Hotplate? or Propane Burner?
Posted: Tue Sep 16, 2008 7:10 am
OK,
I know there is some people that are against hotplates and all. But I'd like to describe my scenario and see if I'm heading in the right direction.
I live in the north of Canada and we have sub freezing outside temperatures for half the year.
I am getting everything together to run my first still. I have a 40 Lt stainless steel pot for my boiler going into a 3in by 40in high full reflux column.
The problem I have at this point is deciding on the heat source.
I have an unheated barn where I can run the still, and power is available there (110 in canada) but no water. Or I can use my basement that is heated, but has little air flow during the cold months and has a gas fired furnace over in the corner.
My concern is that in the cold of winter the 1500 Watt hotplate I have been considering using may not have the power to heat the boiler in a reasonable time if I run it outside. So a propane heater makes since there. But with the cold temps I think I'll have to insulate the column, and also setup some sort of water recirculation.
If I run everything inside I really can't use the propane heat due to the oxygen usage, and also the fire hazard. And in any case, running it inside is probably not a good idea even with a hotplate due to the fire hazard if I have an accident with high concentrations of alc, etc.
At this point I'm considering sectioning off an area in the barn where heat can be trapped when the still is in use. Setup a barrel with a recirculation pump for the water and use a propane heat source for the still. Also insulate the column.
Thoughts, comments?
BTW fantastic site. Been reading steady for several weeks and I've picked up a huge amount of information.
I know there is some people that are against hotplates and all. But I'd like to describe my scenario and see if I'm heading in the right direction.
I live in the north of Canada and we have sub freezing outside temperatures for half the year.
I am getting everything together to run my first still. I have a 40 Lt stainless steel pot for my boiler going into a 3in by 40in high full reflux column.
The problem I have at this point is deciding on the heat source.
I have an unheated barn where I can run the still, and power is available there (110 in canada) but no water. Or I can use my basement that is heated, but has little air flow during the cold months and has a gas fired furnace over in the corner.
My concern is that in the cold of winter the 1500 Watt hotplate I have been considering using may not have the power to heat the boiler in a reasonable time if I run it outside. So a propane heater makes since there. But with the cold temps I think I'll have to insulate the column, and also setup some sort of water recirculation.
If I run everything inside I really can't use the propane heat due to the oxygen usage, and also the fire hazard. And in any case, running it inside is probably not a good idea even with a hotplate due to the fire hazard if I have an accident with high concentrations of alc, etc.
At this point I'm considering sectioning off an area in the barn where heat can be trapped when the still is in use. Setup a barrel with a recirculation pump for the water and use a propane heat source for the still. Also insulate the column.
Thoughts, comments?
BTW fantastic site. Been reading steady for several weeks and I've picked up a huge amount of information.