Any advice with this reflux still?

[Zacher]

I have a very similar set up with the sight glass. I ran yesterday and found that if I keep the needle valve full out on the column, my temp dives and cannot recover. The boiler is at 195 and the temp at the top of the column drops rapidly. I slowed it down to where I could get the temp back up and it ran very well. Just wondering if anyone with this rig has a similar experience and how you handled it?

[OlympicMtDoo]

I must have missed something, what rig do you have?

[Salt Must Flow]

I have a very similar set up with the sight glass. I ran yesterday and found that if I keep the needle valve full out on the column, my temp dives and cannot recover. The boiler is at 195 and the temp at the top of the column drops rapidly. I slowed it down to where I could get the temp back up and it ran very well. Just wondering if anyone with this rig has a similar experience and how you handled it?

I'm assuming you have the same/similar CM design shown in the very first post. If you fully open the needle valve which supplies water to the dephlegmator, that should knock down/condense virtually all rising vapor. The vapor temp on the very top will surely drop because very little to no vapor is getting past the dephlegmator. If you begin closing the needle valve in increments and allow some time between increments, eventually it will allow some vapor to slip through the dephlegmator, your vapor temp will begin to rise and product will begin exiting the product condenser.

I wish I had a recommended power for you to operate your boiler at (at least as a baseline to start), but I've never used a 2" with that configuration. Operating a CM still like this is about the power input to the boiler then it's just a matter of adjusting the water flow to the dephlegmator which acts 'like a clutch' ... it allows vapor to stop, slip through and the amount of vapor varies by how you adjust the dephlegmator.

It is important that your water supply to the dephlegmator is consistent in both flow rate & pressure (ideally temp too) otherwise the dephlegmator can behave erratically/unstable.

Nevermind exactly what the temps are, just learn to drive the dephlegmator. Learn how to get product exiting the still and varying the take-off rate by operating the dephlegmator.

[Zacher]

Thanks Salt. Excellent advice that I will use next run.....

[Jabman]

I have a very similar set up with the sight glass. I ran yesterday and found that if I keep the needle valve full out on the column, my temp dives and cannot recover. The boiler is at 195 and the temp at the top of the column drops rapidly. I slowed it down to where I could get the temp back up and it ran very well. Just wondering if anyone with this rig has a similar experience and how you handled it?

Like SMF said, you control your reflux with valve that goes to dephlegmator. You need steady flow and water temperature. If you full open this valve, it means that all is returned to column (and obvious there is no vapor output). You may want to read this thread: viewtopic.php?t=6151

VM is much more forgiving on this, that why I changed my setup to that.

Hope you have added also extension on this. 20" is not much. My column is now 40", with 50% lava rocks and 50% aqvarium stones, it gives nice 95% ABV with not much tweaking etc.

[Zacher]

Good thread Jabman. It came with copper mesh packing but I need to research lava rocks.

[Poitín Sue]

I'm currently putting together the various bits and pieces necessary to run this setup. Could I ask if the sight glass does anything other than provide a guide or entertainment.....does it improve purity etc?

[Sporacle]

It will show you that the RC is returning product to the column, its nice to look at and will give you a sense of what is happening while you are learning to run your still.
While you watch it take note of the heat on the outside of the RC, the heat in the bottom top and middle of the column. Take note of the sound the boiler is making as well.

[Salt Must Flow]

I'm currently putting together the various bits and pieces necessary to run this setup. Could I ask if the sight glass does anything other than provide a guide or entertainment.....does it improve purity etc?

In the configuration in the photo above, the sight glass just allows you to see the falling reflux. IF the column floods, you'll see it in there too. Other than that, I can't think of anything else it does for you. I operated for quite a while before I bought a sight glass. I appreciate it. It's pretty cool to actually see the vapor initially rise up through the sight glass. It's like blurry fumes initially (refraction I think) then the vapor becomes invisible. Immediately after you can see reflux starting to fall. At lower power, you'll see less reflux in comparison to operating at higher power (more reflux).

