Thumper Keg problem

[M_Wag13]

I did my first run in my Pot Stil. I ussaly use a reflux stil but decided to buy a pot stil and try it out. I did my first run but it didn't come out good at all. Should I put heat under the thumper to? I have read that you don't need to but my thumper really wasn't getting hot at all. I Hurd the thumping noise a little but by the time the spirts came out the worm it tasted awful. The pot read over 200 degrees before anything came out of the worm. I backed my heat off when it got around 175. any advice?

[RumRunR]

Was it clean?? First time I ran mine I run water, it was sewage

[bellybuster]

Lose the thermometer and remember you're running a pot still now and not your reflux. Put the heat to'er and ignore the thermometer, run it by takeoff rate.
When you backed the heat off at 175 you effectively shut down your still.

[goose eye]

you no how to follow the likker with your hand. thump your cap with your finger when the likker is there the sound changes now grab the pipe to the doublein keg if you can hold it it aint there if you cant then it is. it takes a few more minutes to break a joint
than straight pipe so it gona slow down at your joints. now thump your keg has the sound changed. aint gona be much cause it
is loaded but you can tell given time.
you gota be careful turnin the wick up to much for to long cause all you gona do is getin it pukein.
as far as how it taste. dab your finger in your warsh an taste. mostly to new folks it aint gona taste good but it gota taste true.
now that's all dependin on what your warsh is. if you scared to taste it dab your finger in it a hold it in the air. did it dry to the touch or is it sticky . so on an so forth.
cant make chicken salad out of chicken mess


so im tole

[M_Wag13]

When I was doing the run the pipe coming off the cap was hot but the one comming off the thumper wasnt hot. Where they both connected at was a big heat difference in touch. Also the connection where the pipe comming off the thumper connected to the pipe coming off the cap was dripping liquid. Is that because it wasn't hot enough to turn it into vapor or was it that I filled my pot up to high and the wash was coming up threw the cap and where the caps pipe connected to the thumper pipe it was leaking?

[goose eye]

sounds like all your good likker went to the angels an you was left with backins.

aint nothing should be dripin. was your outfit lopein or was it pissin a stead stream.
sounds like a leak. runin a doublein keg there gona be back pressure all dependin how full your keg is.
always have some self risin biscuit dough made up an a sheet tore into strips. you see a leak turn the wick down wipe the drip
put your biscut around it/onit an wrap it if you can. wait a second or to an turn the wick up.
if you outfit is lopein an you charge a worm could be it aint level or a leak if you chargein a condencer then it for sure a leak.
you gaugein how to set your wick by how big the stream it pissin not by temp. you no what a kitchen match looks like.bout that size.
don't be fillin that keg moren 1/2 full cause it gona be fillin up some more


so im tole

[okie]

How much was in your thumper? I only put enough to cover the down tube in mine. That way it heats up faster and it will condense more as the run goes on filling it more.

[M_Wag13]

The fitting that connects the thumper pipe to the pipe coming off the cap was leaking. It's not soldered its just a lose copper connecter thats a L shape that connects the cap and thumper pipes togather. Idk if I didn't have it puched right enough togather or is there some special paste I can make to stop the leak. I use a flour/water paste for the cap. And I filled the thumper about 1/3 full, is that to much?

[rad14701]

You should be able to apply more flour paste while the still is running... Or try the method goose eye described...

1/3 full is more than plenty for the thumper... I wouldn't go more than 1/4 - 1/3 full...

[rtalbigr]

I never load my thumper with more than what it takes to just barely submerge the inlet tube. The more ya put in the longer it takes to get up to temp.

Big R

[slohand42]

I run a pot still w/ a thumper. Have done so fairly successfully for a few months. In that time I have learned some things.

As said above, when you turned down the heat at 175 f, you did stall out the process. This system requires a bit more temp in the pot to heat up the wash in thumper to vaporization. I do use thermometers to help regulate the whole thing. I run the heat up pretty fast until the thermometer on the pot column hits about 180 or so, then turn it down some. At that point I set it to a slow temp climb. It is during this time that the vapor coming from the pot is bubbling through the wash in the thumper bringing it's temp up to vaporization. Doing it this way, the distillate starts coming out of the condensor at around 175 f in the thumper (191-195 in Pot). When I get distillate out of the condensor, I then regulate the heat to my desired flow.

Keep working with it. You''ll get the hang of it. It's fun and you can get some good stuff out of a Pot Still w/ Thumper.

As far as how far to fill the thumper, I fill it no more then 1/3 full. My thumper is an 8L SS stock pot behind a 20 L SS stock pot cooker.