Aluminum pot?

[Butch50]

I have an old cast aluminum pressure cooker that I am using for a pot still. I have been watching for pitting and/or discoloring and neither has occured yet.

Just yesterday I cooked a large pot of very spicy (hence very acidic) chili in an aluminum pot, and never once worried about the aluminum leaching into the chili - which is a far more likely occurrence than having the aluminum morph into steam in my still.

I have several pots and pans of completely unknown metal, and a few of stainless steel and some of aluminum. I use cast iron a lot too - love to cook in cast iron because of the way it heats up and holds the heat evenly. Cast aluminum also heats and cooks evenly - I tried to cook my chili in a stainless steel pot once, and it scorched the bottom, stainless is a poor cooking material because it heats unevenly, unless it is very thick.

Never in all my days of cooking have I once worried that I was poisoning myself with metals from the cooking pots or pans or utensils. Just not something that worries me.

How many of you who are worried about aluminum stills threw away your aluminum cooking pots? If you are worried about aluminum poisoning, and that is definitely your right to worry, you are about a million times more exposed from cooking in aluminum than from distilling with it. Not to mention teflon coatings.

I have consumed an awful lot of beer out of aluminum cans, and soft drinks, and fruit juices too - way more dangerous than distilling in it don't you think? Never worried about it at all. I keep two or three aluminum drinking cups in my freezer, they are used for drinking milk. The frigid aluminum makes the milk just cold as all get out and that enhances the pleasure of drinking the milk, and never worried about it at all.

I use aluminum foil for a lot of different baking and wrapping uses, never worried about it coming in direct contact with my food. I bake bread in little aluminum loaf pans, and I bake turkey in big disposable aluminum pans.

If I was worried about aluminum as somed seem to be, I would have a real hard time eating in restaurants, not knowing how many aluminum products my food came in contact with. I would scourge my kitchen of all aluminum products, never drink out of aluminum cans, and avoid eating at my parents house.

Just my 2 cents worth, and no I have no vested interest in the aluminum industry, other than as an end user.

[stoker]

very spicy (hence very acidic)

is it?

I'm not pro or contra aluminium. But I've always doubted how much salt (anorganic) is brought over from boiler to distillate.

[Butch50]

very spicy (hence very acidic)

is it?

After doing a google search on the ph of peppers, it appears to be slightly acidic, averaging around a 5 or so. Add in onions in the 5 range and tomotaoes in the 4 range, and I believe you have an acidic food.

Here are a couple of related items I found whild doing the search:

There is no easy or inexpensive way to remove aluminum from tap water in the home. Steam distillation and a process called reverse osmosis are effective, but both processes require the purchase of expensive equipment and frequent maintenance.

Abstract
Aluminum is a nonessential metal to which humans are frequently exposed. Aluminum in the food supply comes from natural sources, water used in food preparation, food ingredients, and utensils used during food preparations. The amount of aluminum in the diet is small, compared with the amount of aluminum in antacids and some buffered analgesics. The healthy human body has effective barriers (skin, lungs, gastrointestinal tract) to reduce the systemic absorption of aluminum ingested from water, foods, drugs, and air. The small amount of aluminum (<1%) that is systemically absorbed is excreted principally in the urine and, to a lesser extent, in the feces. No reports of dietary aluminum toxicity to healthy individuals exist in the literature. Aluminum can be neurotoxic, when injected directly into the brains of animals and when accidentally introduced into human brains (by dialysis or shrapnel). A study from Canada reports cognitive and other neurological deficits among groups of workers occupationally exposed to dust containing high levels of aluminum. While the precise pathogenic role of aluminum in Alzheimer's disease (AD) remains to be defined, present data do not support a causative role for aluminum in AD. High intake of aluminum from antacid for gastrointestinal ailments has not been reported to cause any adverse effects and has not been correlated with neurotoxicity or AD. Foods and food ingredients are generally the major dietary sources of aluminum in the United States. Cooking in aluminum utensils often results in statistically significant, but relatively small, increases in aluminum content of food. Common aluminum-containing food ingredients are used mainly as preservatives, coloring agents, leavening agents, anticaking agents, etc. Safety evaluation and approval of these ingredients by the Food and Drug Administration indicate that these aluminum-containing compounds are safe for use in foods.

[defcon4]

You are correct Butch.

[grainhopper]

very spicy (hence very acidic)

is it?

I'm not pro or contra aluminium. But I've always doubted how much salt (anorganic) is brought over from boiler to distillate.

I have distilled seawater and the water had no salt in it. Cant use cooling water with salt.

[defcon4]

very spicy (hence very acidic)

is it?

I'm not pro or contra aluminium. But I've always doubted how much salt (anorganic) is brought over from boiler to distillate.

I have distilled seawater and the water had no salt in it. Cant use cooling water with salt.

This is true, desalination plants use r/o or distilling to remove salts from water/liquid

[nutmg1]

Are all beer kegs SS?

[Dnderhead]

I think all the new ones are haven't seen a aluminum in years

[nutmg1]

From the parent site.

Galvanised Metals
Tarvus explains ...
Galvanised materials are not safe to use on the condenser side, but if it's part of the boiler or at the bottom end of the column, it should be fine (provided you don't boil so vigorously that your wash bubbles up through your column and into your collecting container. Toxic salts from metals can be dissolved in liquid, but remain behind when the liquid is vaporized (as in a reflux column).

