Time to crap or get off the pot.

[city shiner]

Been reading and asking questions for over a year now. I'm starting this thread to document the build
I'm going to build a plated pot still small enough to fit on a stovetop. I have a gas range. Its going to be modular. I'll be able to run pretty much whatever I want. I went to the scrap yard today and found all of the copper pipe they had was compressed into loose 3' square. So I need to keep looking for a short section of 2" copper and a short pony keg. I don't want to spend 150 on a Temco milk can. Anyhow. I have a plan. My birthday is in May. I want to get it done before then.

[bitter]

Check out Rads apartment build.

B

[Hound Dog]

Been reading and asking questions for over a year now.......
I'm going to build a plated pot still small enough to fit on a stovetop.......So I need to keep looking for a short section of 2" copper and a short pony keg......

In that year of questions, you know a pot still is not a plated still right? 2 inch is mighty small for a plated column. If you want two inch pipe, break out a $50 and get 10 feet of it at the store. I think it was $52 in Lowe's last I looked do you might have to get some change out from under your car seat too. Free liquor ain't really free.

[city shiner]

Rads still will definitely be an influence. It will be a hybrid still. Boiler, two 3" bubble cap modules (probably from vision stills) topped with an LM head. Going to do the dual reducer LM. CSST condenser. With this setup, I figure I can control the reflux with the needle valve on the output. Tri clamp ferrules on everything. So I can run no plates, one or two plates, a marble filled extension for nuetral, just the LM head, valve open for a pot still. All kinds of possibilities. Since it will be a hybrid I called it a plated pot still. I guess a more accurate term would be a LM still with a plated column. But it will be more than that.

[still_stirrin]

When you actually DO get off the pot, don't forget the "paperwork" first.

A 7-1/2 gallon "pony keg" is almost too small for any kind of plates....you'll need plenty of distillate to load them and keep them loaded. I just hope you've got enough heat on your gas range to get them loaded. Operation may become quite challenging for you...size and heat source and all.

While you've got great plans, they don't seem to fit well together. Using a "systems engineering" approach, make sure you have the requirements fully vetted before trying to settle on a design solution. Doing so (prematurely) will result in rework or rebuild, costing more time and budget in the long run.

Most here would say that a pony keg is great to use as a thumper for a full (1/2 barrel) keg, or even as a boiler for a smaller potstill, or possibly for a reflux still. But a 2" column is small to use for a flute and larger diameter columns demand more vapors to get and keep them loaded...something to think about.
ss

[city shiner]

SS. Thanks for that. I appreciate any advice. 1 burner is 1375w measured by how long it takes to bring water to a boil. A short pony keg will set across 2 burners.

[city shiner]

The 2 inch will just be for reflux.