wood fired moonshine

LP, NG, gas burners of all types. Wood, coal or Steam equipment.

Moderator: Site Moderator

Post Reply
tolona
Novice
Posts: 10
Joined: Thu Mar 12, 2009 2:35 am

wood fired moonshine

Post by tolona »

We live in Missouri. We don't have no propane. But we have plenty of fallen wood, sticks branches etc. This is the way it's always been done... If you do it in your garage you might catch your house on fire. There ain't no insurance in Missouri that would cover moonshine still fires. Now with the new law we do it right out in the yard...right by the pond. You can fish and run the still at the same time. In fact you can run two stills off the same fire, whisky-rum, brandy-wiksky ekcetera. you gotta be paying attention. We make one run , no double distillation, you kill it you eat it. .We don't believe in wasteing energy here because we ain't got money to waste; but I'll tell you one thing, no Law meddles with you here in NE Missouri, or in most of MO except in big cities like St. Louis or KC. On your property YOU ARE THE LAW that's why we like it here in good old Missouri and we'll never leave, look away look away lookaway Dixiland...... tolona
junkyard dawg
Master of Distillation
Posts: 3086
Joined: Fri Feb 03, 2006 11:40 am
Location: Texas

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by junkyard dawg »

I'll drink to that...
this is the internet
User avatar
Husker
retired
Posts: 5031
Joined: Thu Aug 17, 2006 1:04 pm

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by Husker »

The more I been hearing about the show me state, the better it sounds 2me.

H.
Hillbilly Rebel: Unless you are one of the people on this site who are legalling distilling, keep a low profile, don't tell, don't sell.
tolona
Novice
Posts: 10
Joined: Thu Mar 12, 2009 2:35 am

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by tolona »

Husker, you'll never find a state in the US better than Missouri. In IL for instance, they got a Law or an ordinance, or a regulation that covers everything you do or might want to do. In MO, if you're on your own property you do what you want to do. You want to set up a still, do it. If want to dam up a creek, do it. If want to dig a hole two hundred feet deep, do it. If want to set off a cannon, DO IT!!!!!!......tolona
myles
retired
Posts: 2451
Joined: Wed Oct 15, 2008 11:34 am
Location: UK, in the heather

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by myles »

OK thats a nice sentiment - do what you like on your own property. I fully suport that as long as a little bit of common sense and responsibility is applied. I know it is not likely to affect us and our craft as we seem to attract quite sensible folk. Theres nothing wrong with bending rules that are wrong!!!! But there will always be some (lets be polite and say misguided) folk that have no respect. Remember Love Canal in NY?
myles
retired
Posts: 2451
Joined: Wed Oct 15, 2008 11:34 am
Location: UK, in the heather

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by myles »

OK am off the soapbox. Wood fired is good, but charcoal is better. :D Are you using rocket stoves or a variation of them? I would like to build (at some point) a solid fuel, steam - or posibly hot water - heated rig. A rocket stove heating a steam boiler is on the top of my list until someone sugests a better alternative.
Godstilla
Swill Maker
Posts: 251
Joined: Wed Sep 03, 2008 3:56 pm
Location: FROM MY COLD DEAD HANDS

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by Godstilla »

I've spent time in missouri ... I can understand why some call it misery. Nothing would entice me to live there. You can have it.
OldManP
Swill Maker
Posts: 175
Joined: Thu Dec 14, 2006 9:27 am

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by OldManP »

Myles- I second that motion. I also want to build a woodfired still. I did a lot of research when that other thread went up a few weeks ago. Found that the rocket stove would be very efficient and i thought of a few ways to improve the stove for use as a still. If you do a search for industrial rocket stove, there is some information on large setups and how to construct them.

These would be great since it takes very little wood to heat the rocket stove. I know it would take a while to heat the still to cooking temps, but some research says the flames can peak past 1000*F. If nothing else, this would be a great warm up capability. You could warm up your large batches with little wood and then use propane or electricity to run the rest of the batch.

