1st batch finished !!

Post by **Uncle Jesse** » Thu Mar 24, 2005 11:10 am

ethanol boils at right around 173F, so the top of the colum should be at least that when the alcohol vapors are flowing prior to condensation in the worm.

knuklehead · Post by **knuklehead** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 9:32 am

In the type of still allen42 is running if the head temperature reaches the boiling point of anything then he will start getting vapour passed the tee. The temperature at the tee must remain below the boiling point of the lowest componaint in the wash. My reflux still head is an Nixon-Stone and when I equilize my column the head temperature usually stabelizes between 73C-76C (163F-168F). If I where to run a internal reflux still like yours allen42 I would let the column heat with the cooling water flowing in the reflux tubes until I got just a bit of condensate from the output then back the heat off a bit so it stops. My guess was 134F but it may be a little higher. That is something you will have to discover and I am very curious so please post what you find out.

Post by **Uncle Jesse** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 3:55 pm

which type of still are you using?

for my reflux stills, i have to come very close to boiling the beer.

knuklehead · Post by **knuklehead** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 4:08 pm

allen42 is using an internal reflux, the one with the tubes through the column. I use a NS-Reflux so I also my head temperature stableizes alot higher. I have never use the type of still he is using so I am only making a guess. The way I figure it is that if his head temperature is that or higher of the boiling point of the most volitile he will get vapour through the tee and into the condesnor not allowing for an equilibrium to be established.

linw · Post by **linw** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 8:33 pm

knuklehead wrote:....... The way I figure it is that if his head temperature is that or higher of the boiling point of the most volitile he will get vapour through the tee and into the condesnor not allowing for an equilibrium to be established.

Truth is, you can't equilibrate a column unless the wash is boiling and you can force 100% reflux. Just ain't going to work otherwise. Unless his cooling tubes can knock down all the vapour he hasn't got a compound still so will not be able to achieve a high level of separation. It would be a pot still with a lot of reflux.

allen42 · Post by **allen42** » Sat Mar 26, 2005 7:09 pm

well yall I will have to let ya know later LMAO , i swear i have the worse LUCK !!! , the other day i was making another wash up * was gonna hopefully going to do a striping run sunday ( tomorrow) & then do a total reflux run the next day ( monday) , SOOOOOOo anyway i have my 25 lb bag of sugar , my 2 turbo yeast packs ,, put the sugar in the tub , then added enough water to cover good & started stiring it up , dissolving the sugar , i noticed a *fresh* smell BUT didnt really think much about it , then i added my turbo yeast packages (2) & the rest of the water to make 25 liters , ,, well it foamed up & there still was a sweet / fresh smell , i dip a little of teh foam up & smell it , smells sweet & fresh ,, i start to worry , i get the tubro packs , smell them , nope , not the yeast , i next grab the sugar bag , i just be damned , it smelled like frabic softner or soap !!!!!!!! , seems the store or somebody before i bought it had spilled something on the bag & ruined the sugar !!! I went back to the store, the lady made it good, gave me 25 more lbs of sugar & also gave me 12 bucks for my yeast & thanked me for letting hert know ( was 4 more bags in her store that was the same way ! SO it will be next weekend before i can reprt the temps !!

pangea · Post by **pangea** » Sat Mar 26, 2005 7:20 pm

So you've got the first "April Fresh" mash ever made. I'll bet it fights static cling like nobodys buisness!

AkCoyote · Post by **AkCoyote** » Sat Mar 26, 2005 8:17 pm

Great moonshine supply shop you got there. I'm still wondering what she said when you told her you had added turbo yeast to 25lbs of sugar

AkCoyote

Post by **Uncle Jesse** » Sun Mar 27, 2005 7:48 am

once when i was learning i dropped by a store for the first time, near work, to buy 50 lbs of sugar.

as i was in line at the checker, one guy ahead of me, the checker said "lots of sugar, what are you doing, making moonshine?"

well my first reaction was to say "kool-aid stand" but what the hell? i said "yeh, actually, i am making some moonshine." the guy in frot of me in line looked at me and laughed and the checker looked a bit stunned and said "oh, i was just joking cause i hear moonshine requires a lot of sugar!" so i told him "one method of making it does require a lot of sugar, yes."

allen42 · Post by **allen42** » Sun Mar 27, 2005 8:47 am

lmao I have always been shy of buying sugar in large amounts , I told the lady @ the Local Winn Dixie that i was making some homemade wine 2 5 gallon batches and the packets that was ruined were a "ALL INCLUDED" pack that cost 6 bucks each , she never once blinked an eye ! Course the guy that gave me the copper was told it was a sience project hehehe , I'm gonna take him a pint & tell him we won 1st place LMAO

thanks for the support guys !

