Home Distiller

So im new to the still world and am trying to decide what still is the best to build first? i am a licenced plumber and a certified welder/metal fabricator. So the building complexity of the still is not an issue as much as what type i sould build & size and specific demensions of the parts....... I was going to build a Valved Reflux, I have several heavy wall 5-8gal stainles milk cans that taper in torwards top i was going to make my boiler out of. i was gonna use 2.5in copper for collum, dont know how tall collum should be? and how far below top cap the tee should be going over to my 3" double coiled condenser? how long the pipe from tee to condenser should be? i see alot of people are building the BOKAKOB still? i prefer the complex of the reflux & its looks but like i said im new here. i want to produce 190 proof super smooth shine. i have a big thing also for lemmon & apple flavours i will build manny stills after i get sumthn rolling first & i will be sure to post pic's of them. i would like to build and sell stills @ a REAL price too!! i see what some of these guys charge and to me for what ya get is ALOT! i see some selling in the $8,000 range granted those are beautiful copper stills but hell for half that with a little direction i will build those all day long, copper is spendy but i get a wicked deal pipe,fittings and everything else. THANK you all for the great info you have.

Check out the still poll for some more insight.

Sometimes simple is better. I know you won't have any difficulty with building either design, but you also have to consider pros and cons of how each will run. Most say that the Bok is easier to run. That said, if you choose the offset head design, the top cap needs to be close to the tee as thats where your thermometer probe will go and you need to be close to the vapor flow. I think just a short stub over to the condenser tee will do it too. Good luck. V

Swamp Yankee Stiller wrote:i would like to build and sell stills @ a REAL price too

I think you should build and run your own still first before getting into manufacturing, and learn about the different types and how they run, there's a bit more involved than just bopping a few tubes together and hoping for the best.

OD

Thanks vrider,
thats what i tought as far as cap @ top of col. but just wanted to be sure b4 i build this still. i take alot of pride in my work and just want to make it rite the first time, then run it a few tims and build another. Thanks again, any other help and info is greatly appriciated.

Thanks olddog for your input,
I do plan on building and testing multiple stills b4 i start to build and sell. IM NOT one of those people who slaps a few pipes togeather doesent test the product and try' to sell it to people telling them it works awsome!! Like i said I take alot of pride in my work & i understand what goes into working with metals and its not easy, and its real hard for people with no skills in that field. Thats why i would like to help others out in geting a real nice product thats tested and works for a real price. Thanks again olddog.

There's more to it than just being a good at building things... You also need to have enough experience under your belt to know whether or not you have a good design that is worthy of someone else buying... There are enough wannabe still sellers out there already who don't know enough to offer a good product or possess the knowledge to support their product... If you haven't been successfully distilling for several years with a variety of recipes then you're not ready to dive into commercial still building... You'll get called out in a hurry if you offer up inferior products, trust me... The last thing we need is one more person managing to give the hobby/craft a bad reputation...

To be honest, it sounds like you're more interested in trying to make a buck than to learn about and practice the fine art of home distillation...

Rad14701,
New York eh.. not far from me as the crow flies.
Rad thanks for your input i was a lil let down by your comments tho, I understand your interests in protecting others from getting ripped off by novice distillers, although im here to learn about stilling not stealing a buck from someone. I grew up a tough life was on my own @ 16 & TRUST me i been ripped off plenty, I greatly appriciate the help I get from people and always repay the people or others in return one way or another and/or with the knowledge I learn. Seein how I get outta the back woods a few times a year and go down past NY maybe i could leave ya a sample of my product behind a mile marker sign 4 ya. I have the determination and am willing to learn everything I can about distilling and want to be able to make a great product. All i need is a little help from you pro's. I read for hours every night in here, lots of great info im taking in waiting for the right time when i feel comfortable to get something goin. I respect all you masters out there, As a Free Brother Mason should.
THANKS MUCH!!
&
"REMEMBER WHERE YOU STARTED"

No harm intended, Swamp Yankee Stiller...

Merely stating it the way I read it... We're not all that fond of people coming here merely looking to learn enough to make a buck... It happens several times a year... Considering how many of us would like to make home distillation legal it doesn't help to have any negative press, so to speak... Touching down hot and heavy, making comments about building and selling hardware, while still asking basic questions, just doesn't sit well with some folks...

If you've spent any time at all checking out the stills on eBay you should be aware of the amount of inferior product being listed by less than knowledgeable sellers... It's obvious that there's more than enough junk out there... Anyone can toss together junk... I doubt that you want to be a member of that crowd...

Once you've got ample experience with the entire process, and gain the trust of the membership, feel free to advertise your wares in the classified ad's section... Jumping in head first in your first post simply doesn't read well, if you understand where I'm coming from...

Good luck...

Thanks rad.....
I appriciate the respond, & yes i agree there is alot of junk out there. I def. understand all of your and other peoples points of views of new hacks scaming others, not my intent or what im doing here. Anything i do is mainly for my personal use and for close buddys to try, I want to do the right thing. Thanks again, & I have a question for ya what type or types of stills do you operate? im not looking to build something huge just nice & effi. maybe a few gal. per run? whats normal gatherings from say a 10 gal. boiler???? is that big enough i got 4 stainless milk cans from a local old time farmer that are approx. 10 gal each. Or are those even worth the time to mess around with?

