Home Distiller

Hello all Iam new to the Hobby I got a 2peice 40in colume 8gal boiler reflux still i got from Mile hi distillers. I recently did a run with 5 gal of 15%ABV Mash and was only able to get 3 pints of finished product which came clear and had 180proof punch. is this about what i can expect or have i did something wrong. Also what kinda of pump so i be using now Iam using a sump pump that puts out about 1550GPH is this to muck or not

There was a total of 3 quarts of 100% in the boiler. You got 3 pints of 90%, it depends on what you stopped collecting at but you lost (or missed) alot of ethanol on that run. Have you done a leak check on the thing? Your pump's a little overkill depending on the condenser also. A submersible aquarium pump would be adequate on most condensers but your will work. If you have a valve to control the cooling it might burn it up though without having full flow, those pumps aren't designed to run with alot of back pressure on them.

If for whatever reason you use a larger pump than necessary it is best to put in a bypass so excess water is returned to tank not just shutting it off
saves on the pump.

3 Qts Holy S@## I Did something really wrong I mean I just quit putting out at three pints I didnt see any steam I guess I will have to keep trying untill I get it Right I am still learning about reflux I read That you should start refluxing at 60 degree is this right and also just what does refluxing do?

Read, read, read, birdass - Read, read, read... Start out by reading the parent site, using the static menu, three times... Yep, three times... First time might or might not make much sense, but will seem overwhelming... Second time through it will start making sense, but will also raise questions you didn't have enough knowledge to know to ask about before... The third time through, things will start to gel in the gray matter and you'll start connecting the dots... Then you can go back and look for more answers and come back here for answers you can't find there... Until till then you're just wasting your and, more importantly, our time with disparate questions and answers that don't congeal into anything substantial... You've gotta do the time and reading like everyone else has.. There's no free lunch here... You need to know the WHY behind the answers, not just the answers, and those answers might be like an onion skin - many layers deep...

rad14701 wrote:Read, read, read, birdass - Read, read, read... Start out by reading the parent site, using the static menu, three times... Yep, three times... First time might or might not make much sense, but will seem overwhelming... Second time through it will start making sense, but will also raise questions you didn't have enough knowledge to know to ask about before... The third time through, things will start to gel in the gray matter and you'll start connecting the dots... Then you can go back and look for more answers and come back here for answers you can't find there... Until till then you're just wasting your and, more importantly, our time with disparate questions and answers that don't congeal into anything substantial... You've gotta do the time and reading like everyone else has.. There's no free lunch here... You need to know the WHY behind the answers, not just the answers, and those answers might be like an onion skin - many layers deep...

You've read the home site 3 times but you're still making wash out of baby ceareal and claiming it as earth shattering. You don't know enough to be chastising someone else for their lack of knowledge.
"best keep your mouth shut and thought a fool, than to open it and remove all doubt" - unknown

violentblue wrote:You've read the home site 3 times but you're still making wash out of baby ceareal and claiming it as earth shattering. You don't know enough to be chastising someone else for their lack of knowledge.

Not "earth shattering" - merely "easy"... The recipe you are referring to is meant to help novices get going without a lot of the fuss they end up encountering when they jump in and start with turbos... They are also better suited for my current living conditions in an apartment... Perhaps you should give it a try yourself, if for no other reason than to validate or invalidate the "easy" part...

I won't get into a pissing match with you but your comments were totally uncalled for... I've been doing this, on and off, for over 30 years and made a lot of both wine and hooch without help from the internet... I learned by making more than a few mistakes along the way, too... And I still spend time on the parent site on a regular basis myself, just to see if I can cull anything more out of what's there... If you have a better plan of action for gaining a wealth of knowledge about the craft, other than my advice, do share... No one was being chastised and don't recall anyone mentioning that they thought they were... The same advice has helped other novices which is why I, and others, give it every now and again...

rad14701 wrote:
I've been doing this, on and off, for over 30 years and made a lot of both wine and hooch without help from the internet...

Really?

Have you really been distilling for over 30 years?

punkin wrote:

rad14701 wrote:
I've been doing this, on and off, for over 30 years and made a lot of both wine and hooch without help from the internet...

Really?

Have you really been distilling for over 30 years?

Yes... Really... Started when I was in my teens, like several others here, as part of a family venture... I've been drawn back into it and then distracted away again several times... But I don't need to defend these facts anyway... No need trying to stir things up and drift further off topic...

rad14701 wrote:No need trying to stir things up and drift further off topic...

I agree with that line in WHOLE. No need to continue this beyond this post. It can stop now.

H.

School colors and bad temper,

violentblue wrote:You don't know enough to be chastising someone else for their lack of knowledge.

Chastising? I didn't get that at all. Do you know Rad personally?

Seems to me Rad does a better job than most trying to help folks more often than not.

The cereal recipes work, they are easy and they render. Perhaps the traditional gents find these washes too basic? But I have read several times in the past where an experienced gent has recommended a cereal recipe.

I have enjoyed the majority of your posts, but this one seems like your just looking for conflict.

Sorry Husker. I know you Gents do a good job of keeping things on the straight and narrow.

I just ask for advice and i got it iwill read I didnt want to start a pissing match here

birdass wrote:I just ask for advice and i got it iwill read I didnt want to start a pissing match here

this particular pissing match was going on long before you came here.

I don't know who pissed in yer Cheerios, but yer bein' asked to stop a second time, Violent Blue. I think a warnin' is in order.

Hi first time poster

I don't really want to take this thread off track but Dnderheads quote got me thinking

Dnderhead wrote:If for whatever reason you use a larger pump than necessary it is best to put in a bypass so excess water is returned to tank not just shutting it off
saves on the pump.

I will be moving to a house that will be using a large pressure pump, would i need a bypass before my 1/4" condenser or is this only for pumps without a pressure switch?

In the context that Dunder was talking yes. You still should always be mindful of you well's pump though, especially if it's your only source of water there. 1/4" isn't going to let alot of volume through it but it is still enough to keep your pump kicking on and off a good bit. Assess the situation and see if you'd be more comfortable putting in a recirculating system with its own pump when you get settled. Especially if you'll be doing alot of long runs. Either way it'll use electricity so it's just a matter of wear and tear on your main well.

there's a couple ways that I have not seen on hear is 1) gravity feed ,fill a barrel mounted higher than still, gravity feed water threw condenser
into another barrel, when cooled pump back with sump pump. (pump whould not be running constantly/ no running pump when distilling)
another way that mite work if in a remote location (no electric/limited water)is thermal siphon.either way mite work with liebig condenser
and save water.

Good ideas Dunder. The gravity feed would work well for those without a pressure activated pump or a high volume low pressure type pump.

I will look into the gravity feed or a seperate pump than the one that runs the house hold.

Thanks