I think it'd be great to use a rocket stove for the whole batch. You could adjust the skirt around the pot or the airflow to adjust the heat--or just supply less fuel. This could really reduce the cost of fueling a still. And if you lived on a little property, then a couple of cords would last you quite a while once you got it dialed in. Now all I have to do is find a friend in the sugar or grain industry!!

OMP

if you have any ideas about a rocket stove still or would like to chat about my ideas, then respond or pm me.
Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.
Hack
retired
Posts: 904
Joined: Wed Feb 06, 2008 7:45 pm

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by Hack »

Although I'm not much interested in firing my still with wood, I think a propane fired rocket stove would be a nifty setup to more efficiently heat my boiler and an inexpensive solution to cooking large all grain mashes. Now that I've upgraded my condenser to a larger diameter this is my next stillin project to tackle.
myles
retired
Posts: 2451
Joined: Wed Oct 15, 2008 11:34 am
Location: UK, in the heather

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by myles »

I think the real potential in the rocket stoves is not likely to be achieved if you directly heat your wash. it is just too hot and will burn like crazy. I could be wrong but what I am thinking is using the high efficiency rocket stove to generate steam (with a very small fuel input) and use the steam to indirectly heat he boiler.

I also like the idea of concealment of an indirectly heated still. I am seriously considering the idea of hiding a steam powered still in a false compartment inside a wood heated sauna or hot tub setup. Use the rocket stove to generate steam to be used for both purposes and provide a legitimate use for the stove for the nosy intruders. :D
OldManP
Swill Maker
Posts: 175
Joined: Thu Dec 14, 2006 9:27 am

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by OldManP »

This too was one of my other ideas. I thought about a woodfired boiler but not a rocket stove to heat the wash and then the rocket stove to heat steam to run the batch once it gets up to temp. This would allow a wood fuel for the entire burn, but not heat the wash too rapidly. I also thought about putting in a larger rocket stove as an auxiliary water heater, so that i could run my still off of it and at the same time heat my water heater water and perhaps a few other applications (ie swimming pool heater, run it through a radiator with a fan and use for the garage heater).

After i thought of this i was trying to pull as many applications from a rocket stove as possible. Could even be a back up burner for cooking if the electricity went out. Or if you were clever enough it could be your main source for cooking if you are off the grid and would be the stills source of heat when you're not cooking.


OMP
Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.
bronzdragon
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 494
Joined: Thu Sep 27, 2007 7:04 am

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by bronzdragon »

I generally agree with the thread poster. And I like the idea of the history of shining, being out in the woods and such. But maybe it's me, but having a big roaring fire and jugs full of high proof juice is a recipe for disaster. I like my electric set-up, even though it may be "new fangled" and probably cost more to run then burning wood. My rig doesn't put a big plume of smoke in the sky saying "hey, come check out what I'm doing over here."

:)

Anyway, I agree with the rest of what you had to say though and I think most people who visit this board would also.

Missouri is one of the states that I haven't been to yet. I may have to visit sometime.

cheers
~bd~
"If it weren't for the alcohol, beer would be a healthfood."
Dnderhead
Angel's Share
Angel's Share
Posts: 13666
Joined: Sun Dec 23, 2007 8:07 pm
Location: up north

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by Dnderhead »

Is not that rocket stove a quick hot fire? --as load it up ,,fire it up and it burns like a chimney on fire? if so that whould not be so good.
Hack
retired
Posts: 904
Joined: Wed Feb 06, 2008 7:45 pm

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by Hack »

It doesn't have to be a quick hot fire. I'm mainly thinking of an insulated tube that fits with an inch or less gap around my BOP or my boiler to help guide the heat from my propane burner. A similar idea to the traditional moonshine stills that were built with a chimney from a wood fire around them.

For mashing I'm thinking i could increase the distance between my BOP and the burner to get a more gentle even heat. I'll probably do this by raising and lowering the burner somehow.

I'm still in the brainstorm stage. I'm thinking I'll make a sheetmetal tube attached to a woodframe with metal standoffs and then wrap it with some fiberglas insulation and probably skin the outside of this with something to avoid the fiberglas itch.
User avatar
Husker
retired
Posts: 5031
Joined: Thu Aug 17, 2006 1:04 pm

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by Husker »

I know this is an older thread, but I would like to stir it back up again, especially about a rocket stove (wood driven, but built for efficiency).

