Running reflux column power question

[itsskin]

Hehehy!

After trying to make gin with store bought neutral I moved to making my own base Got a column like this:

Packed first part with copper mesh and did trial runs. Everything runs fine, but the question I can't answer is what power to run it. Using induction heater 2000W + 40L boiler. At 500W water flow in deflegmator @ 5 drops per minute can stop the production, so I'm forced to do super fine adjustments to water flow. Is it beneficial to rise the power, say, to 1500W and increase the flow to something more manageable? A trickle. Will more power/evaporation create more reflux action/increase purity? (Power consumption is not a concern)

Thx!!!

[still_stirrin]

...Will more power/evaporation create more reflux action/increase purity?

Yes.

[Saltbush Bill]

Firstly I think your trying to run with way to little power
Lets look at it from this angle, your stills dimentions appear to be very similar to those of a T500 made by Still Spirits, yours pretty much a chinese copy though it looks a little different.
They are both CMs "Cooling Management" stills.
The standard boiler that comes with a T500 has a 2000w element the later models I think have 1800w elements, these boilers run at full power all of the time, they have no controller.
A T500 boiler has a working capacity of 25L ...full almost to the top from memory they hold 28L.
Your boiler has 2000W and is 40L.
Going by those figures you should be able to run the full 2000W.
Ive never run a still like yours but have spent many hours fiddling with a T500.
Id start out with the water to the reflux condencer wide open " full reflux" and the boiler running as hard as it will.
If you can achieve full reflux at full power you should be able to work from there to get the still doing as you please.
Don't worry about temperatures, drive it by looking at the flow leaving the still .....if its too slow use less water ....that in turn will decrease reflux and increase output . If spirit is leaving the still to fast increase water flow to the reflux condencer, this in turn will increase reflux and decrease the speed that spirit leaves the still. Try for a steady dribble / broken stream through fores and heads.....increase to a very thin steady stream for hearts.
Hopefully that helps a little.

[bluefish_dist]

Power determines vapor speed which is a useful measurement in running a still. A good speed range is 15-20 ft/sec. For a 2” diameter and 20 ft/sec, the required power is about 1800w. If power is too high you will get more smearing as the vapor speed is too fast and drags the tails up the column. If it’s too low you can’t replenish what you are removing and the abv will decrease. This means you have to adjust the power to get a sweet spot with maximum abv and takeoff. For a 2” this will be around 1500-1800w. You should see the abv drop if you use too much power or not enough. Run it and see what works best.

[itsskin]

Perfect! Thank you for your advices. Will try today and report back.
P.S. Your answers mean using PID in such setup is meaningless. Jorge is wrong ))

[Saltbush Bill]

Jorge is wrong )

A lot of what George says is complete rubbish.....don't watch him at all is the best advice I can give you.

[GCB3]

P.S. Your answers mean using PID in such setup is meaningless.

Very perceptive. You, sir, are a quick study!

[itsskin]

So I did run it at 1700W and WOW! It was a pleasure to see this thing working as intended. Held it for 15 minutes in full reflux and slowly decreased the water flow. Temperature stabilised at 77.5C and stayed there for 2 hours. Compare this to "low power mode", when temperature was increasing slowly right from the start... The product is pure, no off flavours. Tails were compressed and were about 10% of the total run. Before - smeared around 50% of final product. Long story short - thx a million again!

[Saltbush Bill]

Good to see that it worked......now say 10 times...I won't watch or listen to George.
What was the ABV of the spirit leaving the still?
My guess 93% temp corrected.

[itsskin]

I won't listen to George again New video about filtering is up, btw

My tools can go only to 70abv, 70-up was broken during transportation I'll give an update when new one arrives. Took the result, diluted to 40abv, and did smell test next day. Zero flavor. On par with commercial neurals. I'm starting to question if 600mm column extension that is coming is really needed...

[Saltbush Bill]

I'm starting to question if 600mm column extension that is coming is really needed...

It wont hurt , it will just result in you being able to use more power, possibly faster take off speed and a cleaner product.

[bluefish_dist]

Extra height never hurts for doing a neutral. As stated above it will be cleaner and have a faster output when you make it taller.

[charcoal]

I have the same still but I made some modifications to it.

If it is from Dibosh then you can move swap the top 2 elbows so that the thermometer goes to the Product Condenser size. The thermometer is fitted using a sticky tape so it will come off in few hours. I fixed it to the condenser where it is cooler. I broke off the steel strip as well because it is very sharp.

You can replace the bottom part with this https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32878968057.html so the distillate does not pool in it when making cuts.