[Zacher]

I'm currently putting together the various bits and pieces necessary to run this setup. Could I ask if the sight glass does anything other than provide a guide or entertainment.....does it improve purity etc?

In the configuration in the photo above, the sight glass just allows you to see the falling reflux. IF the column floods, you'll see it in there too. Other than that, I can't think of anything else it does for you. I operated for quite a while before I bought a sight glass. I appreciate it. It's pretty cool to actually see the vapor initially rise up through the sight glass. It's like blurry fumes initially (refraction I think) then the vapor becomes invisible. Immediately after you can see reflux starting to fall. At lower power, you'll see less reflux in comparison to operating at higher power (more reflux).

+1. I have only run mine 3 times now but I very much appreciated seeing my column flood because I heated up my wash too fast. It is also cool to see the falling reflux. I had the valve to the dephlegmator opened too much and you could see everything falling back in to the pot. It helped to see how much to shut it down to get the proper vapor management.

[Poitín Sue]

Thank you gents. It sounds like a useful addition.
I've done a dozen or more runs with the t500....no flooding that I'm aware of so far. The instructions say always use distillers conditioner (I use olive oil or butter) and ceramic boil enhancers.....little bits of ceramic that lie in the bottom of the boiler.....do these offer much protection?

[Saltbush Bill]

If you've used and learned to run a T500 reflux you won't get much benift from having a sight glass ......you've already learned enough to be able to run without one......unless your keen on spending extra money I wouldn't worry about it.
Sight glasses on reflux stills are a very recent thing.......everybody learned quite easily to run without them until then.

[still_stirrin]

...everybody learned quite easily to run without them until then.

+1. “Crutches are for cripples”. There are no sight glasses on any of my stills. If you’ve got money to waste on them, then there probably is other equipment of more value to the process.

I don’t even have a thermometer on my reflux stillhead. OK, so I did use one on the head and the water outlets when I first built the still. But, I only used them for 3 or 4 runs. Now, I use my fingers to tell me how it’s running. Experience completely negates the need. Sure, head temperature is an interesting data point, but not needed to make good neutral.

But, to each their own. Sight glasses won’t make any better product … fact!
ss

[Poitín Sue]

Oh man. So sight glasses are mostly just cool then....and definitely not absolutely necessary, but occasionally useful.
Bubble plates also catch my eye- and I think I seem to half remember hearing some Irish distiller saying that some Irish distillers claims of 'triple distilled" might actually mean a stripping run and then a second run with a bubble plate included?

[Saltbush Bill]

Many don't bother to strip if using multiple plates.
It could be argued that wash once through 3 plates is triple distilled.

[Jabman]

Many don't bother to strip if using multiple plates.
It could be argued that wash once through 3 plates is triple distilled.

Interesting, how about running wash straight reflux? Is it worth to test?

Updated my stuff, now fill is ssp and copper spiral. Not runned yet, but soon hopefully. Have around 15 liters once pot stilled stuff waiting (40-50% ABV)

Poland company, forgot name, but it was cheap, bargain. Was cheap charlie and took cheapest delivery, it took "months". Do not make same mistake.

[Salt Must Flow]

Many don't bother to strip if using multiple plates.
It could be argued that wash once through 3 plates is triple distilled.

Interesting, how about running wash straight reflux? Is it worth to test?

Updated my stuff, now fill is ssp and copper spiral. Not runned yet, but soon hopefully. Have around 15 liters once pot stilled stuff waiting (40-50% ABV)



Screenshot_158.png



Poland company, forgot name, but it was cheap, bargain. Was cheap charlie and took cheapest delivery, it took "months". Do not make same mistake.

After doing proper cleaning runs to clean the SPP, I would test it as it is intended to be used by doing a Spirit Run using your Low Wines.

Sure you can try doing a single run with a wash, but you will always get cleaner results by stripping and doing a spirit run regardless what type of packing is used.