oh yeah , if ya pull in my drive way , it smells like a brewery !! 50 liters of sugar wash has a lingering smell to say the least !!

knuklehead · Post by **knuklehead** » Sun Mar 27, 2005 12:20 pm

Man those are some great sugar purchasing stories. Most of the time I get my wife to pick up sugar for me since I assume no one will ask her quesitons like that. Last time I picked up a 40kg bag of sugar at Cosco, nothing else, just 40kg bag of sugar, the lady at the check out asked me if it was for resale purposes. I said "nope" and she said "that's alot of sugar" and I said "yup". I guess she figured out it was none of here buisiness so she stopped with the questions. Funny thing is that since I started this I keep an eye out for signs like this. If I see someone in a check out with a hole lot of sugar, maybe some bleach and vinagar....I know....I just smile and nod.

Post by **Grayson_Stewart** » Sun Mar 27, 2005 3:31 pm

I purchase my 50 lb. bags of sugar at Sam's (I know..I'm an evildoer). I've seen the same girl in the line so many times, she just looks at me and says "Church having another bake sale?"

AkCoyote · Post by **AkCoyote** » Sun Mar 27, 2005 3:46 pm

Try explaining 50lbs of sugar and 50lbs of rice. "Yes, as a matter of fact, I AM making rice wine". Seriously, here in Alaska so many people live in the bush and only get supplies once or twice a year, no one even looks sideways when you buy anything in bulk.

AkCoyote

runforthehills · Post by **runforthehills** » Sun Mar 27, 2005 5:34 pm

Costco for me.....The lines are so long, no one seems to even blink.....I mean there are 128 roll packs of TP, gallons of shampoo, and Tampax by the gross....so who notices a couple of 25lb bags of sugar ? Restaurant owners, resellers from the sticks, everyone is sort of heaped in together....

Just give em that " Its none of your f ng business" look....My momma taught me not to talk to strangers as a youngster...and I still dont....Stupid/Nosey questions deserve nothing more than a nonresponsive, questioning grunt as far as Im concerned.

At Costco....you gives the man your membership card....they scan your stuff, you swipe your debit and key the pin, they hand you the receipt, you push the cart out, with nothing more than a simple.."Have a nice day"

I think the more urban the area, the less likely you are to get funny looks....

runforthehills · Post by **runforthehills** » Sun Mar 27, 2005 5:36 pm

AK Coyote, meant to ask...what part of AK do you hail from...general region is all Im asking >

Ive spent alot of time camping, hiking, backpacking, fishing in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, etc..and I still dream of making it to AK....but its such a big place...hard to know where to start !!

Virginia Gentleman · Post by **Virginia Gentleman** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 6:47 am

It's amazing the questions people will ask. When I bought 10 ft. of copper tubing at a small Mom & Pop hardware store, I mumbled something to the guy cutting it about needing to replace the water line to the ice maker in the refridgerator. He said "Or build a MOONSHINE STILL, whichever comes first." I said yeah, well I might get distracted and we had a good laugh.

Bought a 5 gal. new plastic bucket from another store, and the guy wanted to know what for, so I said making beer. Man, he had a dozen questions. So I waited until he got off work and iced him.

KatoFong · Post by **KatoFong** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 7:09 am

Yeah, I led a couple of Home Depot employees on a merry chase around their store, looking for supplies for my first still. After I asked for copper tubing and a few couplings, one of them looked at me and said, "You're building a meth lab, aren't you?"

"Maybe," I said.

VG: Out of curiosity, when you iced that hardware employee, where'd you store the body? Personally, I'm fond of the basements of abandoned buildings, but concrete gets so expensive after a while...

Virginia Gentleman · Post by **Virginia Gentleman** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 7:26 am

I'm thrifty, so I throw 'em in to the pigs along with their slop. Pigs take care of them, bones and all. They'll go through bones like butter.

KatoFong · Post by **KatoFong** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 7:27 am

Ohh....I wish I had pigs...they're nature's garbage disposal...

AkCoyote · Post by **AkCoyote** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 9:39 pm

runforthehills:
Matanuska-Susitna valley. The borough is larger than the state of Delaware with a population of about 70,000.

AkCoyote

phaeton · Post by **phaeton** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 9:15 am

Hehe I always try to buy something out of line when I get my supplies. When I was building my still I bought maybe 10 litres of vinegar to really flush her clean, 20kg of sugar, and a pizza.

Coincidentally, it was the pizza that aroused suspisicion.

Verte Ego · Post by **Verte Ego** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 10:39 am

My wife makes a lot of candy.

Home Distiller

1st batch finished !!

well

interesting

sugar