For example, you could toss a handful of lead fishing sinkers into your boiler which could well leach toxic levels of lead into the wash. But once the vapor runs through the column, it's free of the lead salts and safe. If you used lead based solder (or galvanized parts) in your CONDENSER, that would be a different story. The hot liquid condensate could leach lead salts from soldered joints or zinc from the galvanized parts and you would wind up with contaminated product.

Not that Defcon4's point wasn't already made. I was trying to figure out if I could use a galanized floor flange to join my column to a SS bowl and came across this.

[theholymackerel]

Don't use anythin' galvanised.

If yer sill spits or foams over you'll contaminate yer distillate.

Usin' galvanised parts in a still is about a safe as usin' lead parts... please don't do it, or suggest to others that they do it.

[amir42]

Any thing that has a higher density than water (1 gram/cubic centimeter) will stay in the mash and not end up in the column. As for aluminum boilers, Aluminum Hydroxide (density of 3.95 gram/cu centimeter) will never leave the boiler.

[Tater]

Unless it run to hard and pukes over .So its still bad idea to use anything that could be a problem.

[Prairiepiss]

And also structural integrity. Pitting of the aluminum can cause failures of a boiler. Sometimes without notice. I have a thread showing my aluminum pot I used for a mash pot. Sprung a leak from pitting. Pitting I didn't even notice till I saw it leaking while boiling some wash. If this had been a still. And the leak happened above the liquid level. I would have had alcohol vapors spewing out just above my propane burner. And not in a place we would normally look for leaks at. Like joints and matting surfaces.

And I would agree with Tater. Don't use anything that you wouldn't want to find in your product. It's the safest line of thinking. No mater how you look at it.

[babz70]

hey guys im new to this forum, but as i was reading along i figured id just voice my opinion on this topic.

i personaly have been making stuff for the past five years now (i know there are vets out there who think its just a spit in the bucket) but ive been using a 15 gallon aluminum keg for the last 3 years and it has produced the best tasting shine I've ever tasted so far. and it has never pitted nor has it ever turned black the worst its ever gotten was a little grayish dullness on the inside of the keg. honestly it doesnt bother me and i never taste a difference between acid washes or just some soap and water. also i have done a wide variety of washes for those who think its what im stilling i have used from corn, barley, and malt to apples, peaches, and blueberries. (peaches are to literally die for) just my opinion

oh and for anyone out there who is looking to upgrade from their pressure cooker i highly advise to consider getting a half beer keg of your choice, take the alve out (youtube how to disassemble keg its mad easy) and then buy this adapter http://www.milehidistilling.com/2-inch- ... o-keg-kit/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow its a great piece its all i use and from then all you need is a thumper a condenser and some silver solder.

HAPPY BREWING EVERYONE!!!!!!

[mah41]

I've used an aluminum pressure cooker for a year now and have made tons of shine in it. Aluminum pressure cookers are a good bit thicker than aluminum pots.

To answer the common criticisms of aluminum:

Pitting: I have seen not pitting in my aluminum boiler whatsoever, but this is probably because its a pressure cooker, they are made a lot thicker

Leeching out stuff: acidic washes just keep the aluminum clean, the owners manual even recommends scrubbing the inside with lemon juice and baking soda to keep it clean. As far as leeching out aluminum goes, well its going to stay in the pot. Heavy metals or any metals for that matter do not carry over into the steam, they stay in the pot. If you don't believe me, google distilling water.


All that being said, stainless steal is a superior metal, it is stronger and way more resistant to wear, much harder to drill or cut.

But I have had zero problems with my aluminum boiler, zero

I know i'm asking this 16 years later and you probably don't remmeber about this post but for cleaning, how did you cleaned the copper pipes? i believe vinegar run is a bad idea, heated acid and aluminum... how can i clean my aluminum still's copper pipes? aluminum was the only option i had for buying a still

[Deplorable]

He hasnt been active since 2008. I doubt hes going to see this. (with all the aluminum and lead solder, he's likely got Alzheimer's)

To answer your question, literally everyone on here uses vinegar, or hot backset to clean copper. give it a hot acid bath then rinse it well with tap water and let it air dry.

[mah41]

That's sad.

So just hot acid bath is enough, Thank you.

[still_stirrin]

That's sad.

So just hot acid bath is enough, Thank you.

viewtopic.php?p=7743450#p7743450

Read and heed.
ss

[Stonecutter]

In your predicament It’s definitely unfortunate or fortunate depending on how you look at it.

We suggest to put that aluminum pot aside for something else.

DON’T GIVE UP FRIEND

Keep searching. Hopefully you can find a safe boiler.

[Stonecutter]

Looks like Iran holds a beer record.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beer_in_Iran

Good luck mah41. Stay safe out there.

[mah41]

Looks like Iran holds a beer record.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beer_in_Iran

Yep, i think before the last revolution we had one of the best wines out there, there was the popular araq sagi liquor, the shiraz wines, now people buy non alcoholic beers, put sugar and bread yeast in them and done.

The art is gone.

Good luck mah41. Stay safe out there

Thank you kind sir, you too.