dumbest shit ever done making likker

Little or nothing to do with distillation.

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thecroweater
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by thecroweater »

Kegg_jam wrote:Yeah, don't solder in flip flops either.
On the flip side molten slag dropping in ya boot will make those river dance blokes look like hacks.
Don't stir a molasses wash up inside the house, it will not end well.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by brewing_brad »

Lyonsie wrote:Got the chickens pissed on spent grain. My mam and her sister came down to get eggs. They were not very impressed :lol:
This gave me a good chuckle. I once got (Australian) magpies pissed the same way! The poor things would fly up and land on the power lines, only to fall off again. A few even hung there upside down. Funniest sight I've ever seen.

An ornithologist friend told me it was really bad for them and some may have died as a result. Felt bad and never did it again.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Jimbo »

Sounds like another 'Tell us about your mistakes' thread, but Ill chime in for fun.

Use 2 hands when carrying wet carboys. The explosion they make when they hit the concrete floor is pretty impressive tho.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by MDH »

Many years ago, I once collected 30 liters of birch sap to boil down, then made it into a "wash". During the spirit run, I forgot to turn the condenser flow on and lost more than half of it as mist into the wind, never to be seen again.

I didn't do anything for four months after that... My morale was not great for a while.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by WIski »

Gives new meaning to "Angels in the Wind" :lol: Sorry for your loss.........
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Hilltop »

I once lit the spoon to test the proof of a run while half lit!

" I've never heard of a hydrometer till I registered here"

I dropped the spoon into the stainless collection bowl, which I then kicked upon exiting the scene along with two mason jars of corn liquer, Took a sack of flour to put it out. Lesson learned. That blue flame was hot boys. Hotter than I thought... Lesson learned.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Yummyrum »

Done a few Dumb things . Made my first Rum in our bedroom with Turbo yeast in a fermenter which was way to small ......Picture a Mt Vesuvious at 2.30 in the morning ....some one was not impressed .

Another time I was trying to drain the last of some Molasses out of a drum into a bucket . I had it all propped up and was going well . I went off to do something else only to return and find it had fallen . find molasses all over the floor where it had coated leads and power controllers and stuff which were a bitch to clean .
Whoops.jpg
Made a mess while trying some Clarifying experiments .
Mess.jpg
Also while I was doing some rum experiments I thought it a good Idea to place a sheet of glass over the BOP while it cooled....nope bad idea , it cracked .
Cracked glass.jpg
But probably the single most Stupid thing I ever did was Set my still on Fire.
I used to distill in the kitchen and sit my 25 liter still spirits boiler on the stove top as it was close to the sink and taps . On this particular occasion I though I would hurry things along by turning on the gas element under the boiler to aid heat up time as these things only had a 1380 Watt element that took for ever . So while I was doing the dishes and getting the Kitchen ready I look at the still to see alcohol pouring out the spout which suddenly flashed in fire . Hell I've never moved so fast . Switched off the gas element , flicked the switch and blew and blew like the big bad wolf until I nearly passed out with dizziness . Learned a few good lessons that night :oops: :shh:
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by WooTeck »

I was to hasty for a run and didn't clear the wash enough. melted the copped off the element, the things you learn
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by miket »

I made my first still with some glassware from a chemistry set. I used a torch to bend all my glass tubes. Fermented some wash in bottles and it was decent.
Fired her up and got her going , it was chugging along and exploded from pressure as I did not make it an open system.
My 3 friends were freaking, LOL.

This was about 1980 and I was in the 6th grade. :D I was a bad kid. God bless my mom and dad.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Alchemist75 »

So stupid shit done distilling alcohol.....
How bout blowing up stills?
Done it twice, things happen, like, ima idiot kinda things.
So I wasn't technically "making" ethanol but I was distilling it as a solvent recovery from a hot concentrated ginger extract on a new, all glass still design that was intended to be super efficient at collecting 95% ethanol from select tinctures. It was it's maiden run and it performed beautifully until I got out the lighter.....
Mind you I was 20 years old. OK, so it had a condenser that employed ice water and cool little two chamber gas trap at the end of it, at the very end of the whole train it had an overflow arm. I decided to check and see if any ethanol vapor was escaping through the overflow by holding a lighter flame to it. Yeah, I know, bright. What ensued was a lesson in rocketry and confirmed that my design was very efficient. The ice cooled condenser was actually generating negative pressure so the lighter flame was drawn up the arm and into the gas trap....
*PHUNK!* the top chamber of the gas trap shot off like a bolt, ricocheted off the ceiling and landed somewhere behind me. Immediately the entire work space was dancing with blue flames including myself. I managed to get the fire put out quickly but I learned a valuable lesson. Good solvent recovery rig, real damn good.
Another time, me and my best buddy were distilling some home made rum in an old 5 gallon milk can. We had used a paste of flour, sugar and water to seal the heavy steel lid on. We were cooking on his gas oven in his kitchen and things were going fine until about halfway through the run. I guess the paste hadn't completely set up and sprung a little leak, a little leak that very nearly blew the cap off into the ceiling. Big, spectacular, blue fireball shot out of the top of the still when the leaking vapor hit the gas flame. I just about jumped outta my 36 hole boots and my buddy hit the deck. Luckily the paste actually did keep the lid from flying off and we got the fire under control fast but sweet Jesus.

