5 or 6

[Hamster]

Hey Guys.

Short question.
I just builded a new boka with a inner diameter of 78,8mm. My question is, better use 5 or 6 kW for electric heat? Both will be without heatcontrol. 5 kw is nearly the underlimit of 4,6 kW, 6 is a little bit over the highlimit of 5,7 kW. What you thinking, my still will work better nearly the underlimit or a little bit over limit without heatcontrol?

Thanks and greetings

H.

[HDNB]

i think you need heat control. then element size won't matter...other than 6kw will heat up faster.

5kx will be wayyyy to much heat to run full without a controller.

[Hamster]

i forget to tell you. i can use 7, 8 or 9 kW is possible too, if you think thats better than 6 kW. but it´s a lot of more work to fit them i my boiler. i have some 2 and 3 kw-heatingelemts here i can mix like up to me.

sry for my bad english!


sry- i was still wrighting and a answer come in already...

[Fiddleford]

HDNB Had just stated that 6 kw is to high without a power controller
Using a more powerful element is not wise unless you have a way to control them

[Hamster]

@ HDNB

what you believe is a good size to run?

If i can use heatcontroll, i must controll boiling temp?

[Hamster]

maybe this help.
i have some heatingelements from french fries machines. they have a heating control but they are inaccurate in the temp-area under 130 C. because of that i hoped i can run some elements with full power and maybe, if it is better, i shut down another one which i use for heat up before.

[HDNB]

on the parent site, under the "calculator" or "calcs" tab, there is a link to Rad's Calcs....there you will find a calculator that will tell you how much heat (in watts or BTU's) that you will need to heat up a given amount of water, in a given amount of time.

you can calculate "heat up time"

you cannot control the temperature of the boil for example water boils at 100*C at sea level...no matter how much heat you put in, it will always be 100*C

you need to control the heat input, and therefore the product output speed., too fast or too slow is bad...you need smooth "just right" to take off product at the speed that makes the best likker.

really fast (too much heat.... like say 5000w into a 60L boiler, with a 78 mm pipe) is going to be making too fast. you will want to be 1/3 or 1/2 of that...

but only putting 1500w will be far too slow to heat up, you will fall asleep waiting.

so you need 5000 or 6000 when heating up and just BEFORE it starts to produce likker, you want to turn down and run smooth, even heat so the still output is about 3L per hour.