Home Distiller

i am planning to make small, compact still that has only one pot and can be stored in a tight space
it would be used and stored in a small RV or camper van so i cant afford large space, it may also be used over an open fire but thats not a guarantee as im not sure i want to use the pot over such a dirty heat source
my idea is to basically make a pot still but instead of having a straight vertical column/pipe up to the elbow, i'd like to include a coil from the extract point (where the evaporated content comes out) to the elbow so that there is some condensing occuring in the coil (higher surface area in contact with cool air as opposed to straight tube) and that condensate would drip down the coil because of the fact that it is down slope, while the evaporate would continue up the coil and to the elbow where it would condense one final time and be deposited
im not certain because im no expert by any means and have never ran or been around a running still but i would assume this would give somewhere close to 60-80% ABV as opposed to the lower percentages normally expected in a pot still, it would also be much simpler than a reflux
ive looked a little bit into the Boka still but it not only includes a pipe that it sits within, but it also includes a lot of other stuff that simply put is just confusing to me, plus the way that the coil is worked into the design kinda confuses me, so my idea is NOT a boka still, rather just a pot still that includes a coil to improve efficiency, i think that efficiency would be further increased if the coil was designed such that it could hold within it (though in a totally seperate container) a stainless steel or aluminum water bottle filled with snow or ice that could easily be lifted and changed out to replace the ice
this would thereby increase the rate of condensation within the coil and make for better efficiency

does anyone know of anyone that has done something like this, and if so is there any chance there is a link that could bring me to a thread or journal on the topic, or at least pics?

is there any reason that this would not work or be dangerous by anyone's experience?

does anyone know of anyone that has done something like this, and if so is there any chance there is a link that could bring me to a thread or journal on the topic, or at least pics?

I can't really say. Maybe if you sketched up a simple diagram of what you are envisioning it would help people to help you design your still.

thank you very much for the reply, i appreciate it

ok, this is a very quickly and poorly drawn image of what im talking about, to get the basic idea across
its basically like a basic pot still but the riser or whatever is coiled so as to allow more surface area having contact with cooler air for better condensation, steam would theorhetically rise through the coil while liquid would drop down due to gravity
the very start of the coil, coming from the pot, gradually widens to the right size, so that you can stuff a frozen water bottle or chunk of ice in between the coils to cool it more effeciently and cause more condensation prior to reaching the elbow, thats really the only change in the design from a basic pot still that has an elbow and a tall pipe for condensation to occur in

So you thinking as you coil up you will get reflux
If that's not what you're thinking you should be cause that's what you will get
The coil up will get clogged with condensate and cause surging/puking

You want and smooth rise in vapor and a gentle cooling to make a better product

Let the forces of nature do their jobs

Read this thread: http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... =17&t=8439. It's nice and compact and easy to store and you can run it packed as a reflux still or unpacked with the valve removed or wide open as a pot still.

I would use a 3/8" o.d. takeoff if I was going to use it as a pot still but the bigger the needle valve the higher the cost.

oceansgreen, are you serious...??? A coiled pot column with a bottle of ice or snow for added reflux...??? I'd say it's time to do a bit more research and get some practical experience with a tried and true still design before haphazardly experimenting with that design...

You need to know things like proper sizing for just the right vapor speed... You sure as shit don't want to be using ice or snow... You won't get the added %ABV you've dreamed up... You've gotta ask yourself why you haven't already seen similar designs being used by the mainstream because it sure isn't because nobody else hasn't pondered or even tried it... And that's just my short list...

i stumbled onto this other thread that i think is a better version of what i was thinking, at least with column design, the pdf included uses some shit plastic container or something rediculous like that but it seems like a step in the right direction column-wise
http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... iral+still

this thread is kinda to facilitate research so that i can understand this hobby fully before attempting anything, so as to avoid dangerous mistakes. i am NOT planning to build ANYTHING before i completely understand how well its going to work for my specific intended purposes
basically i dont have fancy equipment, and though soldering is a fairly simple process i dont own or want to purchase a soldering iron, so this spiral still seems to be a simple way to make a still without having to deal with tricky soldering or paying someone to build something that may lead them to asking questions - i just dont want the whole world knowing i have a still, even if they believe that i only use it to distill rainwater or something

so that being said -

rad, thank you for the response but, with all due respect, what is exactly is wrong with snow/ice being used to cool the condenser?
it seems no different than wrapping a cool, wet rag around the condenser, keep in mind this ice bottle or snow will NOT be contacting any of the vapor or condensate but will instead be on the outside of the conductive copper in order to cool the vapor down into condensate so that it will condense back into the mash for a second run - just like a reflux from my understanding, just without the packing and such

hobby, thank you for the link, ill read through that thread - it seems like hes got it to be pretty compact, which i like

still crazy, thank you for the response, that does make sense that it would do that, something i was a little worried may happen with a coil being as close to horizontal as it is, do you think it would solve this problem to thicken the diameter and.or steepen the coils so theyre a touch more vertical.. though still coiled?
also, newb question here - i see that surging isnt a normal thing and i do want to avoid it but im curious what sorta problem that causes? would you end up with mash in your final product or water, what problems does that cause?

thanks to all for responding and helping me along my path of knowledge regarding this process, ill take all the help i can get