Aussiedistiller, Home Distilling, Moonshine, Home Brew

I use wolfram alpha's website and this equation:
http://wolframalpha.com/

1*((95/40)-1)=

Just adjust the first 1 for the amount of pure spirit and the 95 for the reported abv as your alcometer shows it.

Post if you need help. Next we'll talk about temp correcting for extra accuracy:-)

BackyardBrewer wrote:I use wolfram alpha's website and this equation:
http://wolframalpha.com/

1*((95/40)-1)=

Just adjust the first 1 for the amount of pure spirit and the 95 for the reported abv as your alcometer shows it.

Post if you need help. Next we'll talk about temp correcting for extra accuracy:-)

I must point out that the formula above is incorrect. It has too many brackets. The calculation will work out if you have 1 litre or 1 gallon but won't work for any other volume.

Should read 1*(95/40)-1=

To explain the maths slightly differently,

ABV of your uncut spirit (say 95%) divided by ABV you require (say 40%) ie 95/40

Multiply this by the volume you currently have say (5 litres)

Now we have 5 * 95/40 = 11.875 litres which will be your final volume of 40%

All you do is add water until the final volume comes up to 11.875 litres (everything at 20 deg C)

Sorry to crap on a bit, but you might think the amount of water to add is
11.875 - 5 = 6.875 litres, that is probably good enough but the real answer is 7.21 litres to add because when adding pure alcohol to water the total volume shrinks. The maths for that is very complex.

Many home distillers work out how much to add, ie 5 * (95/40) - 5 = 6.875 which is probably good enough, but there is more maths and less accuracy.




ps if you leave the extra brackets the apparent answer is minus 13.125

Handy calculators , cheers :-)

Hi guys,
I would like to ask a really noob question here please?

I used the wash calculator to determine the approx % of alcohol from the wash and came up with 14.70%.
Start wash was 1.094 and end was .980 which gave me 14.70, when I place some of the wash in my test tube and used the alcoholometer to see if it would give the same reading I was dumbfounded that it showed a reading of about 6-7%, is there a reason for this or can't you use the alcoholometer to measure an un distilled wash.

BTW it was a turbo wash mix ( my last one as I am using the TPW, just didn't want to waste the turbo since I paid for it).
And yes I use an air still for all the purists out there, due to room constraints, but I use the chart that has been circulating done by MOZR (I believe).

Snoozin wrote:Hi guys,
I would like to ask a really noob question here please?

I used the wash calculator to determine the approx % of alcohol from the wash and came up with 14.70%.
Start wash was 1.094 and end was .980 which gave me 14.70, when I place some of the wash in my test tube and used the alcoholometer to see if it would give the same reading I was dumbfounded that it showed a reading of about 6-7%, is there a reason for this or can't you use the alcoholometer to measure an un distilled wash.

BTW it was a turbo wash mix ( my last one as I am using the TPW, just didn't want to waste the turbo since I paid for it).
And yes I use an air still for all the purists out there, due to room constraints, but I use the chart that has been circulating done by MOZR (I believe).

you hit it right there mate.... Alcometers arent real accurate in a wash. Trust your Hydrometer :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Thanks Kimbo, I thought I might of been doing something wrong. But it's all good yay. :text-thankyoublue:

I don't seem to be very good at finding the answers to some of my questions ... perhaps they are irrelevant, BUT (I have a big butt :laughing-rolling: ):-

Is there a calculator that tells you, once you do it correctly, how much alcohol you would produce per gram or Kilo of grain? Would that depend on the method used to ferment it?

I don't want to go out and spend all my money on grain only find out that it produces more alcohol than I can handle ... if you get my drift. I'd like to get a better feeling on how much grain would be required to make XYZ litres of alcohol so that I don't spend needed $$ in grain that I could use to get more Yeast/ bottles/ other required equipment and materials...

Keep in mind, I'm starting out and am at the biggest cost stage of this whole process - set-up.

different grains have different starch/sugar content

WTDist wrote:different grains have different starch/sugar content

OK, is there a rough table or calculator? Was hoping for a little more...

Read this viewtopic.php?f=12&t=5399

What you're after is really a mash bill calculator, there's plenty available but many who are keen simply create their own.
The grain suppliers can provide you with the spec sheet for your grain alternatively download one of the many home brewing/beer apps such as brew mate.

Thank you Jacob, excellent thread and I have read it, front to back. It didn't, from memory, answer my question - I will revisit tonight.

TheMechwarrior wrote:What you're after is really a mash bill calculator, there's plenty available but many who are keen simply create their own.
The grain suppliers can provide you with the spec sheet for your grain alternatively download one of the many home brewing/beer apps such as brew mate.

OK, did not know that. Does this 'spec sheet' have a specific name or do I refer to it as just that, a spec sheet?!?

I may be way off here but wouldn't you be better off looking in the recipe section. They will give you a list of ingredients and the size of wash then work on 8-10% alc depending on how much sugar you use. If you are doing all grain then look at brendans recipes I'm pretty sure it tells you in there. Might be easier than reverse engineering a recipe?

EziTasting wrote:

WTDist wrote:different grains have different starch/sugar content

OK, is there a rough table or calculator? Was hoping for a little more...

Grains differ in there potential but the biggest difference will be in your mashing procedure efficiency.

Most home brewers are happy with 80% efficiency, that is getting 80% of the total sugars.
Very hard to know exactly how much grain you'll need before you know how well you system will work. :think:

Thanks guys.

Is there a calculator to help with increasing ABV. Only see a dilution calc.

Please move if this is the wrong place - i am trying to work out how much 90%abv I need to add to 5L of 40%abv to get it up to 60%abv.

Use the dilute calc and drop the -
I have done this and it seems to be close enough :?

That approach is no good, it'll get you to 52.5 %. You'll need to add 3.333 L of 90% to get 5 L of 40 % up to 60 %.

Can we add a calculator for it?

:text-+1: I use "to make" calculator more than dilution.