Home Distiller

I'm thinking of making a thumper for my still. I've read the home page's info and was wondering.. Since a thumper is essentially a second distillation using the vapor heat from the initial distillation, what if the thumper had a small heat source under it? The heat added would be a fraction of that in the primary still. Has anyone tried this? I may experiment with different power level if no one has any info.

Probably not worth the power consumption. After the main boiler gets up to heat, it really doesn't take very long for the thumper to start producing. The thumper should only have a couple of inches of liquid in the bottom. Might be better to wrap it in insulation.

S-C

You can, I know an ol boy who heats it but only at the beginning to warm up what he charged it with. Insulating it is another, probably a better option. I don't do anything special, heat the pot up and just let it run.

Good point Cadkalaky, I've used the Thumper as a sort of doubler, to enrich the vapors going into my coil, with the result being that my Thumper starts with a small level of fluid, and as the vapor condense inside the Thumper the volume of fluids grow. At the end of a run, I've usually accumulated about 20% of the volume that comes out as output, and when I do a ABV test, it's at a very high level, so I dump it into the Spirits collection tank too.

If I insulate the Thumper, I'll likely end up with smaller volumes, because the chilling effect will stabilize at a higher temp, resulting in more of the ABV being passes through to the coil, while more of the Thumper collected volume being conginer type water, which I will still pass along to my Spirit run collector, but have a higher volume of Hearts form each beer run? Maybe?

Heating the thumper externally. Kinda defeats the purpose.

Prairiepiss wrote:Heating the thumper externally. Kinda defeats the purpose.

If it was small i could see this yes, but if you have a larger thumper then how so? Its synonymous with going from one still to another correct? If i'm wrong, some one please call me out, just wanna learn.

I don't do it . Neither do I end up with high abv residuals in the thumper . Might end up with 1 gallon max over initial thumper charge 15 gal boiler and 15 gal thumper . 12 gal boiler charge and 3-4 gal in thumper .

BoomTown wrote:Good point Cadkalaky, I've used the Thumper as a sort of doubler, to enrich the vapors going into my coil, with the result being that my Thumper starts with a small level of fluid, and as the vapor condense inside the Thumper the volume of fluids grow. At the end of a run, I've usually accumulated about 20% of the volume that comes out as output, and when I do a ABV test, it's at a very high level, so I dump it into the Spirits collection tank too.

If I insulate the Thumper, I'll likely end up with smaller volumes, because the chilling effect will stabilize at a higher temp, resulting in more of the ABV being passes through to the coil, while more of the Thumper collected volume being conginer type water, which I will still pass along to my Spirit run collector, but have a higher volume of Hearts form each beer run? Maybe?

From what i've read, i'm pretty sure it means your thumper is too small. what size is it and what size is your boiler?

Truckinbutch wrote:I don't do it . Neither do I end up with high abv residuals in the thumper . Might end up with 1 gallon max over initial thumper charge 15 gal boiler and 15 gal thumper . 12 gal boiler charge and 3-4 gal in thumper .

i wish i had this kind of room/output

sry if I am jumping the gun. but a thumper is like a mini reflux column. I thought the idea was to get some reflux out of it to up abv and flavor. if it was heated up then it would allow the vapor to pass thru with few little reflux at all. if anything you would want a coil in the lid or some packing.

toast860 wrote:sry if I am jumping the gun. but a thumper is like a mini reflux column. I thought the idea was to get some reflux out of it to up abv and flavor. if it was heated up then it would allow the vapor to pass thru with few little reflux at all. if anything you would want a coil in the lid or some packing.

I'm no expert, maybe Odin can come clarify. But It is to increase the abv, but not add flavor, the two "kinda" work against each other. But the term reflux isn't quite right to my knowledge, the vapor partially re-condenses in the thumper pool and the added heat from more vapor re-distills it. reflux insinuates that the condensate returns to the original still or travels back down and up the same column. AGAIN if someone knows i'm wrong, call it out!

do what fits your needs.

So I'm tole

Ok I'm new to the whole thumper thing but i filled my 10lt thumper with 2.5 lts of tails ranging from 50% down ran a 18lt wash and allowed the still to heat the thumper which returned 3.5ltrs of 78 - 80% and then 2 ltrs from 75 down to 65. Just for giggles i thought i.would check the abv of the thumper and it returned under 10% so basically it takes all the alcohol from the thumper and leaves you with water. Heating it maybe just to increase the distilling speed maybe but i would not hold it under constant heat.

I've seen a fire lit under a metal thumper to speed up the run but just long enough to get it working.

+1 To heartcut's reply. if you were to heat the thumper i would only do so to get things warmed up a bit quicker,once its near producing i would cut it off. Probably not really worth the cost of the heat source and fuel though imho

Zeig, I don't think anyone has mentioned this yet, but there's a great big thread on here somewhere that has everything you ever want to know about thumpers. Just go to the "HD Google Search" and you should be able to find it pretty quick.

Just sayin',
S-C

Prairiepiss wrote:Heating the thumper externally. Kinda defeats the purpose.

This man summed it up for ya. If you heat it you have another boiler.

Richard7 wrote:

Prairiepiss wrote:Heating the thumper externally. Kinda defeats the purpose.

This man summed it up for ya. If you heat it you have another boiler.

which is essentially redistilling.. so i don't get how that defeats the purpose

IMO a thumper (That I have no experience with, honest here) will keep some of the lower alcohols (the ones that evaporate first) that you don't want, out of your product.
I may be talking out my a$$ since this is not how I do mine. If I am wrong, please let me know because my next project is a thumper and a worm.
Kinda going backwards here!

