liquid collecting in my thumper during a run...why?

Simple pot still distillation and construction with or without a thumper.

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wmautrey
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liquid collecting in my thumper during a run...why?

Post by wmautrey »

I have a twenty gallon pot still, but I only run fifteen gallons. My thumper is dry at the beginning of a run, but at the end of the run, the thumper collects 1/2 a gallon of liquid. Sometimes 0 proof and sometimes 30 proof. Is there a problem with the design of the thumper keg?, size, what else could be causing this?
Metalking00
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Re: liquid collecting in my thumper during a run...why?

Post by Metalking00 »

That's what they do. The vapor from your boiler will condense in the thumper, and will then be heated by the hot vapor until a second distillation happens. That leaves behind what doesnt make it into your final product. Usually people will fill the thumper about 1/3 full of something (water, fresh wash/wort) to facilitate this from the start. Since you aren't putting anything in there in the beginning, its taking some time to fill itself up by condensing on the walls. Its important to note that its not advised to fill it up past 1/3-1/2 in the beginning because it will get more full as time passes,.

By leaving it dry you're missing the point a bit, I think. I don't use a thumper, and I'm sure someone else will come in with a better answer, but maybe you should read some threads on thumper use.
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BlueSasquatch
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Re: liquid collecting in my thumper during a run...why?

Post by BlueSasquatch »

Doesn't sound like an issue to me, but can you explain to me, what the purpose of your thumper is?
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Re: liquid collecting in my thumper during a run...why?

Post by StillerBoy »

What ever happen since the info provided to you back in 2017.. you then used a thumper, and now you don't..

by wmautrey » Sat Sep 09, 2017 8:26 am
The next glass three liter container is 100 proof. I usually get one more three liter container but it is between 50-70 proof. Which I put in my thumper on the next run.

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Chauncey
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Re: liquid collecting in my thumper during a run...why?

Post by Chauncey »

Is that enough to reach yer thump spear outlet and make it thump? If you're trying to run w a dry thump and/or it doesnt reach the bottom of the spear then take it off entirely so you aren't heating that metal wasting energy and in the second case wasting liquor
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bcook608
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Re: liquid collecting in my thumper during a run...why?

Post by bcook608 »

wmautrey wrote: Mon Sep 26, 2022 5:55 am I have a twenty gallon pot still, but I only run fifteen gallons. My thumper is dry at the beginning of a run, but at the end of the run, the thumper collects 1/2 a gallon of liquid. Sometimes 0 proof and sometimes 30 proof. Is there a problem with the design of the thumper keg?, size, what else could be causing this?
Your first problem is having a dry thumper to begin with. The whole purpose of having a thumper is to have it charged and providing a second distillation of your product. The thumper is SUPPOSED to collect liquid as the distillate enters, reboils, and exits leaving more of the water and undesirables behind...
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Yonder
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Re: liquid collecting in my thumper during a run...why?

Post by Yonder »

You should begin with abt 1/3d charge in the thumper. I prefer to charge with clean feints from previous runs cut down to 30 or so abv but you can always use low wines, same as your boiler charge. The thumper’s purpose is to redistill what comes from the boiler. I routinely begin output in the low 80’s, run like hell until the fores start then cut back to get a thin stream that takes abt 15 min to fill a pint jar. At 40 abv or so I fire it up agin and run like hell to the 20’s or 30 for new feints. But that’s just me.
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