Prairiepiss's Modular CM, VM, LM pisser build

[emptyglass]

You might need one of these for doing the yeast and some copper line pick ups.

[Prairiepiss]

That's exactly what I want. I know where I can get a body. But I have nowhere to put it and or build it. I've got the steel for the frame. A flathead 8 a full LP fuel system. And a bunch of odds and ends. But I don't think the trailer park would like me building it in the front yard. God I need a real house with a garage/shop.

[Easy E]

As I view the many home-built stills prestited on this site and compare with the LM column I have (still working on posting pics, I promise), I am inspired by your ingenuity and your patience. I think we all may be learning from your posts. I have little experience with soldering copper, but now I feel the need to get out the hammer, torch, and a box of Band-Aids for the weekend.
That shotgun condenser is super cool!

[Usge]

Nice work P.

Quick question for you: are you running the cooling for reflux condensor from the output condensor? Or do you have separate (ie., cold) lines coming in for each?

[Prairiepiss]

Usge at first I was running the outlet of the shotgun to the reflux. Now I have a Tee with two valves one for each condenser. I have a ball valve for the shotgun and a needle valve for the reflux. This makes it so much easier to control.

Easy E I have gone through a few band aids.

And this new interest in my build thread got me to look back through it. I noticed I never fully explained all the built in functions of my shotgun condenser. I will take a few pics and share what I have forgotten to show you all.

[Prairiepiss]

Ok I incorporated a few things into the shotgun condenser that I never showed you all.
Fist one is my gin basket. Or what I refer to as the double ot flavor shell. I left space in the upper part of the 3" case that my basket can slide into. I made the easy flange so it sets a little higher then the 3" case. Leaving a recess for the basket lip to sit in when its clamped to the still. I haven't fitted the basket to the recess yet. And I need to cut the handle down. But I haven't used it yet. When I go to use it I will finish it.

Second one is my integrated parrot atmosphere vent. I needed a vent so the parrot wouldn't vapor lock the still. And I didn't want to have a vent line running on the outside. So I ran a 1/4" pipe down through one of the 3/8" vapor tubes drilled a hole in the wall of the case above the condenser portion and soldered it in that hole.I had some problems with this to begin with. But now have it worked out. At first the lower section just came out of the vapor tube and was cut off. The problem was the condensed liquid would run down it and form its own vapor lock over the end of the tube. Causing it to gurgle. I flared the end of the tube so the liquid would be routed away from the opening. And no more gurgling.

Here are some pics. Glad I took it apart. Apparently I didn't get it rinsed out food last run. So now I need to clean it.

[Prairiepiss]

Sorry for the crappy pics.

[Odin]

Where will your gin basket sit, Mr P? In the vertical column part of a pot still? Or in an vm/lm build, under the take off point? Looks like it can hold some 250 mls, correct? Now that is a nice size.

[Prairiepiss]

It's in the top of my shotgun product condenser. So it is in the vapor path just before the condenser.

Never checked how much it will hold. So I just did. It holds 1 1/4 cup filled to the top. So probably 1 cup would be a good working amount.

[Odin]

Great Mr. P! You can make a very clear gin now, using your VM or if you run it like a pot still with falling abv, you can get a more complex product. Love the place you choose. Now I don't now, but if you are so modular that you have a vm off take on one side with the basket above the condenser and maybe an LM take off at the other side ... you could bleed off fores/heads as by LM, then switch to VM and gin basket ...

Odin.

[Prairiepiss]

At this point I only have the CM setup going. I haven't put the VM and LM heads together yet. So for now all I can do is CM or pot still. Rest will come after I get room and time to work on it. I've been happy enough with what I have. And still finding new and better ways to run what I have. So I really haven't been in a hurry to finish the rest.

[Prairiepiss]

[emptyglass]

That should be good.

This thing will be as flash as a rat with a gold tooth.

[Prairiepiss]

That should be good.

This thing will be as flash as a rat with a gold tooth.

I need to build it a grill.

OOOOO you just gave me one hellava idea for a build.

Here's another pic to think about.

[Prairiepiss]

Hmmm I'm so ready to get into the new house. So I can get some work done.

[Prairiepiss]

I have had a lot of inquiries about my heating elements and controller setup as of lately. So I figured I would post a rundown of what and why's.

I opted to go with the 110v setup because of one main reason. I didn't have good access to 220v to run my still. I currently live in a mobile home. Not much room. Less room to be stealthy. So I opted to go 110v. Cost was another factor. The Harbor Freight controller was $17.99. Had to at least try it. And simplicity plug and play. So I thought. But found out later not a good idea with this controller. More on that in a bit.

Ok on to my current setup. I have 2 5500w 220v elements mounted in my 15.5 gal keg. One is a straight one and the other one is of the wavy type. I mounted the lower one as low as I could in the keg. Taking into account it is the wavy one and needs a wider path to be screwed in. The upper one is just above it so to give me enough clearence that they won't touch. With this mounting configuration it takes approx 5 gallons to just cover the elements. So 6 gallons is what I figure for the minimum amount of water that needs to be in the boiler to run both elements. And keep them covered.

