New to the forums but reading like crazy! I can't believe the wealth of information here and how generous everyone is with their time and experience. I'm hoping to get some feedback from the gurus here on the project I'm planning.
I have a 1/2 keg (15.5 gal.) to use as a boiler with propane for heat. I want to have a 3" modular column with a combination Boka plate LM/VM head that can be removed and attached directly to the head for beer stripping and for use as a straight pot still. I'm wondering if I can run both the VM and LM outputs through the same Liebig condenser (obviously one or the other at a time) depending on whether I'm collecting fore-shots and heads (LM) or hearts (VM). Is this practical? I've seen posts that have discussed using a combination head but haven't seen anyone running them through the same condenser, although there's ALOT of reading to be done on this site so if I've missed them forgive me.
If this IS doable, it would be great if anyone could comment on the following questions:
1. Product output tubing diameter: from what I've read it seems that 1/4" should be fine for the LM output and 3/4" for the VM. Is this correct? Not sure if those diameters were based on a 3" column or if column size even matters when determining this.
2. Liebig condeser size: will a 3/4" product line inside a 1" water jacket be sufficient? I know I'll need to step-up the 1/4" LM to connect this. Based on a 3" diameter 60" packed column, how long should the condenser be?
3. Double wound reflux condenser + cold finger: this seems to make the most sense as I'll be using a recirculating pump and am concerned about restricting the flow. It also seems like it's easier to build than the Jackson Crossflow condenser
. If it's wound to fit a 3" diameter section of pipe, what length is recommended? I know there are many factors for this and the main site has calculators to use but it's alittle overwhelming. Just looking to get a ballpark if that's possible . Would 10" be ok?I've attached some diagrams that I put together to give me a better idea of what I was after. The design is just cobbled together form ideas I've gotten from everyone here, but I'm not sure if I've mangled things in the process. Please have a look and let me know if I'm on the right path. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated! Thanks to all in advance!
The following diagrams are NOT DRAWN TO SCALE AND ARE MISSING MOST DIMENSIONS/MEASUREMENTS. These will get filled in as I get things fleshed out.