How do i know when the run is over???

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How do i know when the run is over???

Postby Redux » Sat Jun 07, 2014 2:29 pm

brew room 1.jpg


using the wee still in the pic.. is the run over once the temp starts to climb?

i was expecting 19-20 125 ml jars but the flow has slowed and the temp has gone up by 3 deg at only 13 jars..

is it over?

cheers redux
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby Redux » Sat Jun 07, 2014 2:51 pm

just pulled the pin...temp went up 1 more deg and output dropped to 1 drop every 2 sec....

14 jars not counting 200ish mls fores...

not a great yield but i learnt a lot...

cheers redux
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby agro » Sat Jun 07, 2014 4:42 pm

i have a similar setup but with a t500 condenser, after my wife doing a rough cut run for me we ended up with about 3 liters (heads, hearts and tails) from a tpw (my first tpw) hope this helps
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby Redux » Sat Jun 07, 2014 4:47 pm

hmmmm i ended up with 2 lt..

oh well i did ferment it very cool.... down to 10 at night....

tastes ok tho... :obscene-drinkingcheers:

cheers redux
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby Yummyrum » Sat Jun 07, 2014 5:39 pm

Hi redux. I used that still for a few years.From memory the still will run from around 78-85 deg in a typical run down to about 65deg C.These stills have next to no reflux so the purity is very poor and as you found if you try to maintain temp it will almost stop output.

In the end I used to do two runs. A fast strippng run and then a spirit run.Although it is very hard to get good reflux , you will end up with a purer product .
.
On the stripping run I would run the still untill well into the 90 deg where the avb would be down near 20-30 %ABV
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby SBB » Sat Jun 07, 2014 6:28 pm

Redux wrote:is it over?

Im thinking the only way with one of those would be to keep checking for tails, Smell / taste tails , its all over.
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby Redux » Sat Jun 07, 2014 6:47 pm

SBB wrote:
Redux wrote:is it over?

Im thinking the only way with one of those would be to keep checking for tails, Smell / taste tails , its all over.


output almost stopped so i pulled the pin. i run outside and it was only 13 deg here today so im wondering if that made any difference.(the boiler was wrapped in a 10mm foam sheet for insulation)

im airing the jars now but i cant smell any difference from any of them yet, ill leave them out overnight to see if i can pick up any differences tomorrow... ill re read the cuts guide tomorrow and see if i can pick anything up.

time will tell...

cheers redux
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby beeksy » Sun Jun 08, 2014 7:43 am

I had the exact same still for about 5 years and well still to. Id feel bad for the person if i gave it to him for free.

I made winoes plain old sugar wash the most but tried alot of others aswell. I was doing strip/spirit runs and cuts but never got a product i was happy with. I put it down to that narrow column and how it works inside and that it was smearing all the time. (My 2c only)

Since built a pot and boka. Best investment yet
My 2c
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby Redux » Sun Jun 08, 2014 8:01 am

im starting my boka build today....

:handgestures-thumbupleft: :handgestures-thumbupleft:
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby Smbjk » Sun Jun 08, 2014 1:47 pm

Redux wrote:
SBB wrote:
Redux wrote:is it over?

Im thinking the only way with one of those would be to keep checking for tails, Smell / taste tails , its all over.


output almost stopped so i pulled the pin. i run outside and it was only 13 deg here today so im wondering if that made any difference.(the boiler was wrapped in a 10mm foam sheet for insulation)

im airing the jars now but i cant smell any difference from any of them yet, ill leave them out overnight to see if i can pick up any differences tomorrow... ill re read the cuts guide tomorrow and see if i can pick anything up.

time will tell...

cheers redux


Shouldn't make too much difference. You will know when you hit tails, the smell is very obvious compared to heads and hearts. Maybe you wash didnt ferment out properly, having said that I usually get 4lt of 95% from a 45lt charge on my bok. But that's prior to cuts, so you may be in the ball park figure
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby Yummyrum » Sun Jun 08, 2014 2:36 pm

Thing with these still spirit reflux stills is they are only marginally better than a pot still so there is no sudden tails as we normally get with a better reflux still that can easily make a 90+ % ABV spirit.

The best you can expect on a single run is around 70% .Being like a pot , it is just one continual smear feom start to finish.It not about when the the tails come on but rather how smelly you can stand them.

