Craft distillery explosion Oklahoma

[Bob Loblaw]

Just SMH after reading this article. Read about it on another forum and hadn't seen posted here. I figured it might be a good reminder of the potential outcome when one mixes flame + alcohol. I'm glad to see the guy survived.

“It’s been going 24 hours a day, nonstop; there’s alcohol and flame involved, so you can’t leave it,” Thurmon said.

Minutes later, a geyser of clear alcohol began spewing several feet into the air from a makeshift still in the garage bay Twister Distillery rents in a Moore industrial park. The room then erupted in a flash of orange flame as Thurmon rushed to shut off a propane tank.

Stay safe people!

http://newsok.com/blast-rocks-moore-dis ... le/4907972" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

[Bob Loblaw]

Another story here. Might need to change the name of the vodka from "Success" to "Inferno":

http://newsok.com/moore-twister-distill ... le/4919580" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

The vodka distillery where a man was seriously burned last week in an alcohol flash fire had previously been warned by local fire officials not to use an open flame to make the product.

Twister Distillery in Moore had been distilling its product, called Success Vodka, in a homemade still that was hooked up to an open-flame burner fueled by a propane tank. The still and propane tank were on a wooden pallet atop the tines of a forklift.

[woodshed]

Glad he's ok. But I gotta say it. Stupid is as Stupid does.

[T-Pee]

Glad he's ok. But I gotta say it. Stupid is as Stupid does.

What part was stupid? Operating with an open flame?

tp (and his leading questions)

[Tokoroa_Shiner]

Glad he's ok. But I gotta say it. Stupid is as Stupid does.

What part was stupid? Operating with an open flame?

tp (and his leading questions)

I think the stupid is having the still and propane on a wooden pallet lifted on a forklift.

[T-Pee]

Glad he's ok. But I gotta say it. Stupid is as Stupid does.

What part was stupid? Operating with an open flame?

tp (and his leading questions)

I think the stupid is having the still and propane on a wooden pallet lifted on a forklift.

And that's stupid why?

tp

[woodshed]

All of it IMO is a stupid way to run.

[rad14701]

Someone was definitely inattentive... Hopefully, he will be alright because not too long ago those burns would have been fatal due to secondary infection... Second degree burns over 50%+ of the human body is never good... I've seen more than one person try to deny medical treatment, with more and less serious burns, only to be dead three days later in a burn treatment center... Safety is no joking matter... I have to agree with woodshed that this was a hodge podge setup...

[shadylane]

From the pictures it appears he was using a milk-can pot and a keg with a worm in it.
And the connector for the vapor output failed or wasn't attached.
Alcohol vapor, especially from a spirit run is extremely flammable.
Bet than was one hell of a flash fire.
I Hope the man recovers.
2nd degree burns are the most painful.

[Truckinbutch]

That's exactly why SAFETY and CONSTANT ATTENTION is preached so strongly here . This craft is not a spectator sport nor amenable to a casual attitude .

[Bob Loblaw]

OK, I did some quick googling. The distillery owner is a chiropractor, and the distiller was a sales rep for Tito's who also designs houses and is a screenwriter and an insurance adjuster and.... check out his home page http://www.jeffthurmon.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow


this thing was a custard truck.

OMFG! Just googling this dude's phone number turns up three businesses (or at least registered domains) seeking franchisees or investors. I suspect he had no business near a still much less running a distillery. A real ontapenooour
https://www.google.com/search?q=562-276 ... 3&ie=UTF-8" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

[heartcut]

Whether it's stupidity, ignorance or carelessness, this kind of news makes us all look bad. Hate for anyone to get hurt, but tweaking fate makes the E room closer.

[StillLearning1]

Anybody read the the part on his site about how he rides his dirt bike around for a while while his still gets to temp?

[RandyMarshCT]

Can anyone tell why the whole setup was up on a forklift? That seems like a terrible idea.

[RandyMarshCT]

Actually, after reviewing the pictures again, it seems the boiler and burner were lifted up on a pallet by the forklift so they would be high enough to attach to the rest of the setup... which was on a stand... why not build a stand for the boiler as well???

I bet the forklift dropped a bit and it snapped the connection at the top of the boiler. Too bad they didn't heed the warning of their local fire inspector who told them they were not allowed to operate with open flame. I'm sorry, but having the burner and boiler held in place by a forklift was STUPID AS HELL!!!

