another can i run my still like this and

Just starting out and need some advise? then post it in here.

another can i run my still like this and

Postby austenpowers » Mon May 14, 2018 10:21 pm

soooo

i have been running my still for a long time by output abv and had a really good result to the end product

its a 50l boiler usually charged with approx 37 ltrs of 30% stripped ffv
3" colum 1.5 m packed tight with scrubbers the last 200mm is copper mesh
vm head with butterfly vavle just cracked
power is 2.4kw the whole run
abv is 95% solid

now the temp entering the pc is 80deg and the end of the run is 82deg.. is this a real no no ??? the product had no smell was very neutral and 95% for 90% of the run and had a nice wheat tone to it. no burn at all . so i would say that's good.

however the temp worried me so i put another probe in the take off tube 4" before the pc and after the butterfly valve and put another run through the still

strait away i had to put the scr on to the still and wind back power it settled down to 78.3 deg and stayed there rock solid through the whole run till tails but late into tails is when it climbed . out put always reduces before my temp goes up during the end of the run.

now the interesting part the abv was 92% and i was runing the still slower than ever before and i could not improve the abv evon runnig slower did nothing to it .
the product has a smell to it right through the run and there is burn to taste in all jars collected . like heads the whole way??

i might get a pic of my still so you can see design but here is the layout

50l keg 2400w element 4" outlet . column is 3" 1.5m long scrubbers packed 4" reduced to 3" . t-piece has temp gauge in middle of t . on top of t is 7" r/c then open top . side of t is butterfly valve and p/c ....

this is so hard to explain but i feel as though i have no issues running the still with higher temps based on collection rate and quality of product being abv 95-96% taste quality
austenpowers
 
Posts: 38
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2016 12:11 am
Location: Tasmania
equipment: 2" reflux ss column 25 L boiler 2400w ring
3" pm & vm reflux ss 50 L boiler 2400w stick

Re: another can i run my still like this and

Postby Sam. » Tue May 15, 2018 8:57 am

I think from your results you have just confirmed what most will tell you here. Temp is a good indicator but it isn't how you should run your still.

I would say on the second run where you have knocked the power down by doing so you are decreasing your reflux amount as well which has dropped your ABV and isn't as clean.

If I was you I would go back to output speed and ABV and piss off the thermometer.

Also do you know your thermometers are accurate? Either way the chemical composition of your boiler charge is constantly changing through the run which will change the temp on the top of your column.

Hope that makes sense :handgestures-thumbupleft:
Sam.
Lifetime Member
 
Posts: 10405
Joined: Sun Jul 17, 2011 7:19 pm
Location: South Oz Straya
equipment: Original FSD 5 plate 4 inch modular bubbler SSG with hand crafted plates and parrot by Mac.
18 Gal boiler.
2 x 2400W elements and power controller.
.

Re: another can i run my still like this and

Postby warramungas » Fri May 18, 2018 12:13 pm

Agree with Sam regarding not slowing down your still by reducing power. Run it as hard as it will go without flooding the column or overpowering the RC.
Then run at a rate that keeps the temperature constant in the head without it dropping. Used to be around 78-80 degrees from memory with my LM head still at around 95% abv.
I used to use temp to run as it was easiest to use. Temp starts to rise and I reduced the take off rate. I didn't have a parrot to run to abv and didn't really need one once I roughly (all washes are slightly different) worked out the sweet spot.

Oh and edit number 2 after fixing a couple of grammatical errors is make sure the column isn't packed too tight as it can cause other problem but as you say its been fine until now I'll assume that it hasn't changed and that isn't a problem.
Last edited by warramungas on Fri May 18, 2018 12:18 pm, edited 2 times in total.
warramungas
 
Posts: 1436
Joined: Sun Oct 18, 2015 9:38 pm
Location: Nor Perth
equipment: 180 litre fermenter x 2
30 liter boiler
PDA-1
2" four plate modular bubbler
2" one meter long LM column
110 liter boiler with 25 liter (max) inline thumper
4" x 4 plate bubble cap still

Re: another can i run my still like this and

Postby austenpowers » Fri May 18, 2018 6:38 pm

thanks for your feed back i will go back to full stick ..

can i say in regards to column packing tightness. the way i got to how tight the packing is was by running the still and adding more till the column produced a good abv .....

so i packed the column reasonably well and did a run abv was low
so i added more packing and run again abv came up but still not happy
i added more and run again abv perfect and stopped adding packing ....

once the heat starts to move up my column from memory it would be about 7 minutes to reach the t and base of r/c 2.4kw 3" 1.5m tall

is there a place to send samples off to , to have it tested for quality???
austenpowers
 
Posts: 38
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2016 12:11 am
Location: Tasmania
equipment: 2" reflux ss column 25 L boiler 2400w ring
3" pm & vm reflux ss 50 L boiler 2400w stick

Re: another can i run my still like this and

Postby warramungas » Fri May 18, 2018 9:21 pm

austenpowers wrote:
is there a place to send samples off to , to have it tested for quality???


Yep. Put it over your tongue and send it into your stomach!
warramungas
 
Posts: 1436
Joined: Sun Oct 18, 2015 9:38 pm
Location: Nor Perth
equipment: 180 litre fermenter x 2
30 liter boiler
PDA-1
2" four plate modular bubbler
2" one meter long LM column
110 liter boiler with 25 liter (max) inline thumper
4" x 4 plate bubble cap still

Re: another can i run my still like this and

Postby scythe » Sat May 19, 2018 6:27 pm

You could pay a lab to analyse it for you but it will cost you a pretty penny.
Might also raise a few eyebrows.
scythe
 
Posts: 1860
Joined: Thu Nov 14, 2013 6:34 am
Location: Central West NSW
equipment: Dreaming of a 4" bubbler

Re: another can i run my still like this and

Postby austenpowers » Sat May 19, 2018 6:49 pm

warramungas wrote:
austenpowers wrote:
is there a place to send samples off to , to have it tested for quality???


Yep. Put it over your tongue and send it into your stomach!


love it thanks :laughing-rolling:

scythe wrote:You could pay a lab to analyse it for you but it will cost you a pretty penny.
Might also raise a few eyebrows.


i do know 2 industrial chemists ?? is this the sort of thing they can check??? i dont want to raise any eyebrows :law-policered:
austenpowers
 
Posts: 38
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2016 12:11 am
Location: Tasmania
equipment: 2" reflux ss column 25 L boiler 2400w ring
3" pm & vm reflux ss 50 L boiler 2400w stick

Re: another can i run my still like this and

Postby warramungas » Sat May 19, 2018 7:51 pm

Wasting your time mate. Quality is a subjective quantity.
Some people like jagermeister for example but to me it tastes like green petrol.
Run by taste and do correct cuts and you'll be fine.
warramungas
 
Posts: 1436
Joined: Sun Oct 18, 2015 9:38 pm
Location: Nor Perth
equipment: 180 litre fermenter x 2
30 liter boiler
PDA-1
2" four plate modular bubbler
2" one meter long LM column
110 liter boiler with 25 liter (max) inline thumper
4" x 4 plate bubble cap still


Return to Beginners Questions



Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 21 guests

x