Home Distiller

A single copper scrubber costs $10 at my local home brew place. Looking to save money I made up a bunch of these little copper packing nuggets using a lathe to turn some scrap 1/2 inch pipe into swarf. I then pounded the loose swarf into nuggets inside a 50mm pipe. Nice and dense, but seem to let plenty of air through. Will report back.

I hope you don't puke in that stuff. It'll be a bitch to get out and clean.
ss

if you in fact have a brew store that charges $10 for a single copper scrubby

they need to be bulldozed and used for a compost pile.

don't deal with rippoff's for any reason.

Necessity is the mother of invention.
If you can make copper mcnuggets, go for it.

Pulling 96% ABV with these little babies in my column today. Very pleased with the results.


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DavidR wrote:Pulling 96% ABV with these little babies in my column today. Very pleased with the results.


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Cleaning run, I hope. But good job. Love innovation

Still Life wrote:.
copper mcnuggets.

... gave me a fine chuckle

still_stirrin wrote:I hope you don't puke in that stuff. It'll be a bitch to get out and clean.
ss

Come on sour puss. Make happy thoughts. I don't strip with packing, so it ain't a problem as I see it. But you could easily boil it or put it in a bucket with oxy clean and then rinse.

Or say screw it and clean it with the fore vapors from the next run.

Either way, I think it's great. I had to go get fine copper wire and bunch up for a dick spout before my new shotgun came with a proper take off. Couldn't imagine tying to fill a column with it.

$10 a scrubby? Holy cow, that's a ripoff. You can get a pound of copper mesh on Amazon for around $14. Just search for "copper mesh" and look at your options. I typically cut a 1 lb role into 8 equal sized pieces to roll up, 7 roles for packing my 2" column with 35" of packing, and the last one for misc. packing needs.

Sure you could pay the $10, or order off eBay,
but to me, just the idea that YOU made the copper mesh adds that much more craft to your final spirit.

You should buy a copper mine.
And start a thread "homemade PTFE tape".

Very cool idea...glad it works for you... and do please keep us all posted

I was going to buy some of them cheap coppers scrubbies off ebay - but I messaged the guy and asked if they were in fact real copper or copper plated - he came back rather sheepinshand said they were "plated" though he didn't mention that in the listing itself.

Ingenious...

I will agree with Otis though... 1. $10 is a COMPLETE ripoff... 2. Amazon sells copper packing cheap. Look up "copper rodent fence" though since the brewing places still try to mark up "copper mesh". I found 30 feet for $12 with a 5-second search. Ebay can do the same search as well..

The problem for me was that all the cheap, pure copper mesh seemed to be in the USA. The postage to Australia doubles the cost of the item at least.

I would recommend this as an option for anyone with access to a lathe. These little mcnuggets (or Cu-nuggets) are surprisingly heavy, but they let plenty of vapour through and have tonnes of surface area. They also cling reasonably tightly to the inside of the column, which I would think means they are wicking the condensate back into the packing instead of letting it run down the sides.

I soaked them in citric acid to clean off the oxide crap, then boiling water, then ran some old feints that I have been holding on to. Came out drinkable, so I tried it on a fresh birdwatchers last night, pulled 96% easily.

Plus they're free if you have some 12mm pipe bits lying around.

DavidR wrote:
........Plus they're free if you have some 12mm pipe bits lying around.

Er - and a lathe !

Great idea - I want some

Maybe a quick video to show how you are turning those nuggets out...?