Yeah, things blow up sometimes when you're being a dummy.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by OlympicMtDoo »

Great thread dukethebeagle120 it's good to know there are so many dip shits out there, (not excluding myself by far) strength in numbers. :thumbup: :thumbup:
Sometimes I wonder why is that Frisbee getting bigger......and then it hits me.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Kareltje »

Alchemist75 wrote:So stupid shit done distilling alcohol.....
How bout blowing up stills?
Done it twice, things happen, like, ima idiot kinda things.
So I wasn't technically "making" ethanol but I was distilling it as a solvent recovery from a hot concentrated ginger extract on a new, all glass still design that was intended to be super efficient at collecting 95% ethanol from select tinctures. It was it's maiden run and it performed beautifully until I got out the lighter.....
Mind you I was 20 years old. OK, so it had a condenser that employed ice water and cool little two chamber gas trap at the end of it, at the very end of the whole train it had an overflow arm. I decided to check and see if any ethanol vapor was escaping through the overflow by holding a lighter flame to it. Yeah, I know, bright. What ensued was a lesson in rocketry and confirmed that my design was very efficient. The ice cooled condenser was actually generating negative pressure so the lighter flame was drawn up the arm and into the gas trap....
*PHUNK!* the top chamber of the gas trap shot off like a bolt, ricocheted off the ceiling and landed somewhere behind me. Immediately the entire work space was dancing with blue flames including myself. I managed to get the fire put out quickly but I learned a valuable lesson. Good solvent recovery rig, real damn good.
Another time, me and my best buddy were distilling some home made rum in an old 5 gallon milk can. We had used a paste of flour, sugar and water to seal the heavy steel lid on. We were cooking on his gas oven in his kitchen and things were going fine until about halfway through the run. I guess the paste hadn't completely set up and sprung a little leak, a little leak that very nearly blew the cap off into the ceiling. Big, spectacular, blue fireball shot out of the top of the still when the leaking vapor hit the gas flame. I just about jumped outta my 36 hole boots and my buddy hit the deck. Luckily the paste actually did keep the lid from flying off and we got the fire under control fast but sweet Jesus.

Yeah, things blow up sometimes when you're being a dummy.
The first story is more or less like a test I planned to do: distill a small amount of alcohol and than set fire to the output of the condenser. My guees would be that there is not enough oxygen to cause a blast, but apparently there is.
I will take even more precautions than I was planning to.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Alchemist75 »

Yeah, don't do that, ever. Use a mirror or polished steel. Alcohol vapor and flame are a bad mix particularly in a semi closed system. Explosives engineering 101
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by HDNB »

Alchemist75 wrote:Yeah, don't do that, ever. Use a mirror or polished steel. Alcohol vapor and flame are a bad mix particularly in a semi closed system. Explosives engineering 101
on purpose??!!!???

For the Love of life, take that advice! In the unlikely event you wake up... it will be in the burn ward you will spend the rest of your life wondering how you could have possibly been that stupid.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Alchemist75 »

Honestly I believe, nay, know that this method for leak checking has been around a long time....sure as hell doesn't make it an even remotely good idea but to someone who maybe doesn't really know the risk or is perhaps acting in haste it might seem like a grand idea right then. It doesn't guarantee the still will blow but it's a likely bet that it will. Just take a tip and don't do it. Condenser=fuse and boiler=bomb. Kapow.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Boda Getta »

My dumb ass move tops your dumb ass move. Last week I filled my boiler with 12 gals of beautiful AG Irish whiskey mash, then turned my 5500 240 controller on. After a few seconds smoke started pouring out of the liebig I couldn't wrap my head around what was happening for a few seconds before I turned the unit off and investigated. I had a drain hose attached to the drain port routed outside; turn out I left the valve on the drain open and i was draining the boiled as fast as I was filling it and turned the element on a dry boiler. I put about 10 gals water in the boiler and turned it back on and heard a loud pop. Turned everything off and pulled the element out and it was burned in half! So I not only wasted 12 gals mash but crapped out my element and possibility damaged my controller. I'm having it checked out now.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Hilltop »

:oops: Well today I made a serious rookie mistake that could have ended very bad, The dangum weather won't cooperate so after my mash got ready I set up indoors.