Here is a good video about building a rocket stove (including how to build light weight insulative bricks).

http://www.wonderhowto.com/how-to/video ... ve-233354/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

This might not be a bad thing to build. I would like to experiment with wood power, and this sounds like a good way to go wood with little or no smoke. I have a friend on the other side of the river with 30 acres of wooded bluffs, that wants to do a little outdoor stillin (he has done none before, and I will be helping him this spring). I think a stove like this would be wonderful down by his spring.

H.
Hillbilly Rebel: Unless you are one of the people on this site who are legalling distilling, keep a low profile, don't tell, don't sell.
rubber duck
retired
Posts: 3452
Joined: Tue Feb 10, 2009 9:33 am
Location: brigadoon

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by rubber duck »

Ya know Husker I have been thinking the same thing. I Don't know haw you would get any kind of control though. I guess that's why it's called a rocket stove. How would a guy go about tuning a fire like that? If that can be figured out I game to try it.
Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen. John Steinbeck
cob
Master of Distillation
Posts: 2691
Joined: Sun Jul 26, 2009 4:38 pm
Location: little puffs of dust where my feet used to be

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by cob »

husker you know anything about the new law tolona made reference to? cob
be water my friend
cob
Master of Distillation
Posts: 2691
Joined: Sun Jul 26, 2009 4:38 pm
Location: little puffs of dust where my feet used to be

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by cob »

rd you can control the temp to some degree by adding air after the combustion chamber. it reduces the draw to the combustion chamber. cob
be water my friend
User avatar
Husker
retired
Posts: 5031
Joined: Thu Aug 17, 2006 1:04 pm

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by Husker »

cob wrote:husker you know anything about the new law tolona made reference to? cob
I have met a legal micro distiller from down around the branson area (Copper creek, or Copper run, or some name like that). I do believe that it 'is' legal in MO right now to home distill, (not for sale).

The problem boils down to it still being an illegal federal offense. This is something which the fed govt should be sued over, 10th amendment stuff.

H.
Hillbilly Rebel: Unless you are one of the people on this site who are legalling distilling, keep a low profile, don't tell, don't sell.
cob
Master of Distillation
Posts: 2691
Joined: Sun Jul 26, 2009 4:38 pm
Location: little puffs of dust where my feet used to be

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by cob »

thx
be water my friend
OldManP
Swill Maker
Posts: 175
Joined: Thu Dec 14, 2006 9:27 am

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by OldManP »

Can't load the video, but i've seen many a video by the aprovecho guys and i'm almost positive this would make a good heat source for strippin runs until you can fine tune your heating! I'm very interested in doing this as well and i'm also on a rocket stove forum that provides lots experience from other folks. Let me know if you build one...i'll try to post something if i can put one together as well.

OMP
Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.
OldManP
Swill Maker
Posts: 175
Joined: Thu Dec 14, 2006 9:27 am

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by OldManP »

found this website--looks pretty useful

This guy has done a lot of research and seems to have hit it just right!
http://www.chilakootbowhunters.org/rocketstove7.htm

I'm figuring you can bring a keg size boiler up to temp between 20-30 minutes--anyone wanna check that?

that's be hard to beat if you can find sticks and limbs laying around, not to mention if you already used wood to heat your house--this wouldn't even put a dent in your cordwood.

I think i'll start working on one of these pretty quickly on my return after the upcoming business trip.

OMP
Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.
KickBass
Novice
Posts: 1
Joined: Wed Jul 28, 2010 11:29 pm

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by KickBass »

OldManP wrote:This too was one of my other ideas. I thought about a woodfired boiler but not a rocket stove to heat the wash and then the rocket stove to heat steam to run the batch once it gets up to temp. This would allow a wood fuel for the entire burn, but not heat the wash too rapidly. I also thought about putting in a larger rocket stove as an auxiliary water heater, so that i could run my still off of it and at the same time heat my water heater water and perhaps a few other applications (ie swimming pool heater, run it through a radiator with a fan and use for the garage heater).

