Greetings and a question

[Sasquatch2014]

Still trying to figure out the board and the search functions. Just got into this from a friend of mine but can't ask him Questions as he is completing the Appalachian Trail at the moment and is somewhere in the backwoods of Maine at the time. I am going really basic to start with and doing the corn syrup and water route. I am also using a teak kettle for a still. HJe said to try and get a steel kettle but all I able to find was an aluminum one. I figured as I am not fermenting in this it might be ok is that the case or not? I have heard you should not use aluminum if it can be avoided is this for all aspects or just some?

So far this has been fun getting the hang of. I would like to build a bigger still for this fall. I would like to make enough to make the long winters a bit warmer and a bit more pleasant as I go.

[Tater]

acids in washes pits aluminum

[Husker]

Also, instead of wasting your time on a tea kettle still, which will NEVER be able to produce any form of drink that is good (i.e. it will taste like crap, and give you a killer hang over, and you can only get a couple shot glasses full out of a tea kettle), why not simply look at building a still out of a 20L stainless stock pot, attaching a copper tube out the top, into a copper coil in a bucket?

There are many threads showing how others have done this on the forums. 20L is about the minimal size you really want to work with. When you distill, you do not 'create' alcohol (the fermentation does that), but what you are doing is separating out the parts of that ferment which you want, and increasing the strength. The separation part, is removing the water (most of it), AND removing some 'higher' alcohols and esters. It is those parts which give you the hang over.

You may end up with 70% of the ethanol potential from your wash, cutting out the heads (parts with lower boiling point), and tails (stinky nasty flavored, with higher boiling point), and leaving just the hearts which is the good drink. The larger your boiling, the easier it is to get the proper spot to cut from heads to body, and then again from body to tails. With a tea kettle, this happens SO FAST, you will never get it right, and will end up with almost no product at all, if you try to remove heads and tails.

Of course it is your choice. You of course can build yourself a tea kettle toy, however, do not expect much help here on the forums, other than people replying that you need a bigger still, that is not a simple toy.

H.

[LWTCS]

So far this has been fun getting the hang of. I would like to build a bigger still for this fall. I would like to make enough to make the long winters a bit warmer and a bit more pleasant as I go.

.

An 8 quart boiler would be the bare bones minimum. And then after completing a few runs you will wish you had a 15 gallon boiler.............No if, ands or buts about it.

That is,,,,,,,,, if you want to make a nice winter

[olddog]

SS beer keg is right for me.