Thumper design n rules

[mashins]

So I fell into making rum, plan to do this I did not Apart from drinking rum, I know little, but I do know what I like.
Have made a few light rum’s but would now like to try dark rum.

As a noob, there are lots of infos to be found everywhere on rum. HD has most things covered. What I battle with is all the new things and ideas, mostly unproven or with no feedback to make sense if the ide used produced, or helped to make good rum?

What I want to do is use this thread as a collection of information and then over time produce a rum refrence for thumper design, operation and build. I would like to collect the information as I know very little on this thumper stuffs.

A few points:
Firstly a verry simple design only, single thumper traditional, easy n cheap to make
What are the rules for size, when is it to big or to small and why
How big is feed tube size, and why
How big is outlet tube and why
How much to fill it, and why, when is it overfilled
How to control its fill level

Then later we can talk about the heat, active heated or pasive vapour heated and the advantages of both or diadvantages
Also how fast to run it
Then what to fill it with and why
How much to fill

Any help will be much appreciated. This is as much for me as a noob to build and use thumper for me own rum as well as a single point to of refrence about thumpers. Used HD google search and more pages than 60 on thumper in somewhere. But the problen in search is to many places word thumper and not knows if its new untested thumper or thumper that was designed build and used by old hand people.

Please help us all newbies.
Edit: if I missed a place here where this is already said, please add links, apologies for not finding it

[Reverend Newer]

Thare is more thumper design threads on this site than you could ever imagine (shake a stick at), do a HD search and read read read.


As for rum, use real unsulfer'd blackstrap molasses, put some in your thumper, start a dunder pit and use that for your thumper and boiler.

As Larry the Cable Guy would say:

Get r dun. der.... wo


https://www.google.com/search?rls=en-us ... BzpqtNT2t0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

[mashins]

Done the Google HD search, most are other new people design ideas. There are thousands of things I have read and are busy reading but that is not the point of this thread.

Iwant to distill (no pun) Thumpers and designs here for myself and other new people, all in one place. Then also maybe compile a document with refrences to HD.

[Reverend Newer]

well do it, report back!

Thought your thread was a question.


let me understand, you want a place for new people to talk thumpers for rum, but all you find on HD search is new people talking about thumper designs for rum?

[mashins]

No, There is not 1 place on HD with information about thumpers, its all over. Some in design, some in theory etc etc. Also you read lots of contradiction everywhere. I am new, lots of people that are new ask same questions. So here I want to bring proper info validated by people that know by experience together. Something new people can find easy and not have to spend months reding and be confused. So distill thumpers in one place for me and others wanting to learn.

So no new people asking and thinking, rather old hands with experience. Not then to say new people like me has no place to ask questions, but old hands do know answers, not just questions.

[mashins]

So first question is why is size said to be 1/4 size to 1/2 size mostly. Some people say even same size as boiler?
So why the size differences, I am trying to understand? How do we know best size and why is this so? Everywhere sizing is said to be this or that, but nowhere I could read why and never explanation offered with proof? I am still researching and reading this lot of threds, so if there is one please show me, thanks.

Some assumptions here:
Want dark higher ester rum. Rum wash 10% ABV, 20 Liters (4gal) in boiler and single thumper. Heating by 2kW element and controlled for heat input to reduce power as needed. Stillage dunder and low wines (heads n tails) available.

A few things to think on: bigger size takes longer to heat up
Bigger size contains more fluid and may be deeper for bubbles to rise
Fluid in thumper change over time, cold to hot, ABV will change, depth (volume) will change
What diameter we need, bigger = less depth for same volume, smaller is reverse
What size pipes for vapor and is shorter better, do we insulate pipe to conserve heat

[mashins]

Another question comes to mind....

Does the thumper enhance Rum Oils? Now the scary part for me, what is rum oils? Normally found in the forth Fraction, Esters yes but what....

[mashins]

Found this on Bostonapothecary, Rum Oils analysed by gc-ms:

[Shine0n]

Good lord, I run a same size thumper as boiler, 2" from pot reduced to 1" going into the thumper. 1" coming out into a 5/8" ID 40' Worm.

I've been here now since Jan 2016 and I still read more than I should but I still do it. That's how I found the thread you started, I have no scientific evidence of why and how my system works but I read lot on the subject and took what I needed and left the rest.

I've found that if you have a thumper smaller than your pot it can dictate the amount of whatever you put in and if you do a slow heat up you can overwhelm the thumper and flood the condenser. If you heat up fast you should be fine but are still limited on the volume you put in.

With one the same size you can have a larger volume you can run for more product in one run.

if you plan to do stripping runs you have more, like myself I do for the most part one and done for rum and bourbon.

You have options with this setup, there are as many opinions and facts it just depends on who decided to embark on posting here.

