Novice CM Still, looking for upgrade options

[UncleBuhlahkay]

Hello,

I’ve been lurking here for quite some time, reading and chasing every nuance down the rabbit hole. I’ve been refining my still components and washes bit by bit over the last several months and taking copious notes while doing so… and, I feel like the time has come to reach out and get some opinions on upgrade options.

Several years ago I purchased what is essentially a “Econ Pot or Reflux” kit from an online shop - basically pulled the trigger before I had done even a fraction of what I have currently researched! Life and kids and sports - well, needless to say, the device got shelved for a long while! Until… lately (as I imagine many of have had a bit more time on our hands, and have probably rekindled this art!)

It’s a basic el-cheapo “package”. The boiler is a 13 gallon “milk jug” with a decent wall thickness and excellent welds. 6500w stainless element driven by essentially an SCR with a fan and a digital output operated on a dedicated 240v 30a circuit. Has a thermowell for a boiler thermometer and a butterfly valve for ease of dumping the waste. The boiler currently has a 3” tri-clamp reduction on the snap on lid - but can be swapped to a 2” or a 4” for something like $40US.

The 3” column is 24” (600mm), and there is an accompanying sight glass on top, before the reflux portion of the head.

I place an immersion pump into a pool that I use to supply cooling water to the system (and return warm water to the pool!) The cooling lines are split so that the product condenser and reflux condenser each have their own supply for cooling water. The product condenser has a hefty ball valve that I typically run wide open. The reflux jacket has a hefty needle valve that I use to have finer control over the reflux.

Mash water source is either filtered city water, or collected from a friend’s artesian well. Mash is typically some derivation of FFV - kept at 85C for the ferment - generally starting at 1.065 and finishing at 0.990 - using DADY. Sometimes clarified with chitosan and kieselsol (bulk “super-kleer”), sometimes not (no noticeable difference using clarifying agents).

This still works really great, as is, for stripping runs. And it works pretty good for making a neutral… but pretty good is not anywhere good enough for what I would like to do - which is make a tasteless and odorless vodka… so that I can then begin to chase gin down the rabbit hole - which is my current end game! Essentially I get a very smooth, not-quite-right, spirit that the neighbors seem to enjoy.

After running it hard for the last several months I feel that no matter how I drive it… it is essentially a kind of a “jack of all trades, master of none” sort of still.

I think the boiler and associated power controller are adequate for my vodka/gin quest, but the head and the column seem suspect. Additionally, it's a real pain to store the "head" with the permanently connected product condenser - so I'm definitely interested in some form of upgrade...

When running a spirit run I’ll typically pack the entire 24” spool of the column with flat copper mesh rolled into bundles, and one in the reflux jacket of the head as well. I’ve mixed the packing up with raschig rings to the sight glass, copper and raschig, and most permutations thereof - from little to loads of packing.

It’s pretty easy to reflux this thing into getting a continuous 93 ABV (non temp corrected), and the compression of tails is pretty amazing and repeatable. However the heads seem a bit of a smear. I collect, without a parrot, 300ml per jar, apply coffee filters to the jars, and let them sit for sometimes up to a week… and I’m still not getting a tasteless or odorless spirit. I’ve tried carbon filtering the cuts. And, despite my best efforts, and a boatload of reading… I keep ending up with a very smooth, pretty high ABV, that just doesn’t taste quite right... and I think I'm really realizing there is a huge chasm between 93 ABV and azeotropic!

So, my current questions are:
Would it make sense to research a different column/head design?
To me, the boiler/power seem completely adequate, is that true?
Would another 12” or 24” of column spool make a significant difference?
Would investing in SPP be a wise choice when hunting for vodka?
Should I scrap everything from the sight glass up and get a dephlegmator and a shotgun condenser?
I have yet to use sodium carbonate on a spirit run - would that make a significant difference?
Am I just driving this thing wrong and need to try different techniques?
What is Martinizing, and why does it only take one hour?

The questions are really endless, but please let me say a hearty thank your for all the site contributions y’all have made to this magical art!

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