You're set if you have 4 - 10 gallon milk cans... Wish I had just one... I'm currently in the process of gathering parts for a 26 liter boiler to drive a 1.5" Bokakob... I had to scale down to 8 liters for my small scale apartment rig but I think I can handle the increase in size... I used to run a big copper boiler with a worm over wood and charcoal... Currently running the combo still linked in my sig...

Swamp Yankee Stiller wrote:is that big enough i got 4 stainless milk cans from a local old time farmer that are approx. 10 gal each. Or are those even worth the time to mess around with?

Heck yes they are worth messing with (IMO).

You may wish for a slightly larger (15 gallon) after a few runs.

But a 10 gallon boiler is a nice boiler.

well thanks alot for your input guys.....greatly appriciated.
I think im ready to start a build, but i have a few ?'s for anybody willing to help out. Im going to make a valved reflux still, how tall should my colum be? its gonna be made outta 2.5in. copper with a 2x2x1-1/2 tee over to a 3in. copper condenser with a 1/4in. duall coil approx 16" long? is what i was thinking???? should my tee be 2" over to the condenser? should my condenser be larger in diameter? i can get up to 6" copper from my old boss, some stuff we had left over from a job. Thanks for all your help guys.

rad14701 wrote:... Wish I had just one... I'm currently in the process of gathering parts for a 26 liter boiler to drive a 1.5" Bokakob...

Did you find the boiler? I am asking, because after lot of research I found a really good and cheap one. There is no need for flour paste or any kind of sealing. Works perfectly.

pomiataa wrote:

rad14701 wrote:... Wish I had just one... I'm currently in the process of gathering parts for a 26 liter boiler to drive a 1.5" Bokakob...

Did you find the boiler? I am asking, because after lot of research I found a really good and cheap one. There is no need for flour paste or any kind of sealing. Works perfectly.

Gonna use 2 - 13 quart stainless steel mixing bowls soldered together as mentioned in another topic... It's give a short squat 26 quart/liter boiler for ~$20 and some soldering...

would there be much advantage or would it be a wase of tme to put some kind of an agiator in my boiler? Oh and i havent heard anything back on dimensions in the area' i talked about a few post ago...... Thanks for all the help guys, greatly apriciated.

Hey Swamp....try this for your dimensions http://www.moonshine-still.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

Thanks vicrider,
So i guess im gonnastart my construction i hope by end of this weekend. I just picked up two 15.5 gal stainless kegs. i also have the 10gal milk cans as well. ive decided on building the valved reflux first then im gonna build some others after i run this one a few times. I do have a ? for the pros.......when it comes time to make my wash, how much of everything do i need? i would like to get as much as i can in it without over filling. i wanna make some of that good ol 190 proof stuff:)....like i said im gonna use the 15gal. boiler to start. Thanks much for the help. Oh and as soon as i get the copper beauty build done i will get y'all some pics.

Swamp Yankee Stiller, when you say "190 proof stuff" are you referring to neutral spirits, like vodka or Everclear...??? If so, try one of the recipes in the Tried and True section if you are just getting started... For "simple" you could try either my All Bran or Gerber recipes... Other recipes that will produce good clean neutral spirits are DWWG, WPOSW, and Birdwatchers...

sweet thanks rad i will check it out........How much should i yield outta the 15gal boiler approx?

Swamp Yankee Stiller wrote:How much should i yield outta the 15gal boiler approx?

A 12 gallon charge of 14% ABV wash in a 15.5 gallon keg would yield ~6.75 quarts of 95% according to calculators on the parent site... That includes foreshots, heads, hearts, and tails... Of that, only approximately ~4 quarts would be hearts... Flavored spirits would yield more but there is a premium to be paid for pure neutral spirits... But that 4 quarts of 95% would dilute to 9.5 quarts of 80 proof (40%) by adding 5.5 quarts of water...

Edited: to correct dilution figures... Thanks, Dnderhead...

just a bit off ,, it will take 5.5qt of water to dilute 4qt of 95% to 40% 5.5+4=9.5qt.

Dnderhead wrote:just a bit off ,, it will take 5.5qt of water to dilute 4qt of 95% to 40% 5.5+4=9.5qt.

Silly me read the results wrong, and they sounded wrong... Yep, Dnderheads figures are the correct ones... Original post corrected...

errors are easy enough we all do it.that is why we try to work as a group
no one knows it all .

And to you new guys . we are no different than you, but we have done a bunch of research.
experimenting etc.. as any hobby you will git out what you put in.many have put in a lot
of time and we are hear to share with you.but we do like to see a effort on your part.

And to you new guys . we are no different than you, but we have done a bunch of research. experimenting etc.. as any hobby you will git out what you put in.many have put in a lot of time and we are hear to share with you. but we do like to see a effort on your part.

+1

+2 dunder.

blanik

Thanks alot guys i appriciate all the input you have given me. Your help here is making me feel alot more confident knowing your all here to help. I was thinking i would get more than that outta a 15gal. wash but hey what do i know.....maybe after i build my first still i will get a few more kegs and tig them together i have alot of woodchuck' for friends, once they get bitten by this stuff they will stay away from Budwieser

rad14701 wrote:Currently running the combo still linked in my sig...

At least it is not the 'combo' linked in your avatar. lol.

H.

Husker wrote:At least it is not the 'combo' linked in your avatar. lol.

H.

My receptionist, who suffers from spastic colon, called in sick that morning, so I had to play task master... That's my story and I'm sticking to it - for today at least...