Home Distiller

Watch it but don’t take any notice of it .... its placement and accuracy will effect the reading . Out of curiousity , I run one in my VM last weekend fir the first time in ages . It ran at 77.8°C for the whole hearts . If I was to base that on Boiling points , I was taking heads for the whole run ...

tiramisu wrote: ↑Fri Feb 12, 2021 4:22 pm
c = pi(r)^2 = 7"

Area = pi X radius squared

Did you mean
Circumference = pi X diameter

I plan on using lots of centering rings in my next build - about one every 15cm. I'll be cooling the column walls to induce reflux on them mid column so will need a lot to push the reflux back into the packing. https://www.bunnings.com.au/kinetic-38mm-waste-basket-strainer_p4920213 These are 75mm di...

You can't change the temperature the wash boils at but you can change the temperature of the vapour in the column. You can do this by running a coil or other cooling system at the base or mid column that is cooler than the vapour but above the vapour's boiling point. Do this gradually up the column ...

All this is my opinion only as to what goes on in a packed column: I would assume that in a packed column the temperature gradient would be entirely governed by the reflux. I would think that if there was no reflux and the column was fully insulated, there would be no condensing and the column would...

There is one problem here. The vapor coming from the boiler is precisely at its boiling/condensing temperature so if you cool it at all all you are doing is condensing vapor which would be taking power away from the column which could be accomplished by turning down the power. I don't think this is...

The forum is rife with examples of reflux condensers that are positioned down low on the column riser not working very well at all with respect to distilled spirits. Yep, but I'm not using a condenser low on the column, not even a dephlegmator. I'm currently using a device to cool the vapour enteri...

Are you 100% sure your not just very much over thinking things I'm 100% emphatically sure that I AM very much over thinking things. What I am proposing is overly complicated and could be a huge waste of time. But I have the time to waste so I will go ahead with the experiment, possible just for my ...

A long normal reflux column with a normal condenser on top in full reflux has a temperature gradient from the boiler temperature to almost azeotrope temperature. The rising vapor will condense where the temperature is its condensing temperature. An example: 10%abv in the boiler will produce 54.9%ab...

I'm attempting to brainstorm along with you and not trying to stillsplain anything as I am not qualified for that. Thanks. Every point of view gives me something to think about and a greater understanding of the process. If I understand your design the column will relux and separate (aka stack the ...

I don't know if I understand you correctly. In your theory the reflux of something near the azeotrope has a very low abv. Is that right? But then a LM wouldn't work at all. A LM collects reflux near the azeotrope. So the reflux at the top of the column must be near the azeotrope. I think you have m...

It seems uncertain, if the reflux really has a lower temperature than the vapor. For example at The Compleat Distiller from Nixon and McCaw page 109 (If you don't have the book, I can post a link): The temperature of the reflux will be the same as the temperature of the vapor in the top of the colu...

It seems uncertain, if the reflux really has a lower temperature than the vapor. For example at The Compleat Distiller from Nixon and McCaw page 109 (If you don't have the book, I can post a link): The temperature of the reflux will be the same as the temperature of the vapor in the top of the colu...

In the end I abandoned the idea of a mid column condenser. Instead, I use cooling coil in the base of the column to get the gas temperature at the to that of the boiling point of the gas without condensing it (ie one distillation below the boiler). It is very successful in eliminating tails. I've st...

Very impressive. And you haven't had to wind a single copper coil. I've seen many posts here about people wanting to reduce water usage. This seems a much better long term solution than rigs with water reservoirs and topping up with ice. Given that your reflux condenser is doing such a good job, I t...

A theory of the reflux distillation column. A longer column produces greater alcohol concentration because it provides a greater number of distillations. - WRONG (well, sort of wrong). A longer column produces a greater alcohol concentration because it provides a longer time in the column for distil...

IMG_20200217_084327.jpg IMG_20200217_084344.jpg I've also used a computer fan/radiator cooling system and found it to be quite effective. I can nearly knock down 1800W with just a 2 fan system. It's a working concept and still in development. I will be making a new design of LM head with fan/radiat...

Um, wow. That's a lot to digest. Well, the aim was to make the system more stable and more controllable but from those comments, it may actually do the opposite. Or will it? It all depends on whether an inline condenser will selectively condense the heavier compounds or not. Or will it just cut down...

The more I read here, the more I understand that a well designed head on a good column run at the right power and take-off "sits at azeo all day long before spouting out a bit of tails and being shut down". So yes, this may be redundant. But it may have advantages. If I set it at 70-77 deg...

I do question the need to do it at all, a good reflux still just sits at azeo all day long before spouting out a bit of tails and being shut down (or automatically shutting down if a good VM). That is the crux of the whole thing, what ever you do you wont build anything different that works any bet...

Hmm, my hypothesis… My original thought was to run a water jacket with a coldfinger the full length of a 1.2m column both held at 79 degrees. Pack s/s scrubbers inside the column around the coldfinger. I theorised that if I ran an infinite length column of this at 78.0 degrees for an infinite amount...

Thanks everyone. I have a few years’ experience with an Essencia Super Reflux CM head and really understand why it doesn’t work well. It is obviously too short to properly reflux. It uses cold water as LM which is a balancing act trying to get the vapour down to the right temperature and flow rate t...

I’m still considering my first build and will be for the next few weeks so please excuse my way out ides for a bit. It seems like stills are like pancakes - the first one is always not quite right, but I’d like to get close. So if you’re inclined, please let me know if this would work and if not, th...

Thanks Yummyrum, I've looked up borosilicate and the best I've found are 2 and 3 litre beakers. It's a shame they're all marked with etched gradations but I suppose I can just face that away from my viewing. The beaker is better clarity and should be significantly lighter too so I reckon I'll go wit...

I’m looking at my first build in the next few months and am thinking along the lines of a liquid management still. I want to achieve azeotrope at a sensible rate but I want to do something a bit fun. Would this work? From what I can tell, the job of the column head of a liquid management still is to...

Thanks All for the welcome, I'm leaning towards a liquid management system similar to a Boka in concept but with an outlet pipe below the condenser to make it dual purpose if I want to give vapour management a go. I'm also thinking of having a 1.4m column that can come apart and then just attach the...

The sight glass was forming condensate during the hearts. you can see it dripping. With so much vapour some of it finds the wall.
The tails have far less vapour.

Greetings! I've been using an Essencia Super Reflux (yep, that dinky little still) for quite a few years without really knowing how it worked or the proper way to drive it. I knew to throw out the first 100ml and keep the temperature around 80 degrees but after that, not much else. I ended up with a...