I chose the 5500w 220v elements for a few reasons.
Upgradability for a later date. No need to change them out to changeover to 220v.
Size to heat input ratio. The longer the element the more the heat will be spread out over the length of it. Less likely to scorche any suspended solids.
The wattage was close to what I wanted. And safe to run on a single 15amp circuit. Approx 1375w @ 110v each element.

Now the controller. Like I said I thought it mite be a plug and play thing. But what I found was the unit wasn't built for long extended continued use. Because the supplied heatsink or lack of one. So I took the advice of Rad and Mulekicker and added the larger heatsink. And after many runs I was glad I did. As hot as the heatsink gets. I can't imagine what it would be like without it. It gets quite warm ok HOT. If the factory cover plate was to be used it would over heat rather quickly. And cause it to fail either burn the chip up. Or cause the whole thing to meltdown.

I run the controller on only one element. There is no need for two controllers. If you want 0w to 1375w just run the one element and controller. If you want 1375w to 2750w switch on the second element. I use both elements for heatup and reflux mode. I switch off on element for pot still mode.

Safety precautions.
If using two separate elements like this. They must be plugged into separate circuits. That are supplied by separate circuit breakers. One circuit can't handle the amp draw of two elements. This could overheat the circuit and pop the CB. Or worse start a fire at a resistance area of that circuit. I can't stress this enough. Do not run on the same circuit.

Other precautions about the router speed controller. The on off switch switches the neutral leg of the 110v circuit. This means the output plug is connected to the hot leg at all times. So if touching the backing plate or heatsink if modded and touching the output terminal. You will get shocked. I don't like the fact they switched the neutral instead of the hot. But not much we can do about that. The best thing to do is switch the unit off. And unplug it from the wall first. Then unplug the element.

Reminders When connecting the elements make sure to have the earth ground connected to the boiler. And if at all possible GFCI circuits should be used.

Edited to add. You can read more about it here in this thread I started about it.
http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... =2&t=27967

[Prairiepiss]

Love your balls


Oh shit did I say that in public

I spit my pop all over the bed.

[Prairiepiss]

Ok guys and girls. I finally got a little time to play around and get my new shop area cleaned up a bit. Decided to unbox some parts so I could organize them. Got the torch all hooked up and ready to roll.

So in the spirit of NASCAR being in town this weekend.

Boogidy Boogidy let's get building boys.

I only have a few parts here to work with. And I'm still missing a box of triclamps? Maybe I can get something built out of them?

[LWTCS]

Jesus H. Christmas Piss,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Got some $$$ sittin on that bench.
Mind you don't get knocked on yer coconut by some crack head then they abscond with your booty.

[blind drunk]

An orgy of materials ...

[Prairiepiss]

They gota get through the door first Larry.

I found my other box. Now I can get down to business.

[Prairiepiss]

Didn't get as much done as I wanted to. And the wife got me going to a friends house for dinner. But man I'm loving this workshop thing. Just got to get my layout worked out. Still fumbling around it. Here's some pics of todays work.

8" ball cut in half.

8" ball cut in half.

Plate cut out.

[Prairiepiss]

More.

Fitting plate to ball.

Bubble cap mockup in ball.

Plate drilled and straightened burrs cleaned up.

[Prairiepiss]

More.

Drilled plate in ball.

Bubble caps cut.

Cut bubblecaps in the ball.

That's it for today. But now with the little shop. I can work on it whenever I want. Not like before working on the front porch.

[Poitín Paddy]

PP, love watching your builds. Envious of the supplies you've collected over time. Looking forward to how things come together and seeing your results.

As a side note, On multiple occasions I have noticed how even some of the most experienced on this forum are quick to ask for input from others, and don't seem to get too bent out of shape when they receive constructive criticism. Just one lesson learned by this newB.

[LWTCS]

That's a good observation Paddy.....Always helpful to get some additional perspective. Especially when the perspective is in alignment with the parts on one's work bench.

[Prairiepiss]

I'm always happy to hear a suggestion or two. I'm usually pretty stuck in my ways. But I will listen who knows it mite just be the thing I needed to hear. I've been bouncing ideas off of LWTCS and Rockchucker22 like crazy. They have been a big help with the planning.

I am living this shop thing. Spent all night down here. Got a little bit done.

Got the bubble caps all cut and soldered to the upcomers. They are 1.5" caps on 1" upcomers. I cut out tabs at the top of the upcomers and left three tabs to mount the caps to. I bent the tabs over and marked the caps where they were. Then drilled holes in the top of the caps. So I could solder them together through the holes. Nothing really spectacular.

[Prairiepiss]

More.

Couple of them on the plate. Soldering them to the plate will be tommaros project.

[Prairiepiss]

Oh and I got the hole drilled in the bottom half of the ball for the column mount. Will need to cut my 2" and flare it so I can solder it in it. Maybe tommaro too?

[fullhouse]

liking the build Mr P...and im lovin ur shop also mmmmm copper p0rn!