Thats why I said I personnally would stop around 65% ABV ....beyond that , the cardboard it too wet
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby mlb1263 » Sun Jun 08, 2014 3:22 pm

I am using this one as well, modified it by adding a 2 inch SS reflux column 750 mm high filled with SS scrubbers.
This setup gives me 95% output, I have noticed when packing is too tight the column throws up, keep the packing very loose so it does not happen.
I double distill
I discard first 250ml on the first run, and 250ml on second distillation run,just to be sure, start the second run at 40%. ( mix your first run from 95% down to 40%)
run your water flow to keep the temp of the output water so it does not feel warm when you touch the water.
the last run I collect in 500ml lots in numbered bottles #1, #2 ect ...., when the tails taste/smell happens ( smells like wet cardboard) and the column temp goes above 89-90 C , usually the strength drops below 90%, I stop and discard the last 500ml.
The middle bottles should be your heart ( should taste smooth and little sweeter than the rest, little or no burn on the tongue) , good to make vodka, the rest I blend into scotch, whiskey bourbon ect ...
I hope this helps .........

Regards,
MrBeer ........
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby whiskeyshiner » Sun Jun 08, 2014 3:28 pm

Wet dog smell mate best description i heard of tails as has already been said very easy to determine when compared to heads hearts cut :handgestures-thumbupleft:
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby Salter » Mon May 28, 2018 11:20 pm

Redux wrote:im starting my boka build today....

:handgestures-thumbupleft: :handgestures-thumbupleft:


From what I understand, a Boka needs a temp controller on the boiler, right?!
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby RC Al » Tue May 29, 2018 9:48 am

There is no need for temp control on a boiler at all for any type of still.
Power control, yes. Some get bye by using an element around the size that would be the norm for the diameter of their column, but (especially for a pot still) some type of power control is necessary for optimal still tuning.

Mate, you might just want to take notes and put all your general questions into a new single post in the newbie section, check the dates of the posts your commenting on, there is a great number of members who are active when joining, but as their experience grows, attendance drops off, So a 4 year old post, will most likely be lucky to have one or two of the original participants left active on the forum. :D

If you have a question specific to the post, ask away :handgestures-thumbupleft:
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby tazplass » Thu Jul 05, 2018 10:42 pm

mlb1263 wrote:I am using this one as well, modified it by adding a 2 inch SS reflux column 750 mm high filled with SS scrubbers.
This setup gives me 95% output, I have noticed when packing is too tight the column throws up, keep the packing very loose so it does not happen.
I double distill
I discard first 250ml on the first run, and 250ml on second distillation run,just to be sure, start the second run at 40%. ( mix your first run from 95% down to 40%)
run your water flow to keep the temp of the output water so it does not feel warm when you touch the water.
the last run I collect in 500ml lots in numbered bottles #1, #2 ect ...., when the tails taste/smell happens ( smells like wet cardboard) and the column temp goes above 89-90 C , usually the strength drops below 90%, I stop and discard the last 500ml.
The middle bottles should be your heart ( should taste smooth and little sweeter than the rest, little or no burn on the tongue) , good to make vodka, the rest I blend into scotch, whiskey bourbon ect ...
I hope this helps .........

Regards,
MrBeer ........


Hi Mr Beer

I have one of these stills and was always wondering about making a mod to it.Can you give me details/photos on what you did

Cheers
Steve
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby Dig Brinker » Thu Jul 05, 2018 11:27 pm

Good luck, taz
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby The Stig » Fri Jul 06, 2018 9:08 am

There is s very simple pipe extension mod that transforms these stills no end.
Look around see if you can find it and implement it :handgestures-thumbupleft:
Last edited by The Stig on Fri Jul 06, 2018 9:15 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: How do i know when the run is over???

Postby Jimmy. » Thu Oct 18, 2018 10:09 am

There was an off the shelf extension you could buy for these at one stage, made a world of difference. Also changing the packing material.
We used to pull 92-94% off the still consistently.
As stated its hard to tell the tails from the hearts though.

I will be running copper for the next lot to see if that improved the flavor of the base, but for what most of the family wants, the tails are not a big concern (liqueurs)

We also used to stop it when the drips slowed right down and the temp started to rise
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