I wish the best for Mr. Thurmon, but WTF was he thinking??!!?

[Soggy Bottom Boy]

Inattentiveness from playing BMOC for the news crew, or busy daydreaming about one of his myriad of side projects.

Something made the riser pop off the boiler, be it a pressure build-up from an extreme puke, hydraulic leak or bumped lever on the forklift snapping it off, slipshod connection method, ....something went very wrong! The way the picture shows it spewing out the top of the boiler, suggests pressure and a rapid release of it, to me anyway.

Whatever the reason was, he will have a very long time to think about it during his rehabilitation, if he survives.

....and it happened on a Friday the 13th, no less!

Here is an interesting link to download a podcast .mp3 of an interview with the reporter that was present during the event by whiskycast.com. The interview starts at 20:27 of the podcast.
http://whiskycast.com/wp-content/themes ... 140620.mp3" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

...or, if you prefer, you can visit the website at http://whiskycast.com/feed/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow ....and listen to it directly without downloading by clicking "download", and then "open", instead of "save".
It is Episode 484: June 20, 2014, near the bottom of the page.

[woodshed]

Having a still on or in any kind of vehicle is not permitted by the TTB. As much as I support the craft distilling world I hope the TTB pulls his permit as this reflects horribly on us all and makes the road to hobby legalization even rougher.

[Soggy Bottom Boy]

Having a still on or in any kind of vehicle is not permitted by the TTB. As much as I support the craft distilling world I hope the TTB pulls his permit as this reflects horribly on us all and makes the road to hobby legalization even rougher.

I suppose it all depends on the findings of any investigation into the event. The local fire marshal says they did not approve the use of open flame, but the owner of the company says that they did have permission to operate with open flame. If the owner had selective hearing, and assumed he had permission to operate in that manner, but was wrong, they may very well lose their permits.

In all probability, the industrial park they are situated in will give them the boot, as well. Hopefully, it will not affect the other distillery, Scissortail Distillery, that is also in the same complex.

[shadylane]

I noticed something else.
Look at the output from the worm, there are valves
If all of them are closed the pot would be unvented.

[woodshed]

I really do not think any "findings" are gonna make a difference. The fact that the still is on a forklift is all they need to shut him down. The aftermath of his protocol are just icing on the cake.

[NZChris]

That still was under pressure. A still wouldn't 'geyser' just because a gasket failed or a coupling broke, it takes a sudden pressure drop to make that happen.

[Bob Loblaw]

The video piece clearly shows them using Anheuser Busch kegs as part of their still. While he is talking about their copper still.

[Soggy Bottom Boy]

From what I can see from enlarging the photos(but the rez is not very good), the boiler looks to be, perhaps, the 26 gallon HBS "Big Bertha" with a 3/4" worm in a keggle flake stand, with some complicated plumbing at the end of the worm for rerouting output, with ball valves, to different places(one down near floor level, one to a gallon glass jug, and two others to a keg and a keggle) It is hard to tell if it is possible to create a totally closed system with the valves, or if there is a fail-safe, open to atmosphere vent anywhere. The valve that has the output to the glass jug is open, but perhaps after collecting fores, he shut it and forgot to open another valve. Only he knows for sure (or maybe doesn't).

Oh, ....and plastic funnels everywhere!

[cranky]

Maybe this should be put in the "What not to do" thread. I took the liberty of taking a few snips and blowing them up.

Notice the PTFE tape, looks like it was just slip jointed together and sealed with tape.

Exibit #2, Looks like you could very easily get all those valves closed at the same time

and this would happen.

Yes that is the distiller standing next to the still covered in hot alcohol right next to an open flame just before it flashed.
If this isn't everybody on here's worst nightmare I bet it ranks in the top 10.

[woodshed]

Every time I see this it makes me cringe. And saddens me to see this is acceptable within the industry.

[cranky]

Every time I see this it makes me cringe. And saddens me to see this is acceptable within the industry.

It has been kind of disturbing me since I first heard about it. It is a bad example by a supposed professional but it would be as bad an example for a home distiller, which is why I thought It would be a good idea to post the enlarged pictures for everyone to see clearly. I did a search a few days ago about this and stumbled across a similar incident a year ago also in Oklahoma where a guy was making brandy in his closed garage and blew it up. Last I read he was facing felony charges because of it. I hope everybody reads this and thinks about these instances when they run and it makes everybody more careful, even if it is just a little bit.