Ponu still help

[Andyfink]

Hey everyone I finally did a cleaning run and a alcohol run. Stayed at 178 the hole time with a 120v heating element no controller yet I have all the parts just have to put it together. My only problem is that it seemed like my condenser was either cooling to well about 1 drip every 3 seconds or if I turned the flow rate down I would get a steady small stream but when I held a mirror in front of the outlet I would get small puffs of steam.
Any ideas or suggestions?

[Samohon]

If your product condenser is puffing, which is a common occurrence in some designs, try adding some turbulence.

To do this, stick some stainless steel scrubber up into the condenser.
Not too much mind, just enough to add some turbulence to the vapour on its way down...

Hope it helps...

ps: Any piccies for us? We all love piccies..

[Andyfink]

The only problem is the condenser is soldered closed I guess I could unsolder it.
I tryed to copy ozones still.
This was my first time soldering and brazing.

[Andyfink]

I'm sorry I'm a idiot. My condenser isn't soldered shut. My tube is 1/4 inch is it OK to stuff some in there? Think it will help?

[heartcut]

Damn. if you've never soldered before and put together a Ponu that runs that's very impressive. Yeah, try shoving a little scrubby up there, making sure you can get it back out, or else a coiled up piece of 20 - 30 gauge copper wire coiled in a spiral. Sounds like you might need more heat.

[Andyfink]

Thank you. I will give it a try. You think more heat? I'm gonna put some ss in the condenser and make another run Sunday.
Thanks again!

[ozone39]

Run less heat, these ponu's work better the slower you run them..As far as to much cooling, hard to do on these. You need more cooling since you are using the condenser to cool down the vapor twice.....

[Andyfink]

Thanks ozone. If I turn my pump up full blast it cools the top so well that nothing will come out no vapor no liquid nothing. Did you ever have that problem? If I turn the flow down and get the condenser warm on the bottom hot on the top I get a nice steady stream but with puffs.

[Prairiepiss]

If your condenser tube is 1/4" I don't think I would be shoving anything in it. It being so small. It would be more prone to blockage. I don't know enough about ponu stills. But shoving something into a 1/4" tube is a no no in my book for any still. Just my two nickles.

[ozone39]

I run my condenser cool on the bottom and warm on the top, but i have also run it cool all the way through..Coil sizing is important on these things. If your primary cooling coil is to big for your secondary coil it will flood it out and the liquid will go back into the pot and never make it to the outlet side of your secondary coil. The secondary coil has to get hot enough to flash off the incoming liquid from the primary side. To much cooling on the primary side and the secondary side has to work that much harder to flash off the liquid. Kinda sounds like your secondary side coil might be a little to small and can not handle the volume from the primary side. I generally build the secondary coil so it has 50 to 70 percent more surface area then the primary side....Also, did you remember to install a p-trap at the bottom of the secondary coil, if you do not have this the steam vapor will by pass every thing flow backwards through the secondary coil and find it's way out the final product tube outlet...what size tubing did you use for the secondary side coil???? Thinking the secondary coil can not handle the primary liquid with the condenser on full cooling flow, but it can handle the liquid if it is lets say around 120 - 140 F. The puffing is vapor that is short circuiting from the primary side to the secondary side, providing you do have the p trap on the bottom of the secondary soil...The other possibility the secondary side cooling is not sufficient to handle the vapor from the secondary coil (not enough surface area)...

[Andyfink]

Thank you. Here is the lower coil and the top coil. Do you think I fudged it up?
Should I make my secondary condenser bigger maybe 3/8 Id instead of 3/8 od?

[ozone39]

top coil is wayyyy to big (or the secondary coil is wayyy to small)....that and the re-flashed liquid from the secondary coil needs to have some contact time with the condenser. I looked up your build and the only contact time is where it leaves the still in the condenser (did not see a cooling coil for the secondary re-flash). Generally, the vapor from the secondary coil exits the still from the side below the condenser then travels up up to an inlet to a coil to the condenser. You need two coils in that upper chamber......one for primary vapor, and one for secondary vapor...attached a shitty drawing of how things work in a ponu....hope it helps

[Andyfink]

Thanks ozone.
Sorry it took me so long to respond lifes been crazy. Now when the vapor enters the still it travels up the side tubes then drops through the middle of the condenser then re flashes in the second coil then travels out my side tube up to my top coil thats in the condenser.
So i assume i should make the second coil much larger. I tried the pdf i couldn't get it to open.
Any help would be greatly appreciated