Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

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HuckFinn
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Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by HuckFinn »

Given my current situation, I need to distill indoors. All of that said, this can only be done if it is safe and reasonably covert.

I live in an apartment complex (think studio apartment). Could I safely distill using an 8 gallon electric still? I can turn everything off inside, open a window, crack the blinds, and sit beside it with a TV. Is there a safe and responsible way to accomplish this?

I noticed that George from Barley and Hops on YouTube powered his 3 gallon mighty mini indoors. I could do this with an 8 gallon, two fire extinguishers, a 10 gallon bucket of water, a fire blanket, and small mouth bottles taking things away in half hour increments. Long and short, I'll be as safe as possible, but I need to first know if this can be done safely and responsibly period.

The second factor is that if someone lives per se only 25 feet from me on nearly all sides. How concerned if a smoker lived above, below, or beside me and I may not know? Being a renter, I could have a new neighbor any month, basically.

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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by Desvio »

Years ago when I started, I did it in the kitchen of a townhouse I rented. I made use of the washer and dryer hookups so I had access to a 220v outlet, and added cooling off the washing machines cold line hookup with a y-valve.
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by still_stirrin »

Electric boiler? Sure.

But, when it starts to boil, you’re going to get some smells....the green apple and acetone smells most notably. Hopefully your neighbors won’t get wound up about it. A window fan might help disperse the odors...maybe. Anyhow, my still shed smells like a distillery....but heck, it is.
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by Expat »

Plenty of people including myself run their stills indoors; so long as it's electric, it shouldn't be an issue.

As a matter of safety you should never allow any significant amount of vapor to escape, it's explosive. If it did you already have a serious issue regardless of who lives near you.

No matter what space you work in, fire and electrical safety is a must. Proper distillate storage, fire suppression on standby, GFCI protection. And MOST importantly, complete vigilance. Never leave the still alone.

Side note, you're better off ignoring YouTubers, they're mostly wrong.
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by jonnys_spirit »

Given my current situation, I need to distill indoors.
This explains everything and yes - Be safe and ask questions around here.

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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by Durhommer »

I recently moved into a duplex I run 8 gallon electric and a 30gallon drum for cooling. Other than the brewery smell of mashing no issues
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by HDNB »

just keep the condensor cold and you should be golden with all the safety things you mentioned.

you may want to run a little 1/4" plastic line from the fermenter out to a window, the beer smells more than the booze.
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ViceGripson
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by ViceGripson »

I had one in college on the electric stove. You'll be fine, and really if you had a gas range you could do everything faster. I'd buy a small pool pump from amazon and keep cold water recirculating. You'll be fine. Turn the range hood fan on high to help suck any smell out. Cleanup is super simple since toupl be close to a sink. If your fridge has an icemaker, you can use oce to cool the recirc water.
Last edited by ViceGripson on Wed May 20, 2020 4:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by WithOrWithoutU2 »

Distilling inside is relatively safe. The greatest safety risk is fire. Electric element is safest for heating. Double check all connections for vapor leaks each and every time. Keep the product condenser cold with ample supply of cool water to ensure vapor does not get out. Re-circulation is fine but can get warm quick if you don't know what you are doing. While learning I would suggest using a direct line from a supply to eliminate that variable. Be careful how you collect and store the alcohol. It is HIGHLY flammable. Easy to spill or break glass. Lastly, landlords can do inspections or come on premises. Have a plan to properly store and hide your gear.
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MichiganCornhusker
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by MichiganCornhusker »

Can you safely distill in an apartment, sure.
Can you safely learn to distill in an apartment? That really is a different question.

The very nature of your questions makes it clear you don't have a solid handle on the ins and outs of running a still.
I'm not knocking you, but I don't think referencing George is gonna help your case either.

I realize that you aren't pretending to know about stilling yet, that you are just asking if it is even a reasonable thing to consider.
So many things could go wrong that could potentially put you in danger, and being in an apartment setting cranks your personal responsibility way up.

Yes, you could do it, and you could do it safely. But take it very slow, read and read and read first, read until you think you know the entire process and can convince yourself that you cannot think of any reason why it would be unsafe to work in your space. The danger, of course, is that you won't know what you don't know. Honestly, I've distilled many many batches over many years and I'm not sure I would run a still in a shared living situation.

I don't mean to throw a wet fire blanket on your dreams, just don't underestimate the risks.
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by NZChris »

Top floor may be ok, but street level not so much. The repercussions of making a mistake increases with the number of people living above you.