I was on my second run finishing off a barrel of mash, Once I dropped to 10 proof on my low wine run, I hurried to disconnect to prevent my thumper from creating a vacuum and sucking in my boiler.

As I was disconnecting the union between boiler and thumper I failed to see that I had wiggled the thumper to the edge of the counter. Upon disconnect the thumper tilted to the right and the thumper, liebeg and parrot crashed into 4 gallons of head and tail pumped up low wines and the entire floor was covered in 90 proof before I could blink. Thank God no open flames were present. I have been mopping and listening to bitching for 2 hours. There was a drain in the floor under the fridge and most ran out it.

All blankets on the backside of the wall in the next room folded up on the floor had to be washed and there ain't enough air freshener in this world that covers up the smell.

I'm defiantly in the dog house, with a busted parrot, hydrometer and wasted time and money.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by nerdybrewer »

Hilltop wrote::oops: Well today I made a serious rookie mistake that could have ended very bad, The dangum weather won't cooperate so after my mash got ready I set up indoors.

I was on my second run finishing off a barrel of mash, Once I dropped to 10 proof on my low wine run, I hurried to disconnect to prevent my thumper from creating a vacuum and sucking in my boiler.

As I was disconnecting the union between boiler and thumper I failed to see that I had wiggled the thumper to the edge of the counter. Upon disconnect the thumper tilted to the right and the thumper, liebeg and parrot crashed into 4 gallons of head and tail pumped up low wines and the entire floor was covered in 90 proof before I could blink. Thank God no open flames were present. I have been mopping and listening to bitching for 2 hours. There was a drain in the floor under the fridge and most ran out it.

All blankets on the backside of the wall in the next room folded up on the floor had to be washed and there ain't enough air freshener in this world that covers up the smell.

I'm defiantly in the dog house, with a busted parrot, hydrometer and wasted time and money.
I can't tell you how much better I feel after reading this!
My dumbest thing only caused a lot of bodily harm to myself and made a mess in my shed.
Cranky's spoonfeeding:
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Appalachian spirits »

I pumped about 15 gallons of wash into the boiler one day before i realized the drain was open. A one inch valve dumps a shitload of still beer in a hurry. Luckily i was set up in my workshop and the drain was piped outside since im in the mountains.
Ive never gotten chickens hammered but ive seen several squirrells and one VERY drunk deer. She obviously liked my peaches lol
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by DSM Loki »

I use a modified half barrel keg to blend and proof. I poured a good gallon and a half of full strength neutral in one day before I realized the 1" drain was open. You're damn right those things flow a whole lot.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by DAD300 »

Literally for ten years, I heard people warn about the foaming action of rye.

I had a huge ferment of oats that was taking too long. About ten pm I added a few pounds of rye as a nutrient and left.

Next morning about ten am, as I approached the shop, I saw something running out of the garage door. About fifty gallons had made it out of the ferment and was every where. I swear it was climbing the walls!

BEWARE RYE!
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Bavis54 »

I am fortunate to live on fairly large property, all to myself, so I put spent grains out to feed deer and raccoons etc. been doing it now for yrs, little by little I keep noticing this one squirrel that runs down, gets sloshed and then throws out the local blue jay from its birdhouse and sleeps it off. First cpl times I saw it I laughed like hell, then one morning I saw the squirrel try climbing out the box, he fell out, hit a root n knocked out his front teeth. I felt sorry n responsible so I been putting out oatmeal for him. But he never would eat it . I was afraid he had died until other day I heard something- tick ..tick tick tick....tick tick- I looked outside n saw the squirrel with a rock in one paw and a piece of corn from spent grain pile clanging them together and eating it. ... I’m glad the little lush is still around.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by pfshine »

Fermentation is a natural process and it's known that some animals seek this out and others intentionally leave fruit to ferment to get intoxicated. They are no different than us.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Reverend Newer »

About the worst thing I can think of that has happened was making 50 gallons of expensive vinegar
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Hilltop »

