distilling in the winter

[dakotasnake]

i luv to run my still in the winter, for one thing i have more time. i have a pot still with a 3/8 worm. last time i ran it i stupidly forgot to make sure the coil was open by blowing thru it. i usually crank the heat up till its near a boil than turn way down. well there was ice in the coil so it built up alot of pressure and blu the lid clean off the boiler. could have been a disaster with the propane turkeye fryer under it. i have the materials to upgrade to a 3/4 in. coil now, but i just wanted to point out to folks to remember to make sure that nothing is plugged up , always check b4 you connect every thing up.

[Bayou-Ruler]

this post needs to be in the Tell us about your mistakes. thread

[MuleKicker]

i love to distill in the winter too. alot easier to cool the still. but its a bitch to ferment. the old lady wont let me do it in the house.

[Odin]

I love to distill in the winter. But I don't mind summer, spring or fall either.

[501outlaw]

i love to distill in the winter too. alot easier to cool the still. but its a bitch to ferment. the old lady wont let me do it in the house.

Walmart electric blanket for 30 bucks works like a champ to keep mash cool !! It suck when I break the still down and clean everything especially when its 30 deg f..

[retlaw]

i have cooked outside with propane tiger torches in -35 C (-31 F)
could not get it up to boil with only one torch, had to have two going,
that’s over 400,000 BTU,
once it got running then you could shut one down or you would have to use it to heat the other propane tank up to help the liquid flow,

caution:
if you have a jug sitting in that cold of a temperature never shoot a shot,
sip slow or warm up,
you could freeze your throat,

[501outlaw]

i have cooked outside with propane tiger torches in -35 C (-31 F)
could not get it up to boil with only one torch, had to have two going,
that’s over 400,000 BTU,
once it got running then you could shut one down or you would have to use it to heat the other propane tank up to help the liquid flow,

caution:
if you have a jug sitting in that cold of a temperature never shoot a shot,
sip slow or warm up,
you could freeze your throat,

Buddy that insane cold bottom line! What part of the world do you live

[Odin]

Retlaw lives in Siberia. Of this I am sure.

[501outlaw]

Retlaw lives in Siberia. Of this I am sure.

That's crazy I would build me some type of brick,wood,hay,something hut to distill in

[Bushwhacker]

I don't know where he's from but expecting those temps here this weekend and maybe worse!

[blind drunk]

How do you keep the propane lines from freezing when it's that cold? Or even the head space in the propane bottle, for that matter?

[Samohon]

I distill in the winter with no problems... But lagering some of my pilsner at this time is paramount...

I once felt -34°C in Kiev some time back, hairs inside my nostrils froze and gave me a nose bleed...
I then proceeded to warm myself up with some warm flavoured vodka sold on the street corners.
The voddy was warmed by an alcohol heated samofar with rings of glasses around the top... mmmmm

Great memories...

On a more serious note:
Bad news on your boiler lid blowing dakotasnake, wish you did'nt have to learn a lesson like that...
A warning to all members winter or not to make sure the vapour path is clear to the atmosphere...

Be safe man...

[dakotasnake]

How do you keep the propane lines from freezing when it's that cold? Or even the head space in the propane bottle, for that matter?

i havent had any problems with frezzing tanks or lines even in 0 f. or colder , i think it helps if the tanks and hoses mantain a constent temp. by not warming and cooling and start out with full tanks. saterday morning when i fire up it suppose to be about -10 below f. than when im done ill bring a jar along with me ice fishen.

[bentstick]

I am sorry MK my wife likes the smell of the barrels when they get to bubbling heavy so they r nice and warm.
It was 56°f yesterday and by Fri. night down in lower single digits yea! welcome to Northern Mi.

[Bushwhacker]

I am yet to cut my teeth stillin but have lots of experience with propane in the winter propane vaporizes at -40C if u are having problems with it vaporizing a cheep magnetic oil pan heater off a tractor works great! Just stick it to the side of the bottle and plug it in. In the early 90s I was on a oil rig and temp dropped to around -60C for a week and the heater kept my propane powered truck running fine. Unless you don't have access to power it should keep a 25 lb bottle roarin just fine.

[itchy]

its winter here as well,, going to be around 30f this weekend and i got 20 gl of wash clearing now,,,, i picked up one of those cheap 10'x10" gazebos with the 4 walls and set it up on a concrete patio,,, my equipments all set up inside of that,, a converted 55gl drum made into a woodburner keeps it fairly warm inside, actually gets pretty cozy in their. so i'll be hiding in their knapping a few arrowheads n making some fine drinks this weekend,,, i'm soooo looking foward to it.. hope it snows as well....

[retlaw]

what happens in cold weather is ice starts to build up on the propane tank and it slows the flow right down,
just like as if the tank was almost empty,
i put the torch to the propane tank to melt the ice off it,
just for short periods of time, 30 seconds or so,

you can tell how much you need to torch the tank by how much the flame picks up when heated,
with a little torching the flame would pick right up to like when you started,

when the propane tank is running near empty and it is cold out it is hard to keep the flame going,
when it gets like this i have before just put the propane tank into the condenser barrel and it works both ways,
the warm water heats the propane and melts the ice of the tank and the tank cools the warm water,
this milks the propane tank to the last drop,

you don't need a large water supply in the cold because you can use snow and ice in the condenser barrel,

putting a magnetic block heater under the tank should work like mentioned,

the biggest thing to remember when cooking out in the cold with propane is to have extra tanks and an extra torch,
running out is a real pain in the ass and can add hours on to your time cooking,

ps. i don't live there any more, just go back to visit family

[501outlaw]

Last year when I was outside in the snow I took wood and built a hooch around the burner and put the propane in there with it to help keep warm, it helped alot. And this year i got my man cave with a LCD tv so I can run likker watch tv and I don't have anyone Fu!@&$" with me. It's great!!!!

[Bull Rider]

The five gallon (barbeque size tanks) are prone to frosting up, which reduces the gas pressure and reduces the BTU's at the burner. I used to float the propane tank in a tub of water but I now just run the hose from the leibeg output to the top of the propane tank.

Make sure you drain out your garden hoses at the end of each run so you're ready for next time, and don't run the discharge water anywhere you don't want a sheet of ice for the next week or two.


Bull.

[rad14701]

what happens in cold weather is ice starts to build up on the propane tank and it slows the flow right down,
just like as if the tank was almost empty,
i put the torch to the propane tank to melt the ice off it,
just for short periods of time, 30 seconds or so,

you can tell how much you need to torch the tank by how much the flame picks up when heated,
with a little torching the flame would pick right up to like when you started,

< SNIP >

Are you serious...??? Using an open flame to warm up a propane tank...??? That has to be the stupidest thing I have ever seen posted here in these forums... That pretty much offsets every bit of discussion about safety that we have been trying to convey to anyone visiting these forums over the years...

retlaw, don't be the least bit surprised if you get banned for another post like that... Consider yourself lucky to still be here now...