my new 3" stainless still

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ShineShack
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my new 3" stainless still

Post by ShineShack »

after 11 months and hundreds of hours looking thru posts on this website here it is!!! have not seen one like it yet!! not all stainless that is . 3" x 36" tall into 1"1/2" x 6" connector. into 3" x 3"1/2"into a 3 " to 4" reducer with a 4" x 12" collector all schedule 40 foodgrade stainless pipe with triclamps and flanges tig welded on them.all in all a lilover 4 foot tall. goin to make my coil for my head next just got 1/4" copper pipe. putting a thermo in 3" cap and holes in 4" cap for coil in and out all this will be sitting on a 16 gallon stainless keg with a stainless bowl and 3 inch flange. waiting for my stainless rings to be cut out on water jet to reinforce pot and make a better seal. any questions just ask. Image my still Image keg mock up Image head Image top view
2 heads are better than one
junkyard dawg
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by junkyard dawg »

impressive :mrgreen:
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rad14701
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by rad14701 »

Gee, I could be wrong but that column looks like galvanized pipe based on the rust and rough appearance... Are you sure it's all stainless...??? If it isn't, and has zinc in it, the product won't be safe for drinking...

Nice craftsmanship, regardless...
junkyard dawg
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by junkyard dawg »

that column looks like galvanized pipe based on the rust and rough appearance
:?:

thats called mill finish...
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ShineShack
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by ShineShack »

no the 3 " pipe is stainless the rust spot is where it layed in my shop for about two years on the floor against other pieces of rusting metal. .this is the one piece of milled pipe i did get, the rest of the pipes are polished. this whole still is none magnetic food grade stainless. i plan on polishing it when i am done just haven't got to that point yet. plus it would have been immpossible to tig weld anyhthing stainless to anything galvinized. the green smoke would have given it away! thanks for all your imput and looking out for me. i cant wait to get it finished.
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blanikdog
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by blanikdog »

Nice work, SS.
Simple potstiller. Slow, single run.
(50 litre, propane heated pot still. Coil in bucket condenser - No thermometer, No carbon)
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rad14701
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by rad14701 »

Just checking, ShineShack... Couldn't see the welds real clear so they helped raise the question about stainless versus galvanized... The welds almost looked rusted, which they could had you welded galvanized to stainless... That plus the rust spot raised suspicion... Better to question and make sure you were safe as we've seen some questionable materials used in the past... Glad it was a false alarm this time...

What, you don't like huffing that green dragon smoke off welded galvanized...??? I remember having to weld it every so often years ago and that yellowish green smoke scared the heck outta me - for good reason... Didn't always have the luxury of adequate ventilation...
snuffy
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by snuffy »

ShineShack wrote:... goin to make my coil for my head next just got 1/4" copper pipe. putting a thermo in 3" cap and holes in 4" cap for coil in and out...
Be sure to put a vent hole in that 4" cap to let the air out when the still starts up and provide a pressure relief to atmosphere.

With a 4" condenser chamber, you will benefit from packing scrubbers or mesh in the large voids. Or a cold finger down the middle. You need less than 1 sq in cross section for the vapor - it will be collapsing to liquid. The vapor has to touch the cold coil to condense, so anything that shrinks the distance the vapor has to travel before it hits the heat exchanger will increase the efficiency. With this large a chamber, you could use a 3 1/2" diameter (or even 3 3/4" if you can center it accurately) cold finger instead of a coil.
Time's a wasting!!!
ShineShack
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by ShineShack »

thanks for all the imput guys. i read and just hung in the shadows for a year before putting anything up on here . i wanted to start with something different. thanks for the input on the coil. i also have 100' of 3/8 copper i might use and hadn't considered the coldfinger but plans are changing every day. How big of a vent hole should i put in my cap?
2 heads are better than one
CoopsOz
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by CoopsOz »

Thats some nice welding there shineshack, I wish I had the skills!
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ShineShack
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by ShineShack »

thanks oz!! im a welder by trade spend some days 10 hours sittin at a table tig welding. these are all pre cleaning picture welds . once i polish it you wont be able to see the welds hardly at all .i cant wait to make this baby shine.
2 heads are better than one
minime
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by minime »

ShineShack wrote: How big of a vent hole should i put in my cap?
You don't need a cap, just wrap with copper or stainless gauze.
Hawke
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by Hawke »

I would put at least a 1/4" hole for a vent 1/2" would be better.
Using either 1/4 or 3/8 tubing I would build a double coil with coldfinger return. Then use some loose packed copper scrubber to fill the voids.
Very nice work to this point.
It is the very things that we think we know, that keep us from learning what we should know.
Valved Reflux, 3"x54" Bok 'mini', 2 liebig based pots and the 'Blockhead' 60K btu propane heat
trthskr4
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by trthskr4 »

I weld lots of galvanized metal, had an old welder friend says to drink a big glass of milk after you get finished and you won't have any problems from the smoke. Still scares me though.

Nice work. Just found out a buddy of mine has a tig machine in his shop, I'm gonna practice up.
15 gallon pot still, 2"x18" column with liebeg condensor on propane.
Modified Charles 803 w/ 50gal boiler, never ran so far.
akadjusters
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by akadjusters »

Hi, I'm a newbie and was wondering if you could clear a few things up for me? I was wondering why most folks using a keg go the stainless bowl route? Is it just for ease of cleaning? How do you go about sealing/mounting the bowl to the keg? Some have urged you to make a vent hole. I was under the impression (perhaps wrongly) that things should be sealed and the only route for the gases/liquid to escape should be through the take off? Any help will be appreciated.
HookLine
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Re: my new 3" stainless still

Post by HookLine »

Howdy
akadjusters wrote:I was wondering why most folks using a keg go the stainless bowl route? Is it just for ease of cleaning?
Yes.
akadjusters wrote:How do you go about sealing/mounting the bowl to the keg?
Natural cork, or flour paste. Usually the bowl is held on with some kinda clamp arrangement.
akadjusters wrote:Some have urged you to make a vent hole. I was under the impression (perhaps wrongly) that things should be sealed and the only route for the gases/liquid to escape should be through the take off?
Not quite. The rule is there must be an escape path for the vapours that cannot possibly be closed off during operation. In a pot still it is the output of the product condenser. In a reflux still that is on one end of the reflux condenser (no vapour should get past the reflux condenser during normal operation).
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