig at a 45* while it was running instead of straight up and down. SWEET!!! This doesn't show the upper digi thermostat or the 5' of 3/8 line I straightened out and have dis/connectable to the output of the liebig that drains my final finished product down to the metal funnel over the current flask of choice!!
This does have a fair bit of copper mesh and copper strapping (lightly twisted wire bundle clamps etc) inside throughout the height of the column & T (for the therm's sake here!)for some reflux. It's not choked up but it's there!
For all the examples I found to base this on, there was a thermometer at the top of the tee, what I couldn't design or figure out as an alt for a temp reading was I have seen the thermo reading via contact on the T cover itself,,, instead of reading off the mesh inside the top of the column as my example! -I'm good with my hands but better off a visual of some sort!!
Kinda brings a tear to my eye.....!!

Right now the only thing holding me back is my baseline WallyWorld 30KBTU gas burner. I removed the mandated 15 min timer from the equation which wasn't rocket science, yet I'm limited in that it won't run at a low and slow flame so best at the moment is about <2/3 dial min.
Two burns in, a brandy and a corn meal/extract/sugar whiskey I've aged and tarted up nicely! Held off till this week to taste the results of my efforts! Well worth the wait!

My thought this is a Pot yet I've been told it's a Reflux perhaps of it's height! This could be turned into a VM setup at some time in the future too! A bit of thin 3/8 ref line twisted into an extension of the T will do that nicely!
I had cobbled this together from a melding of a good few sites I found of different types of stills mixing all the good points into one! So Sweet!! It might not be the best design, Necessity being 'still' the Mother of Invention & the $$ Rules!
Version 1:

[InglisHill]

It's a pot, yes it could be turned into a VM, or that 4" looks like it could be turned into a plated still.

Nice to see you are happy with your results

Good on you.

[rad14701]

Looks good but it's just a simple pot still... The packing does nothing after initial warmup in a pot column but could be beneficial if you decided to go the VM route... You probably wouldn't see much if any difference in performance if you were to attempt to run without the packing...

[still_stirrin]

This is already threaded through another thread....with similar comments.
Here's a tie-in link: http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... 0#p7333812

Gotta' agree with Rad...not much benefit to packing in this still.
ss

[Greig56]

rad
I bookmarked your link as this is exactly the sort of visual I need to figure/sort out how to make a condenser coil when I get around to taking off the cap on the 1 1/2" Tee, extending it and making this a VM setup!! This was a hanging question I had on how I was going to make this happen!
My New Small Scale Combo Still
http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... =17&t=8439
On the coil pics which I think you made pretty much the same top and mid way down page one I almost missed how much 1/4" it took to make that. 5' of line is what I'll look for!
A question rad please,
In making this a VM, of the copper extension that would hold this coil. The top where the coil lines come out -and even by your pics or the drawing,, I don't see a top or cover as much to seal the condensate vapors within the top of the column... vapors rise..! Am I missing something beyond a visual? There is no seal there! How have you tackled that?

[still_stirrin]

I don't want to usurp Rad's response, but the clue here Greig56, is that the reflux condenser must condense all vapors that travel into the condenser. In other words, it doesn't need to be sealed. In fact, when open (vented) if the reflux condenser can't knock down all the vapors, some will escape out of the top, signalling you to reduce the heat input.

You absolutely MUST read through the threads associated for running a reflux still. It is very obvious that you're still delinquent at your mandatory reading.
ss

[Greig56]

Hmmn Ummkkay, I take it then that thinking of turning this into a VM means it would then become a reflux,, and here I stopped reading that part when I thought this was just a simple pot still!!
Too many forks in the fire to catch all the fine points!
Thankfully or hopefully I can knock down a few washes in the meantime while I do some more reading and digesting!!

[moosemilk]

You could easily turn this into a CCVM by the looks of it.

***edit*** maybe not. Just noticed that it reduces at the "T" and not after, which would make it near impossible to control as well CCVM. Still other options and looks great!

[rad14701]

Greig56, to expound beyond what has been stated, venting the top of a reflux column is also required because of the fact that many will actually be drawing ambient air into the column during the process of vapor collapse... If the top end is unvented there is more problem than potential pressure buildup... Without the vent, and the associated inability to draw in ambient air, the size requirement for the reflux coil might be greater because the act of vapor collapse would essentially cause more hot vapor to be drawn up the column... The whole reflux head concept is a balancing act...

As for the question about how the condenser stay in place, the one in my column topic can either suspend within the column or can rest on the reflux deflection plate that is utilized in that design... I have since installed a cut down Tee as a reflux deflector, and have also switched from using the wound coil with a concentric condenser...

[Greig56]

Thanks rad, basically in a nutshell hot vapor cooled becomes heavier, thus with cooler air able to come in via the top [when needed or on demand] due to cooling action hence becomes the balancing act! It heats up, cools and the valve maintains that balance of temp, pressure and of course volume! Not so far removed from rocket science only it's applied becoming a common application! Always said you could watch how fast something could be learned if a dollar sign gets put in front of them, yes a rough analogy. Like when I took my Pipe Trades Course you could tell who was paying their own way or Dad was!

-I have been doing a fair bit of reading, will be doing some more! Not all the read parts/threads are clear OR straight forward!! More the why hadn't noted the how, why or fact of no cover to the condenser interspersed with the bravado or talk over a few peeps heads while trying to keep up and 'still' make sense! Per Ardua Ad Astra.....

One thing I did do in my design, is I can take the column apart for cleaning or getting at the packing above or below and I can removed/unscrew or change the Tee. I I were to consider changing the Tee I would be able to have the room for this upper condenser, one for a pot the other not. As my liebig unscrews as well, this is where I can add a valve of choice off that Tee before it. From my reading I thought I caught one or two spots it mentioned the condenser would not require that much more cooling over that needed for a liebig only! Would have thought it could stand a wee bit more cooling than being fed after the liebig..
Again, for your patience I thank you!
I have my Reception Swill is all that matters this week for next!! Not dissapointed at all in my efforts thus far! If I spend more time on here I mightn't make it there and that'd cost more than I want to pay!! Off to bed for a couple days more work!
Cheers!

[Greig56]

A few years on this pic here in the workshop and hopefully it's not too squeezed out of proportion but this still is still going strong for me! Note the long long copper line-5' off the liebig to the funnel I can disconnect when I'm done!
I'm mostly a rum maker being just one of those Rhuom Peepole with a number of decent clean DWWG too, yet I've been able to come up with a very very proper [7-8 gen presently] sour mash DWWG faux whiskey I can now replicate respectably! Actually in all truth, my rums have been twists of a sour mash culled together from some likes of Buccaneer Bob's but they're very decent, smooth and replicable! Just the waY I like 'em!
I've found my best results when I'm at it, is my liebig just down a bit down from horizontal [not like the pic!]and running slow! Crank the heat to come up to temp and turned down from there. It might take a while but 65% for 1st-2nd-3rd jars can be a norm on a strip run and 85% for 3 jars to 60% 4th & 5th last two spirit runs a rum and a DWWG!
Sweet!
Slainte!