Home Distiller

Out of interest, could someone describe, or, better still, post a picture of, the PDA-2 cup system. Is it just a 2" coupling with a single plate soldered in to completely cut off the top of the column from the bottom, and then a raised T soldered into that plate to catch distillate and allow va...

I don't pretend to know as much as maheel or crow, so if what I say in this post is wrong, slam it. I can take it. :ebiggrin: : ...don't know if I'd go to 1.5... ...your also going to need to figure out a way to create some reflux control on that water jacket to get a higher % i reckon... That's why...

Emptyglass, if you don't mind me doing so, here are the links to the various videos that you've posted throughout this thread: http://youtu.be/ngVAf3dP7CQ http://youtu.be/DlzmX_4pi6U http://youtu.be/MneQH67VncI http://youtu.be/KGK1Y0pONl0 http://youtu.be/yC6qk_y9f6Q http://youtu.be/GOsoP8AnPEk http:...

SiliconJaguar, if you want my advice, something many people don't, if your condensor knocks down the vapour comping off 2,200W now sweat* , save the $250 on a new boiler, and acquire a second-hand 50L keg, put a 2,200W weldless element in it (If you used the upturned stainless bowl method to attach ...

Will a Turbo 500 Boiler take the condenser I have? Not sure, don't know 'em. Ring a HBS and ask what the diameter of the hole in the top is. And the 2KWatt element OK? Hmmm. That condensor might struggle with 2kW. How big's the element in the boiler? I'm guessing it's a single loop element, making ...

Someone might move this due to the changed topic, but: Where can a get a 25 Litre one from for a reasonable price? EBay. You're looking at $200-$300 from a home brew shop (HBS) I assume the same head will fit on the top? If you go with one of these . The hoses have been melted so I need to get some ...

That's a lot of explaining. I get how the coil is 'supposed' to act, but in all reality it doesn't need to be all that complex. The slanted plate approach guarantees that 100% of all condensate can be trapped. The little catcher in that design cannot guarantee the same. That's all I meant. A double...

Yes, it was great having the chart on hand during a stripping run to calculate the %ABV of the remaining wash.

NIN, I thought the design ingenious because it uses gravity and liquid surface tension to direct the condensate to the collection point, not gravity alone. Like a lost hiker using a taunt tarp with a rock placed on top and a bucket directly beneath, the design capitalises on the fact that when vapou...

Prairiepiss, fair point. I'm only using a 50l keg with a 2,200w element, which doesn't put out much more than about a 3l/hr light flow. If you were running it on a burner though, you would want to be careful that the takeoff had a large enough diameter. And astronomical, nice work with the interchan...

I've floated this idea over at Aussie Distiller and thought I'd see what people here have to say. I noticed that Pure Distilling has started selling a pot still http://puredistilling.com/the-pure-distilling-pot-still/ . It looks like its a small unit cooled with a coil condensor. I thought I might t...

I have a Pure Distilling liquid management reflux column ( http://puredistilling.com/products/ ). Until yesterday I thought it was based on the bokakob design. Then I pulled it apart. Here's a rough diagram of the design: pure_distilling_reflux.jpg The column is 50mm (2") in diameter. Reflux re...

Let's say that for some reason you are running a thermometer in the vapor path of a pot still... You heat an unknown %ABV wash until it starts producing vapor and the temperature begins to rise rapidly... At some point the temperature will stabilize, but only for a few minutes as the temperature wi...

Thanks for these plans, Hookline. I built a 59cm (23") version for a 2,200w pot and it works great. I was a bit sceptical at first, given that the condensor length calculator on the parent site { http://homedistiller.org/calcs/cond_calc } says this is too small for a 2,200w element. So here's h...

I'm just wondering, when using egg whites to help clear a wash, should I froth the egg whites or not? What do others do? In a thread from the Novice Forum Graveyard < http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=5892 >, HookLine gives these instructions for clearing a wash with egg whites...

Going back to your first ques ton --- -alcohol is stored about the same as gasoline with smaller vent (because of evaporation and the ability to absorb water) mite want to keep in shade/or under ground I have a spare stainless keg with a functioning sankey valve. Both the keg and the valve are in g...

I've only read the occasional section, but so far Young's Distillation Principles is a good read. Clear language, experimental, containing useful snippets for the hobbyist/enthusiast. Chapters 26 & 27 are very helpful, and they've got pictures! The award for most elaborate title of an old liquor...

Yeah, I'm in the process of acquiring fermenters and racking-off containers. I figure with a 50lt keg boiler I'll brew 3 x 25lt washes at a time, then run 2 x 37.5lt low wine runs and, then 1 x reflux run of those low wines. I'll need 6 fermenters/containers in total. 3 for fermenting, 3 for racking...

...there is a difference between quality and purity. At the beginning I was only thinking about purity, "Hey, if my alcohol's +%90 then it must be good because it's pretty pure". But it's separation of the various parts of this high-purity alcohol that controls the quality of the finished...

I've picked up an unfinished still project from a guy for cheap and am using the parts to upgrade my small rig. Nearly finished. Here's some pics from a water test run.
Here's how I've attached the column to the keg boiler.

Every time I see those copper threaded unions I get jealous. Just can't find them here in Oz I know this was mentioned ages ago, and I'm not sure if someone has already replied with this answer or not (from memory they haven't), but here's a 2" brass equivalent that is readily available in Aus...

That's why I drink beer while distilling. :thumbup: You always hear, "Yeah, this'll pull +90% no worries" and think, "I'll believe it when I see it". I was pretty impressed with the result. Mind you, I haven't drank any of it yet! :lol: This brand of still is built in my home tow...

I picked up a cheap, short 2" boka. I had a wash ready, so I thought I'd give it a run as is. Here she is in action: ultra_pure2.jpg This was the result: alcometer.jpg I think I'll build a simple column extension for it. Something like the boka setup at http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopic....

Nice work, and thanks for the tips in the initial post!

My wash hovers at between 16 and 18 deg Celsius sitting in my house. I might invest in a wash heater to try to get it up around 26-30C.

Thanks for the tip.

I used the recipe in the first post: 22.7lt wash with, 3.63kg sugar 1 tsp DAP 1 tsp gypsum 1 tsp citric acid 1 pinch epsom salts 1/2 cup baker's yeast Produces SG 1053 temp adjusted (lower that what is suggested that it should be). So I added 1.37kg sugar, 2.5lt water and 1/2tsp DAP to bring up SG. ...

Troubleshooting. My batch of Wineo's Wash seems to have stopped fermenting. I set the wash going on 19 July as in above post, SG 1053 temp. adjusted. Then on 21 July (when SG was 1040 and pH was about 4 (rough pH estimate using a soil pH test kit)) I added 1.37kg of sugar and 1/2 tsp of DAP dissolve...

Awesome, thanks for that recipe and the comprehensive instructions.

One question: heaped or level teaspoons?

Okay, thanks Sparky.

If I bring the sugar up to 5kg, should I add more of the other ingredients in proportion?

Hi Wineo and others, Thanks for the recipe. I've set my first wash going this afternoon and have a question. The instructions in the first post in this thread state that the specific gravity (SG) should be between 1.070 and 1.080, with 1.080 being the absolute max. I followed those instructions to t...