Should i buy a Still Spirits Air Still?

[Kristof]

Hi,

I am doing a little research before i decide whether to buy a turbo air still and found this forum by chance. I have read with interest all the comments about the turbo air stills and would like some advice.

I'm still sorely tempted to buy the turbo air still; my reasoning is this; we are on tank water, a stand along solar system, do not have a lot of money to spend and i've got no idea how to make my own.

First point: its my understanding that some of the water cooled stills use a lot of water and that unless you set it up to recycle your water, your water consumption will be pretty high; not really good for us on tank water.

Second point: is that that being on a stand alone solar system we always have to watch our power consumption as well as the overall load on the system. The still spirits air still apparently only pulls 320 watts which is quite acceptable. My understanding is that the larger stills draw a lot more power?

Third point: the turbo air still is a price we can afford ($269 + filters, 25lt container, and all the rest of the stuff that you need = $399). This is about the maximum that we can spend at the moment.

Fourth point: i know that building an old fashioned still that is heated with fire might be the way to go, i've no idea how to do this and am not experienced in copper work.

We were thinking about making our own gin and bacardi with the still. We are not by any means big drinkers (3 drinks a week or so, each). We were also considering using the essences. Any thoughts on that? We are by no means connoisseurs but want a good clean output.

If i bought the air still i would ask people what the best wash recipe would be as i have read that the tubo yeast's give a foul flavour and taste to the product.

So, my question is, should i buy the turbo air still or not ? Does anyone have any other suggestions for our situation?

Regards

Christopher

[rubber duck]

Being that far off the grid why not use a wood fire to run your still thats the fun way to do it. That will solve your power problem.

A worm coil condencer in 30 galons of water will cool just fine and you can reuse the water for a very long time. Agian no power used.

As for buying a still for 300 bucks you wold be better off getting a beer keg and some copper and building it your self. Its realy not that hard to build a realy nice pot still and if you feal like its to much for you get a friend to help. I shure you have a friend that has a grandpa that would love to do some pipe fitting. that should save you abought 200 bucks and thats a lot of molasses.

So no i wouldn't buy one thats just a lot of cash for somthing you can do your self.

[LWTCS]

Being that far off the grid why not use a wood fire to run your still thats the fun way to do it. That will solve your power problem.

A worm coil condencer in 30 galons of water will cool just fine and you can reuse the water for a very long time. Agian no power used.

As for buying a still for 300 bucks you wold be better off getting a beer keg and some copper and building it your self. Its realy not that hard to build a realy nice pot still and if you feal like its to much for you get a friend to help. I shure you have a friend that has a grandpa that would love to do some pipe fitting. that should save you abought 200 bucks and thats a lot of molasses.

So no i wouldn't buy one thats just a lot of cash for somthing you can do your self.

+1

Lots of great info available and also lots of pics with which to get some solid visual references.

Hope it all works out.
L.T.

[rad14701]

+1

Air Stills are far too expensive for what they do... Don't let eagerness or laziness blur your monetary judgment... Build your own...

[Kristof]

Ok, thanks guys, good ideas.

So, is there a "Dummies Guide to Buidling a Pot Still" available anywhere?

Though, If i was to go ahead and get the air still, what would be the best wash recipe to use, to avoid the foul yeasty flavour that i have seen mentioned (or is that a result of the turbo yeast and not the air still)?

Cheers

Chris

[rad14701]

We have topics related to simple pot still fabrication running continuously... There are at least one or two with activity today...


If you read around the forums a bit you'll find these basic parameters:

* For any still the bare minimum boiler size is about 8 quarts/liters...
* For a pot still with a worm condenser, 3/8 inch copper is the minimum diameter for a small unit and 1/2 inch minimum as the boiler size increases...
* For a pot still with a worm if your worm bucket holds as much as or more water than your boiler you won't need to circulate the water as it will adequately knock down all of the vapor in your boiler produces during the distillation process...
* You won't absolutely need a thermometer...

[Photonic]

Though, If i was to go ahead and get the air still, what would be the best wash recipe to use, to avoid the foul yeasty flavour that i have seen mentioned (or is that a result of the turbo yeast and not the air still)?

Cheers

Chris

I own one of these airstills, in fact it's the only still that I own. I wish that I'd got/made something different.
Yes, it's convenient - plug it in, and away you go but the boiler size is so small that it takes 5 or 6 runs to process a 25litre fermenter.

If you do go ahead and get one then as to which wash to use, I'd say it's a case of experimenting. I have my first "Birdwatcher's" and my first "All Bran" washes fermenting at the moment... (both of which smell really good) I'll post some feedback on the recipe threads when they're done and I've run them through the still.

Another thing to bear in mind is that although the instructions for Turbos say to not worry about foreshots or heads, you WILL need to make cuts for these if you are interested in getting something clean from a Turbo and probably have to run it through twice.

So, from your 700ml output per 4litre run you'll have to throw 50ml for the foreshots and then work out where to make a cut for the heads - which is not easy at all with such a small volume as you find that the heads blur into the hearts and the hearts blur into the tails.


I guess what I'm trying to say is that although it seems fairly easy, there is still (no pun intended) a lot of messing about to do. To be honest though, if it weren't for the airstill, I doubt that this hobby would have been anything more than an idea for me - so it does have the value of getting you started and drawing you into wanting a bigger still.

[LWTCS]

To be honest though, if it weren't for the airstill, I doubt that this hobby would have been anything more than an idea for me - so it does have the value of getting you started and drawing you into wanting a bigger still.

+1.
Can not discount the value of lessons learned.

I was perfectly content with my stove top. Till it became so much work to stay on top of the production cycle. What with enjoying with family and good friends.

It felt like I was stilling every day and yet never had any likker ready to drink.
And I had to muddle my beloved center cuts in order to get some kind of volume.

If you like this hobby, your small still will let you know when its time move forward.