A lazy way to charge my still

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Maxximus Flavius
Swill Maker
Posts: 164
Joined: Wed May 15, 2013 6:01 am
Location: south west Canadia

A lazy way to charge my still

Post by Maxximus Flavius »

Because my boiler is on the small side of convenience, I need to do more than enough draining and recharging when doing an 80 liter stripping run. The Teflon seal between the pot and dome damages easily and it's just a PITA. As well, because I'm cheap, I make most of my own junk. Stainless fittings are available to me, but costly and a week or two lead time. My plan is to mount a 1/2" stainless ball valve to the bottom of the boiler to allow draining and recharging. Bulkhead fittings with Teflon seals would work. I decided to bolt a plate, tapped for a close nipple to the outside. Starting with a piece of stainless, I clamped and used a lever, in this case a piece of ABS, to start a freehand bend.
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Bend and check...
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...until it's perfect.
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Some Teflon tape folded several times and punched with a paper punch will seal the inside.
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A twisted Teflon tape/rope to seal between the plate and boiler.
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A push fit of the tubing is leak free. Using gravity as my friend, the plastic pail is mounted above or below the boiler, depending on the operation. I will remove the tubing between firings of the burner. As well, I have a stainless heat shield protecting the valve from direct flame when the heat is cranked bringing the contents to temperature.
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http://bit.ly/Maxxs_Bok
shining since 2013

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