Seems to me you got the yea,s an nay,s.
What you think u gonna change folks opinion
just by usein your logic. Ain't gonna happen.
Same with beekeepers. You got 2 folks an 3 opinions.
Best thang you can do is do it.

I ain't never run no likkeran ain't gonna in the future.

So I'm tole

I never run a thumper. I have an interest in it. Why not add a little heat if you need it. If you don't need it why add it. I think its learning your still and thumper and what you need. IMHO and no experience with it, if you dump all the alcohol out of your boiler and your thump hasn't started spittin then you have to big of a charge in the thump and maybe it should have had some preheating or maybe a little less charge or maybe there is another problem.

I think we need to step outside the box on all things and question everything. Ask questions (even if they are stupid) and say why not. When I get "that's the way my daddy did it" or "I have done it that way for 40 years" and I accept that then hell why do I have a brain anyway if I am not going to use it. Accept nothing, question everything. Why not light heat???? Why not heavy heat for a while. Is it going to effect the end result in a negative way? What do you think?

halfbaked wrote:I never run a thumper. I have an interest in it. Why not add a little heat if you need it. If you don't need it why add it. I think its learning your still and thumper and what you need. IMHO and no experience with it, if you dump all the alcohol out of your boiler and your thump hasn't started spittin then you have to big of a charge in the thump and maybe it should have had some preheating or maybe a little less charge or maybe there is another problem.

I think we need to step outside the box on all things and question everything. Ask questions (even if they are stupid) and say why not. When I get "that's the way my daddy did it" or "I have done it that way for 40 years" and I accept that then hell why do I have a brain anyway if I am not going to use it. Accept nothing, question everything. Why not light heat???? Why not heavy heat for a while. Is it going to effect the end result in a negative way? What do you think?

Yea doesn't seem like many people who are seeing this thread have much experience with a thumper. I'll just have to make mine and play with her!

I love to read. I more that likely read more in a year than most read in 5. Reading is what happened in the past not the future. I really don't think there are many that use thumpers around here. I don't either but might in the future. Its a good post. We need lots of brains input here.

I can say that I am happy with the thumper I have recently installed and the improved results . My suggestion would be that you establish a base line using conventional techniques before you start stepping outside the box .
How else are you going to judge progress or regression ?

Thanks Truckin. I agree.

I started to post "great, tell us your results", but TB's post makes much more sense. If you don't compare it to a proven processes what have you proved?

I know this is no help on which way to go, but if you do both and have results that are worth sharing you have a statement worth sharing!

Richard that is what I was trying to say but didn't do a good job of it.

Zeig wrote:

Richard7 wrote:

Prairiepiss wrote:Heating the thumper externally. Kinda defeats the purpose.

This man summed it up for ya. If you heat it you have another boiler.

which is essentially redistilling.. so i don't get how that defeats the purpose

Because you need a temp split between the primary and secondary boilers. This has to do with applying the most optimal amount of heat in order to optimally boost abv. The wider the temp split, the more abv is boosted. So long as one applies enough heat to drive the system. It is the ABV within the boiler that determines the temperature of the forthcoming liberated vapor.

Adding heat after running temps are acheived will reduce optimal ABV boost.

But if your loosing too much heat cuz yer in the woods,,, in the middle of winter...and yer getting cold,,, and you want to finish........
But that does not at all mean that you are running the system optimally.

+1 LWTCS just cause it helps you finish faster doesn't mean it is the most efficient route. Like i said earlier, use some light to medium heat til you are just about up to temp, then cut it off and let er run naturally off the primary boiler. Shouldn't raise temps too quickly or high in the thumper and the temp gap between the primary shouldn't be greatly affected.

The primary reason for a thump keg is to keep puke from reaching the coil (worm), the secondary reason is to allow the alcohol to come to the coil more refined, that is purer than if just heading straight to the worm. You can leave the thumper dry which is a Puke barrel or you can charge it with the heads and tails, which will allow you to have hearts that are slightly higher proof but of a longer duration since the steam coming from the cooker will cool somewhat and leave more of the water in the thumper. If you charge the thumper with water, you are simply making a filter for the alcohol but with the same result of more of the water being left in the thumper than getting to the worm (actually a small amount, you only get about a 2% increase in proof). Preheating the thumper, it seems to me, will simply allow more of the undesirable water at the beginning to get to the worm. Usually not what one wants. Either way you are going to toss the first quart or so since it will have the nasty methanol and other bad things in it. If you want to use a dual cooker set up you would want the first boiler to run into a puke barrel or thumper then to a short worm, then into a second boiler then to the main worm. This set up is not like a reflux rig since it will retain the flavors which tend to disappear from a reflux rig. At least that's my understanding of a reflux rig. I use a primary boiler and thumper same as my family has used for more than 100 years. It works. My worm is made from 25 ft. of 1/2" tubing, My arm is a taper from 3" to 1 1/2 inches over 4' length, this connects to the thumper inlet which ends 3" from the bottom of my TK and the TK outlet pipe is sunk 2" into the TK, has an elbow and 2' of taper pipe to the worm on a 15 degree down slant. This is just how my rig is set up and it works very well for me. Everyone will find their own best setup if they are always learning from the info their rig gives them. With no heat to my own TK it isn't very long a wait, and you can tell how well your rig is running by how the thumper thumps along. as it heats up, the thumps get closer together. When the thumpers noise is almost continuous then you should check the worm cause you are at the end of the run.