Indirect heated electric pot

[shadylane]

There's no logical reason for starting this project
But I have the heaters, corny keg and old man retired boredom.
The heaters are 480v 2500w only 4 are shown but I have 8 to use if needed.
Figured to remove the rubber from the keg and add a bottom drain.
And use the electric heaters to build a round, insulated oven to drop the corny keg into.

[Sungy]

I think you may have a melt down. They look like heaters used in an air stream. I think they might overheat with no air flow and blow / melt. Fusing them individually may help but having a high limit temperature switch may keep them alive. Are you going to fill the space around the elements with a fluid? If so is the tube going to be vented to prevent expansion / explosion?

[shadylane]

Figured on having 120v across each heater, so they will only dissipate 625 watts each.
They were made for heating air, so at 1/4 their rated power a melt down isn't going to happen.
The heaters also will have a controller, so they will only be at max power during heat up.
I was thinking slow steady heat to the boiler and using it for small spirit runs.

[S-Cackalacky]

Innerstin'.

[kaziel]

Got almost same thing never run it yet :/ mine is 700W each got 6 of them they are ceramic coated and fit 50L keg good. Hope to use it in two weeks. You can check mine in heating belt.

[skow69]

I would try it, for sure. It might turn out to be a gentle, efficient way to heat, if you can insulate the furnace well enough to minimize loss. Seems like anytime I use stainless for something I get bummed about its lack of heat conduction. In this case that wouldn't hurt you, as long as you can totally enclose it, the heat has to go into the keg eventually.

You might want to leave the rubber base on the corney and test it. If it's not a problem don't modify it. It won't just peal off. Plan on a sawsall, hammer, prybars, knives, solvents, grinder, acid, explosives, and a lot of sweat. Once you hack on it you can't just stop with half of it gone. And if you do get the son of a bitch off, then the keg won't stand up, so you have to screw with it some more.

Just a thought. Maybe yours will pop right off. <he he he>

[Sungy]

I would try it, for sure. It might turn out to be a gentle, efficient way to heat, if you can insulate the furnace well enough to minimize loss. Seems like anytime I use stainless for something I get bummed about its lack of heat conduction. In this case that wouldn't hurt you, as long as you can totally enclose it, the heat has to go into the keg eventually.

You might want to leave the rubber base on the corney and test it. If it's not a problem don't modify it. It won't just peal off. Plan on a sawsall, hammer, prybars, knives, solvents, grinder, acid, explosives, and a lot of sweat. Once you hack on it you can't just stop with half of it gone. And if you do get the son of a bitch off, then the keg won't stand up, so you have to screw with it some more.

Just a thought. Maybe yours will pop right off. <he he he>

+10 on that........ OH YEHHHH.....been there done that...
got a week....go for it...

[shadylane]

I'm gathering parts for the build.
One of my friends suggested having the ability to add a fan to the heater.
So it could be used as a shop heater, malted grain dryer or a load for testing welders and generators.
Imagine that, he planted the idea, then suggests uses for what he needs at work.

[bellybuster]

how do you plan on transferring the heat to the keg? in open air as shown all your heat will go to the air, maybe 10% will get to the keg....maybe

[shadylane]

A closed, cylindrical, insulated oven that the keg drops into. The heat transfer won't be fast, but it should be efficient.

[just sayin]

Interesting, Shadylane. Great concept! I don't think you will have any trouble with burn out on 110v. I remembered the simple controllers in the Amphora Society's "The Compleat Distiller" and dug out the book to check it out.

Cutting your voltage from 480v to 240v will cut the 2500w output to 625 watts, half the voltage = 1/4 the watts. Cutting it to 120v will give you a forth of 240v or 156.25 watts. Watts relate to the square of the voltage if I am understanding what they are saying or 1/4 the volts equals 1/16 the watts, so all 8 of the 480v/2500w elements wired in parallel would give you 1250 watts running at 120v.

Anybody who knows this stuff well please correct me if I have got it all wrong. Controller would be cheap and easy: a box with 8-120v switches. Maybe 7 on/off switches and 1 rated dimmer.

Just Sayin'

[just sayin]

The more I think about it, the more I think you have a real treasure there. With your extremely low watt density at 110v you could fill the air void space with dry sand for a sand bath distiller.

Sand baths have been used by alchemist and chemists for centuries for gentle uniform heating for distilling with a retort. This would open many types of spirits to you that are difficult if not impossible to do with an immersion element, hot plate or direct flame without scorching. You could distill on the grain or on the must with very little or no worry about scorching. It would be outstanding for goopy ferments that are hard to strain and clear like Rye whisky, Grappa or Slivovitz.

[shadylane]

Just sayin your math is right and mine was wrong.
4 heaters in parallel on 240v for a total of 2500w seems like the best option.
The controller is easy, I already have one that can handle up to 9.6kw
I like your idea of using a sand bath. The thermal mass would make the heat even
The down side would be, the hot sand would make it impossible to shut the heat off instantly.

[just sayin]

It would definently coast for a while when you shut her down.

[shadylane]

A little bit farther along with the prototype.
I need to order some high temp wire and connectors.
Before someone flames me for the electrical hazards, this part of the heater goes inside of another insulated barrel.

[Jimbo]

Make sure that corny is open to the atmosphere somehow before you fire that bomb up. Great idea tho I like it!

[shadylane]

It will boil water
Now I've got to find some insulation and make an outer jacket.

[shadylane]

Almost finished. Now I have to find a use for it.
Cooking corn mash in a corny keg comes to mind.

I have a bunch of 12" long 480v 2kw finned strip heaters.
A couple of 15.5 kegs and some barrels.
The next time boredom sets in, I might try making a bigger version of this still.

[shadylane]

Time to build a 15 gallon sized version of this for distilling on the grain.
I've got the heating part figured out, the problem is how to fill and drain it.

[goose eye]

Could you use them on the second column on the
Holstein then when you get the temp close to
what you lookin turn them back.

[shadylane]

Goose, My bad. The question went over my head. I'm confused but that's normal.
Planned on using this to cook mash and do stripping runs with.
I'm looking for a way to distill on the grain without burning it.
And a pot that can be cleaned when it does burn.

[shadylane]

Guess I need to update this post
But, It ain't happening tonight
Too dadburn dark and cold to try taking any pics

[bship]

waiting patiently ....

[shadylane]

waiting patiently ....

I ain't making excuses, for not posting the pic's yet, but
Dadburnit
I'd figured out how to save, resize and post pic's, until windows 10 came along.

[shadylane]

Here's a long overdo update.
Welded up the original fittings and used a 5" ferrel for the top
On a side note, this baby is great for distilling brandy

[shadylane]

Had a small fire in the still house today.
Nothing much, just a mouse nest I didn't remove before using the still.

[Setsumi]

Had a small fire in the still house today.
Nothing much, just a mouse nest I didn't remove before using the still.

Hope you burnt that rat's arss

[bilgriss]

So, was the rat indirectly heated?

[OtisT]

Rat nest in the still? You must be making rum today.

I happy to hear it was only a small fire.

[bcook608]

Shady, Have you considered packing the spaces between the heater rings with ceramic kiln insulation? I find that it doesn't trap the heat so much as redirect it. You wouldn't have the issue of coasting like you would with sand. Should see a lot more sensitive adjustment time as well.