Bavis54 wrote:I am fortunate to live on fairly large property, all to myself, so I put spent grains out to feed deer and raccoons etc. been doing it now for yrs, little by little I keep noticing this one squirrel that runs down, gets sloshed and then throws out the local blue jay from its birdhouse and sleeps it off. First cpl times I saw it I laughed like hell, then one morning I saw the squirrel try climbing out the box, he fell out, hit a root n knocked out his front teeth. I felt sorry n responsible so I been putting out oatmeal for him. But he never would eat it . I was afraid he had died until other day I heard something- tick ..tick tick tick....tick tick- I looked outside n saw the squirrel with a rock in one paw and a piece of corn from spent grain pile clanging them together and eating it. ... I’m glad the little lush is still around.
You should stop by the Liars Bench thread as me and Truckinbutch get tired of being the only people here with a personality! Now that was a good yarn. I have raised many baby chickens off spent grain. I have some I'm raising now who are getting big enough for the kids to consider them as " teenager" chickens. The other day I gave them some fresh cracked corn along with spent rice and wheat mash. They dove right in the mash and ignored the corn. This is the I'm a dumbass thread, so come on over to the other one and sit a spell.
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Post by still_stirrin »

Kareltje wrote:The first story is more or less like a test I planned to do: distill a small amount of alcohol and than set fire to the output of the condenser. My guees would be that there is not enough oxygen to cause a blast, but apparently there is.
Reminds me of the time a few years back a house builder who was building a house for my family, when he smelled propane in his home (country farm home heated by propane), he went to his basement stairs, lit a match and threw it into the basement!!!! :crazy:

When he regained consciousness, he was on the ground 15 feet outside his home, which had been lifted up and moved on the foundation. Busted a couple of ribs in the ride too.

Needless to say, our new house went “on hold” for a few months while he rebuilt his home first.

Ever see “Fire Marshall Bill” on In Living Color (Jim Carrey’s entry to Hollywood)? Google it.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by zapata »

Bavis54 wrote:I was afraid he had died until other day I heard something- tick ..tick tick tick....tick tick- I looked outside n saw the squirrel with a rock in one paw and a piece of corn from spent grain pile clanging them together and eating it. ... I’m glad the little lush is still around.
I feel like I just watched a Disney cartoon made by shiners. Cool story :)
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by zapata »

Ok, my turn. My 30 gallon stripper had sat with back set and got funky but I wanted to run. No problem, I'll just strip twice in the 15 gallon boiler while I wash the big one. Start the siphon to fill the smaller boiler, double check the hose wont wiggle loose, and haul the big guy out for a hose job.

Turns out 30 gallons of wash doesn't fit in a 15 gallon boiler, who knew? And for the first time ever I was concerned about the smell of the hobby, 15 gallons of sour mash spread over a concrete floor puts off a very distinct odor. I did however thank the good Lord for giving me a barn, that shit in a house woulda been a much bigger problem.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Kareltje »

still_stirrin wrote:
Kareltje wrote:The first story is more or less like a test I planned to do: distill a small amount of alcohol and than set fire to the output of the condenser. My guees would be that there is not enough oxygen to cause a blast, but apparently there is.
Reminds me of the time a few years back a house builder who was building a house for my family, when he smelled propane in his home (country farm home heated by propane), he went to his basement stairs, lit a match and threw it into the basement!!!! :crazy:

When he regained consciousness, he was on the ground 15 feet outside his home, which had been lifted up and moved on the foundation. Busted a couple of ribs in the ride too.

Needless to say, our new house went “on hold” for a few months while he rebuilt his home first.

Ever see “Fire Marshall Bill” on In Living Color (Jim Carrey’s entry to Hollywood)? Google it.
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Never seen it. Looked it up. Understood the perils.

I was planning to do this test outside in the open, from a safe distance. More or less like Mythbusters.

Similar story like yours: a crew was doing construction work in a university building here. There was a concrete stage in the room and guys were welding or soldering. Suddenly the concrete stage blew up.
It appeared that there had been a very small leak in a gaspipe under the concrete and the space had slowly been filled with gas. Not enough to smell in the room above, but clearly enough to form a combustible mixture.
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Re: dumbest shit ever done making likker

Post by Rod »

Just as an aside

fella on TV early this week said that he was part of a government department that collected sewage from households and tested the liquids and could determine

what drugs were being made in the area , like ICE

passed the info onto the police , who would raid the house etc etc

a spent batch of brew would be a surprise ?

:crazy:
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