You have so many questions and I've found the answers to 99.9% by reading the threads. I've found countless threads that had no conclusion to the original question but seeing what others post about their experiences was invaluable. That's why I mentioned keeping what you need and toss the rest.

Someone else may have completely different opinions from what I do and vice versa.

Imho, build one equal to boiler size and you'll have options you wouldn't with a smaller one.

I'll come back and share more later

[mashins]

Thank you ShineOn!
This for me is education. Logically what you say based on experience, makes sense.

I also be on here registered a year but started reading more than 3 years ago, here also other forums. Not even read all thumper links on here yet, maybe a 20 or 30 percent or some. Keep on reading but problem is forgetting and contradicting things in places, that is so difficult to remember, even with notes. Also what is logical and what not. With little experience myself, do not know it it is good advice.

Way my brain works is by first understanding principles. If that to me is not logic, I cannot build. Being on an island, getting things like stainless or copper is very expensive and very time consuming. 1” or 2” copper pipe, ha no sorry. So I can only build once.
I always have to ask why, why this or why not? Then if it makes sense like you now with same size and explained also, why others say mostly smaller I dont understand? But that is just me

[mashins]

It sure reads that most pre-cursers to form rum oils are made by the yeast and feedstock. You need to have enough acids to convert to esters (alcohols and so called rum oils) by speeding up the process by heating. It sure sounds like a thumper with low wines and/or dunder in the thumper(retort) helps with this process. Second distillation by using waste heat to do more esterification?

Some catalysts it seems may help, would that be in the thumper as well as I would think so. So sulfuric acid addition to the dunder sounds plausable, no? Any other acids that may work like vinegar perhaps?

To get a single run distilation and the required ABV the thumper works, and it seems also to increase rum oils too.

[Wild Bill]

You can only learn so much by reading from others experiences. There are enough variables in the whole process that what works for some does not for others. The best advice on system design I can give is learn how to solder well as you will be redesigning and modifying your system to suit your needs. Not just copper to copper but copper to stainless as well. This will allow you to use tri-clamp flanges and make swing joints which allow the most modularity in your system. I am a proponent of same size thumper as boiler and runnining seperate inlet and outlet on thumper. Also running 2” short coupled, all the way to bottom of the thumper works well for me and keeps heat up times short. Build it and give it a go and keep reading as there are many great ideas and minds on here for sure.

[jon1163]

I run a 15 gallon keg boiler and a 5 gallon keg Thumper. I also have another 15 gallon keg that can be run as a thumper for large stripping runs.. having run them both normally I run the thumper that is one third the size of my boiler but it is on the small side and I use it for convenience. The supper that's the same size as my boiler is nice to have but I need a lot of mash to fill it up to the appropriate level and I don't like matching that much. I'm larger stripping runs it's really nice but if I had to have my choice I would choose a thumper that is 1/2 the size of my boiler. There's a million wrong ways and a million right ways it's just finding what you like. But I would stick with the rule of thumb that 1/3 the size of your boiler is probably as small as you'd want to go.

just my two cents.

[mashins]

You can only learn so much by reading from others experiences. There are enough variables in the whole process that what works for some does not for others. The best advice on system design I can give is learn how to solder well as you will be redesigning and modifying your system to suit your needs. Not just copper to copper but copper to stainless as well. This will allow you to use tri-clamp flanges and make swing joints which allow the most modularity in your system.

I hear you loudly. I have a friend that welds for a profession, so sorted there. I like the idea of tri clamp fittings yes, thank you. The variables is what I want to understand, also their impact on how well the system works. I get that there is lots of information here, and elsewhere, and you can, like me, searh for days to find what looking for.

So now, from your experience, we can all learn. I hope to eventually, after building and running my own thumper, be able to compile a guide. In this hopefully some rules of thumb will be in one place, and variables will be narrowed. Since there is nowhere a guide for thumpers that I could find yet, maybe I can write one and say your (all in here) contribution in there.

[Jimy Dee]

Mashing - I hear you. I have a full beer keg 50 liters as a pot and I use a half beer keg (filled to one third) as a thumper for spirit runs, and a full beer keg (again filled to one third) as a thumper for spirit runs. I think a point often missed is that with LARGE volumes during a distillation cuts are away easier. I never get how people make quality "cuts" when distilling (say) 5 liters.
So, re your request with thumpers, it is important to go with good large volumes.

As for diameter of pipes in and out - I went with the largest is could easily find, being 1 inch. My rig works great.

Another hint with thumpers is to put in a 4 inch port hole that will allow u clean / charge with fermented grain slops etc and make thumpers the versatile vehicle they can be.

That's my penny worth, don't know if it is right or wrong but it works for me.
Jimy Dee

[Jimy Dee]

Sorry folks, the above should be amended
Full keg pot + half keg thumper = spirit run
Full keg pot + full keg thumper = strip run
Not saying this is gospel, just what I do. JD