Home Distiller

Hi manu de hanol The relays are use for my old Still setup. Not used in the above software. I used them to turn on and off the water and output valves. There is a separate power supply in the case for the valves which run through the relays. The valves have diodes across its coils for reverse voltag...

WIndy City, That is very nice Still. You did a great job building it. I don't run much neutral spirits. Last time I ran a neutral spirit, the highest percent I could get out of my Still was 92% alcohol. Not bad for this type of Still. Do you have some schematics on your controller? Thank you for the...

Hi Windy City, I appreciate your information and knowledge. It is helpful. I do realize my setup is not efficient. It is all I have for right now. I'm always looking at other people's equipment and what setup their using. I don't make my cuts by temperature. That being said, I might not start collec...

RC Al, I have no problem with anyone expressing their opinion. I always value others peoples opinions. So, don't be quiet. It would be a flawed system if I were using the temperature probe in the boiler to regulate anything. I use the boiler temperature just to visualize what the temperature is in t...

Thank you Yummyrum
Yeah, when I first started distilling, the book I used to learn the art referred the stillhead as cactus style and it stuck with me.
I attached the Arduino Sketch.

Thanks for your post. The PID controller does control the wattage by varying voltage over time. Resistance is constant. We know grain alcohol boils at 173°F. I'm controlling how fast and hot the vapors are at the top of the column. I control the speed at which vapor turns back to liquid coming out o...

I was thinking someone might be interested in a simple Arduino Still Controller. I used an Arduino Mega2560 microcontroller. The display is a shield for the mega 2560. Any display can be used. The set temperature for the column can be adjusted with the two buttons on the front of the case. Nothing f...

Sorry for the poor picture but will not let me upload higher resolution.
I can't find a picture of mold on a piece of corn on the internet. I do believe it is mold by the green color. Just would like other peoples opinion. I have about 50 lbs of corn and will have to get rid of it.

Is there mold on this corn?

Thanks,

Kerry

I use the 300cc Honeyville's Oxygen Absorbers. I buy them from Honeyville Grain.

I call it, "Legal Fraud"

Thanks Dnderhead for your help with my confused mind.

Ok, so for us home distillers buying 2 row barley from the brew house, we would have to use close to 5lbs of barley for the above example? If not, the alcohol will be lower and we would have longer conversion waiting time.

Thank you Dnderhead.

I'm confused about grain bills and diastatic power. For example, one of Four Roses grain bill is: Corn: 75%, Rye: 20%, Malted Barley: 5%. How can you have a diastatic power minimum of 30 with only 5 % barley? With my calculations for a total of 20lb of grains is: Corn = 15lbs, Rye = 4lbs, Barley = 1...

Well, I've purchased the whole and cracked corn from different feed stores. When I stored the corn in buckets with oxygen absorber, the corn still got mold all over it. I'm talking a week later. I put a few pieces in the microwave oven and it popped like popcorn. This indicates there is too much moi...

Thanks everyone for your ideas. muckanic, Right now,I boil about 10 gallons of water, then I add the corn and rye. I let it sit for a hour or so, stirring every 15mins. This is the most I can boil because of the size of my boiler. I was thinking of using a large plastic container or cooler and using...

I need a way to heat about 20+ gallons of mash without burning the mash. I read some posts that mentions steam wands.
Does anyone have plans on building such a wand? Safety concerns?
Thanks in advance for your reply.

This is why I purchase all my barrels from Gibbs Bros. Cooperage Co.