Well, I made my first coil last night and it looks really pretty. Only there are a few problems.
-It fits snug into the pipe and definitely makes contact along the wall. I used 1" pipe to wind the double coil. I did the math. 1/4" + 1/4 + 1 = 1 1/2. That'll fit great with 1/4" wiggle room. However I didn't figure that it would spring out and takeup nearly the whole 2".
-The coils are pretty tight. I figured that I'll be putting some copper mesh in there for good measure, but should I be concerned? I can run the inlet into the middle coil and out the outter to help.
What should I do? I'm certainly on a budget and picking up a set of 2x3" reducers and about a foot of 3" pipe to create some space or would it be ok to simply run it?
DW,
That is one of the prettiest coils I have seen, a thing of great beauty. If the coil touches the shell it just increases your chilled surface area, no worries, assuming there is enough room between the coils to allow vapor to come in contact with all that chilled surface.
Great workmanship! Just Sayin'
That thing is awesome. I bet it can knock down 11,000 watts with room to spare. If you ever get a larger diameter column in the 3"-4" range, your 2" boka head should work just fine on top.
Touching the column is not a problem as others have said. The coil is beautiful but it looks like you dont have any space between the windings. I would leave a little space between each coil for vapor to move and so the heat does not pass from coil to coil. It looks big enough to knock down a horse though. Pretty.
Last edited by Hound Dog on Sun Sep 27, 2015 2:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.
+1 Hound Dog
You made a schoolexample of a coil there..
Don't worry about the fact it will touch the walls of your column...
As Hound dog pointed out, you should get some spacing between the coils.
It will serve the purpose of a better thermal transfer between the coil and your vapours.
You can easily loosen the coil up, by twisting the space with a dull screwdriver (wrap it with a rag to prevent marks on your coil).
See mine here: http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... 87&t=52290
What column do you run..?
Good point Hound Dog and Danespirit. As is, I see the potential for increased vapor velocity due to the space restriction. Faster moving vapor has less time to interact with the heat exchanger.
However, will that be an issue for your 2" boka plans? I wouldn't bet on it. That coil is really long already.
That is a fine piece of art you made there. You will be amazed how well that coil will work with your Boka! Also, how little water you will need to knock down the vapor. But as Hound Dog stated, I would have left some space between your windings. Don't sweat it though it will do the job its intended for. Save that idea for the next one. I can assure you that won't be the last coil you will be making...........When I did mine I took Rad's idea and used #14 or 16 gauge wire as a guide and spacer. Good luck! Your on the right track and obviously have the skills to build a master piece.
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Deerhunter wrote:That is a fine piece of art you made there. You will be amazed how well that coil will work with your Boka! Also, how little water you will need to knock down the vapor. But as Hound Dog stated, I would have left some space between your windings. Don't sweat it though it will do the job its intended for. Save that idea for the next one. I can assure you that won't be the last coil you will be making...........When I did mine I took Rad's idea and used #14 or 16 gauge wire as a guide and spacer. Good luck! Your on the right track and obviously have the skills to build a master piece.
Thanks for the confidence. Using the wire sounds like a great idea. I'm sure I'll be making another one sometime. Live and learn.