An old hand at the game should be able to distil relatively safely compared to a newbie getting distilling advice from other newbies on Youtube. If you haven't worked out that George is a newbie distiller who knows more about making videos than he knows about distillation theory, then I suggest you abandon dreams about distilling in an apartment complex until you have a much better grasp of distilling theory.
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by acfixer69 »

Well said mich and chris. This hobby is safe when you know what you're doing. Can be very dangerous when taking lightly. We are a safety first group so don't apprentice in high risk situations.
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by greggn »

I agree with the comments above and simply want to add one more point ...

Unless you plan to ferment elsewhere, you'll also need to plan for the space and equipment required as well as the odors it creates. That may be more difficult to manage in a studio apartment given the duration of a ferment (versus that of a distillation run). Ensuring solitude during a 6 - 8 hour distillation run is much easier than keeping people out of your apartment for days at a time while a ferment is active.
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by Corsaire »

Sure you can distill safely in an apartment.
Just make sure you're set up right. Have ventilation, run the extractor hood. You already have a fire extinguisher handy. Are you going to use your cooking range? You say electric still, does it have an internal heating element?
I've brought pot stilled vodka over to my brother's, we made gin in his apartment on a small gin still on his gas range.
Electric will be more difficult, since most electric cook stoves cycle on and off.
I ran my 30l pot still on a gas cooktop in the kitchen, no problem. I used the cleaning runs to perfect my setup, think cooling water and collection vessels.

Your neighbours will give you funny looks when you haul big bags of grain and sugar up the stairway on a regular basis.
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by LWTCS »

All good advice here. Safety is no joke.

Check out Rad's apartment still thread for some clues.

Also, Rad was a strong proponent of the cereal washes because everything could be sourced at the neighborhood grocery store and brought into your apartment without suspension.
And by the way, Rad's time signature on all of the cereal washes (including cornflakes) predates any other cereal recipe that's been stickied other than DWGR.
Just a bit of credit where credit is due. He took a lot of heat by the AG purists in the early days for "playing with babyfood".
You'll find the Bran cereal recipe ferments nicely and installs a nice flavor.

The cereal washes definitely are not all grain. But if done with care you can absolutely make a respectable drop.
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by still_stirrin »

LWTCS wrote: Wed May 20, 2020 4:04 am...You'll find the Bran cereal recipe ferments nicely and installs a nice flavor...But if done with care you can absolutely make a respectable drop.
+1.

I brew the All Bran recipe for my neutral base. It’s a good fermenter, as the bran flakes has necessary nutrients and buffers the pH crash too. It is economical and easy to make. All you Birdwatcher brewers should give it a try...tomato paste not needed!
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by LWTCS »

MichiganCornhusker wrote: Wed May 20, 2020 3:41 pm
ViceGripson wrote: Tue May 19, 2020 4:44 pm I paid rent with the still I had in college on the electric stove.
Some people will buy anything! :lol:
We don’t sell. Kind of a thing. :lolno:
And Frankly prefer that you dont ever talk about that ever again or you'll find yourself permanently moderated.

....no offense intended.
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by Beerswimmer »

In Michigan I distilled indoors on my gas stovetop when I didn't feel like freezing in the garage. Keep a fire extinquisher handy, and keep your eye on it the whole time. It was nice having a sink so close!
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by ViceGripson »

Some people will buy anything! :lol:
We don’t sell. Kind of a thing. :lolno:
[/quote]

And Frankly prefer that you dont ever talk about that ever again or you'll find yourself permanently moderated.

....no offense intended.
[/quote]

Sorry folks, I'll remove or edit the comment.
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by stillanoob »

Another thing to be aware of is that you are involving your neighbors in your pursuits without their consent. Of course, to some degree anyone living in an apartment building is doing that but distilling has the potential of explosions and fire. It is more than just about whether or not you can get away with it. I can't say I wouldn't do it but I am glad I don't have to make that decision.
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Re: Can I distill safely in an apartment? (Advice please)

Post by LWTCS »

ViceGripson wrote: Wed May 20, 2020 4:12 pm Some people will buy anything! :lol:
We don’t sell. Kind of a thing. :lolno:
And Frankly prefer that you dont ever talk about that ever again or you'll find yourself permanently moderated.

....no offense intended.
[/quote]

Sorry folks, I'll remove or edit the comment.
[/quote]

Thank you.
It's a Rule #6 thing.

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