After i thought of this i was trying to pull as many applications from a rocket stove as possible. Could even be a back up burner for cooking if the electricity went out. Or if you were clever enough it could be your main source for cooking if you are off the grid and would be the stills source of heat when you're not cooking.


OMP
You mean inground pool heaters can do that?

Imagine how much energy it will consume.
watermelon
Novice
Posts: 81
Joined: Sun Dec 02, 2012 10:05 am

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by watermelon »

just wondering why rocket stoves are likely to burn the wash.

surely the temperature and position of heat contact is more variable than with a gas burner? surely the yellow flames are cooler than the blue of the burner?
myles
retired
Posts: 2451
Joined: Wed Oct 15, 2008 11:34 am
Location: UK, in the heather

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by myles »

watermelon wrote:just wondering why rocket stoves are likely to burn the wash.

surely the temperature and position of heat contact is more variable than with a gas burner? surely the yellow flames are cooler than the blue of the burner?
You need to remember that rocket stoves were designed to be high temperature fires. In a normal hearth a wood fire rarely exceeds 1000 degrees. The hottest part (in the red embers) might be 1200 to 1500 but a few inches higher in the flue it is likely to be only 250 to 400 degrees. This is because of all the air mixing in. Back in the colonial days it was not uncommon for flues to be made of wood lined with mud.

Now in contrast with a rocket stove, some of the air entering the combustion chamber has been pre-heated by passing through that charcoal layer. In addition the stove design dramatically reduces the ability of air to mix in with the flue gasses to reduce the temperatures. In experimental trials the exhaust gasses from a small 5" dia rocket stove peaked at 1880 degrees. OK this was just 1 trial http://stoves.bioenergylists.org/stoves ... etest.html but it is sufficient to make the point.

These are designed to be high temperature fires.

Now this is great for some applications, but I am not sure if heating a still is one of them. IMO for a still you should be thinking more along the lines of a wood fired bread oven. Establishing a nice bed of hot embers to provide even gentle heat, more like a charcoal grill or B-B-Q than a flame thrower.

Now if you wish to generate steam - well that is a different matter. :)
User avatar
mtnshiner85
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 140
Joined: Mon Sep 24, 2012 3:43 pm
Location: N.C. Blue Ridge Mtns.

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by mtnshiner85 »

A simple draw through furnace works good, thats what i use your heating the side of your boiler, its quite easy to regulate too.
Attachments
IMG_2014070931391.jpg
User avatar
Truckinbutch
Angel's Share
Angel's Share
Posts: 8107
Joined: Sun Feb 03, 2013 12:49 pm

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by Truckinbutch »

Good lookin setup , mtnshiner . Any reason why you didn't build the furnace higher around the boiler ?
If you ain't the lead dog in the team , the scenery never changes . Ga Flatwoods made my avatar and I want to thank him for that .
Don't drink water , fish fornicate in it .
User avatar
mtnshiner85
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 140
Joined: Mon Sep 24, 2012 3:43 pm
Location: N.C. Blue Ridge Mtns.

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by mtnshiner85 »

My new one is a little higher than the old one pictured TB, better insulated. Once it gets to drawing good it smokes like freight train till you get a hot fire, then it smokes very little.
Reverend Newer
Swill Maker
Posts: 171
Joined: Sat Nov 11, 2017 2:41 pm
Location: Q Clearance Patriot

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by Reverend Newer »

Bumping this rocket stove idea once again, seeing folks are worried about controlling the heat...

What about a rocket stove that leads to a ground hog style pit with the pot not directly over the heat but in the back with an adjustable stovepipe flue behind it... sorta like popcorn did in his 'last damn run' but with a rocket stove attached from a lower level?

Just a thought to avoid the overheating problems of using a rocket stove.
spiritually taxed circa 1791
User avatar
cede
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 363
Joined: Wed Jan 12, 2011 6:39 am
Location: Canada

Re: wood fired moonshine

Post by cede »

Maybe you could use only the exhaust gasses to heat the pot, like in a thermal mass rocket stove.
Not a direct flame
Post Reply