Aussiedistiller, Home Distilling, Moonshine, Home Brew

I have read so much about the use of Turbo Yeasts and the off-flavours generated.

Well, I'm almost convinced that there are some off-flavours using the Turbos.

I use a shop-bought reflux type still and always carbon filter the spirit after diluting it to about 38%.

Before using the carbon, I rinse it thoroughly then boil it for 10 minutes. Then dry it using a food dehydrator. Takes about 1/2 hour to dry it. I use one of those stainless steel in-line filters.

After I filtered the last batch (about 9.5 litres @ 38%) I boiled the carbon to try and clean it for future use.

As the carbon was boiling, the stench it gave off smelled like nail polish remover or acetone. A bit like thinners. After about 20 minutes the smell was still there, but not as bad. I used this carbon in the next 'Turbo' wash to try and get rid of some of the impurities during the fermentation. Similar treatment used by Still Spirits by using their 'Turbo Carbon'.

For my next wash I will try the Sugar/Tomato Paste Wash. I will dilute/carbon filter the result as I have the Turbo wash. Then boil the carbon to see what smell it gives.

Yes, I know they claim that you don't have to filter a TPW.

There's only one way to find out.

Cheers

umm yup , if you do proper cuts and don't use dodgy yeasts and nuits you won't need to filter it . If you still need convincing do all this and only filter half then you will know for sure . smelling boiling used carbon will tell you little if anything . Also going through your posts it seems you might not be aware of some good methods for doing cuts . here is a link to some of the most important imfo you will read

viewtopic.php?f=41&t=874
Turbo yeasts and there ilk were developed for the production of fuel alcohol where flavor plays no importance just high ABV , suppliers love it because they can sell 80 cent of yeast for $8 not to mention all the crap to clean it up enough to make it almost drinkable , yes it is as cynical as that . These types of yeasts developed for ultra high , ultra fast ethanol/methanol production have crazy amounts of nutrients mixed in them designed to stress the yeast as much as it will take to get as much as possible from the wash . As I saw someone post : Yeast that is kept happy will eat sugar fart Co2 and piss ethanol push(stress) it and it will shit in ya drink . Boils down to do ya want to drink filtered shit ;-)
Edit Not to be pushy bud but why not duck over to the welcome center introduce ya self

Hi Alkodemon,
hello welcome to the forum,

I no longer filter but rely on making careful conservative cuts

Kiwistiller explains all it very well here viewtopic.php?f=41&t=874

I dont think you are reactivating your carbon when you boil it.

alcodemon wrote:I used this carbon in the next 'Turbo' wash to try and get rid of some of the impurities during the fermentation

do you mean you are reusing the carbon by adding it to the wash while its in the fermenter?

KK

EDIT CE beat me to the post

Guys there is a difference tween 'not needing' to filter and filtering having no benefit.

Neutral spirits will taste cleaner after being properly filtered, that's just the process.

It may well be (and i do agree as i don't use a filter) that a good clean wash run through a very good VM still and impeccable cuts will give you a better than excellent drink. And that you won't need to filter it.
But some of the most respected stillers on the net will tell you when they want the purest, cleanest neutral they can get, they'll filter it.
Pintoshine, Minime, Harry etc.

This experiment sounds good. It should be an indication of cuts. If the heads and tails are succesfully stacked, and then succesfully bled, and then succesfully cut then the boiling carbon should have less smell.

The spirit will be the better for the filtering, even if it was good before.

Hey all,

Thanks for the comments. All appreciated.

The old brain is starting to absorb the info...bit by bit.

RE: Smell of boiling carbon ... When the carbon is new and boiled, there is no smell. After it has been used to filter the spirit and then boiled, there is a very distinct smell given off by the steam. So, it does indicate to me that the filtration process did what it's supposed to do (Or mostly). I can't be bothered filtering again with a fresh load of carbon.

RE: Reactivating Carbon ... It was never my intention to reactivate the carbon. I know it's an involved process to bring it back to original condition. It's cheaper (and safer) to buy it than messing around with high pressure steam. My idea was just a trial. (Still Spirits have a 'Turbo Carbon' that is put into the wash to remove some impurities during the fermentation) After boiling the used carbon for about 15 minutes, I noticed that the smell wasn't as bad as when it started to boil. Had to stop then as the missus needed the stove to cook dinner.

Yes, I did add the boiled, somewhat cleaner, carbon into the next Turbo wash. It may do something or it may do nothing. I'll never know. Worth a go, I guess.

Cheers

Another point to remember if you are going to re-use carbon (I did for a long time).

The first run through do it faster than your second run. If you run spirit through faster the second time it can actually pull the bad flavours back out of the carbon. They are not held there indefinitely it is a relatively weak bond. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

If your talking about the carbon cartridges, they are only meant to be used for one batch of spirit. I know the pros and cons come into the argument, and there is also the fact HomeBrew Shops will tell people anything to sell more.

I use the carbon cartridges myself, but have only reused one for a second filtering of spirit. There is a page somewhere I converted to PDF and uploaded which explains in detail about carbon filtering, and how to properly activate it. I have also read about a product with coconut husk carbon.

Gday,
Ive got a Pure Still filter supplied with my Still so I figure I might as well use it..........I cant do any harm.
I plan on running a couple of batches through it, not the 10 litres recommended and throw it.
The way I see it is if there aren't many impurities in the product the filter shouldn't block up.......if it does block up.......well, its doing its job and there was a need to filter it? Ill time the process to complete and when I notice it slowing change the filter?


Does that sound practical?

Cheers

Hairy wrote:Gday,
Ive got a Pure Still filter supplied with my Still so I figure I might as well use it..........I cant do any harm.
I plan on running a couple of batches through it, not the 10 litres recommended and throw it.
The way I see it is if there aren't many impurities in the product the filter shouldn't block up.......if it does block up.......well, its doing its job and there was a need to filter it? Ill time the process to complete and when I notice it slowing change the filter?


Does that sound practical?

Cheers

I don't believe the carbon filter "blocks up", it just ceases the cleaning/filtering(I could be very wrong). I was told by my HBS owner, an alternative to replacing the cartridges is to thoroughly clean the filter, then put 2-3 tea spoons of active carbon into the cartridge before you seal it back up. The spirit will still pass thru the cartridge and use the active carbon opposed to the spent carbon.
I no longer use this method, nor do I use cartridges if I need to carbon filter. I now place 3 tablespoons of carbon(I rinse it clean first) straight into my 6L glass carboy, and sit it on the shelf for a month, then filter. Leaves me with a nice clean spirit.
-CRB

The dock posted a good thread on carbon filtering
If you carbon filter it just polishes up your product
You can re juvinate your carbon by boiling it for 1 hr and then toasting it it in the oven 225 for 1 hr
He has been uising the same carbon for 3 or so years
I have re juvinated my carbom 4 times

Aussiedownunder01 wrote:The dock posted a good thread on carbon filtering
If you carbon filter it just polishes up your product
You can re juvinate your carbon by boiling it for 1 hr and then toasting it it in the oven 225 for 1 hr
He has been uising the same carbon for 3 or so years
I have re juvinated my carbom 4 times

I think this is the thread Aussie is referring too See here

Cheers Ill give it a go.....

Hairy wrote:Cheers Ill give it a go.....

You said in the other thread that you have wrote down the TPW recipe. Doing your cuts properly with that and you can throw your carbon filter in the bin ;-)

The only time I would consider carbon filtering would be for the white rum gear or if you wanted an absolutely perfectly clean spirit for real delicate infusions.

Seeming I like malt I don't think either is a worry for me 8-}