Hello from another SA Outcast

[Ken]

Hello all. Just thought I'd say g'day as a new user here.

I live out near Mt.Pleasant in the Adelaide hills and thought that I'd better give this distilling caper a go after so many years of brewing beer.

So I got ambitious and built myself a valved offset head fractionating column from a design from that "other" distilling site in the US. I made it from scavenged 2" and 3" copper tube and a 50 litre West End beer keg :)) .
I heat the whole deal with a 93Mj gas ring with a 9kg bbq attached.
About the only things I had to purchase for the whole setup were a couple of 2" Tee's and some 2" and 3" caps at a ridiculous price that just about had me spewin. The rest of the other odds and ends I either fabricated or machined up on my lathe.
I've got a decent sized block (34ha :)) ) so have plenty of room to do things like distilling without attracting undue attention from neighbours etc but my only limitation is the quantity of water I can use as it all comes from the domestic rainwater tanks attached to the house ,so I need to be a little careful with that. (I can just imagine the fallout from the missus if there was no water left for flushing the crapper after doing some 'stilling out in the shed. It just doesn't bear thinking about.)

So anyway, the ethyl comes off the condenser at about 93% with this setup with no funny flavours or colours so I'm quite happy with the outcome.
It was so easy in fact it made me wonder why I hadn't given that beer brewing mullarkey away years ago. No more rinsing and sterilising endless bottles and boiling up gallons of sticky malt extract. :obscene-birdiedoublered: Woohoo! Beermaking is just so much hard work compared to this and the results are inconsistent at best unless you are really kitted up for it.

I've done 4 washes so far, a couple turbos and a couple of bakers yeast sugar washes, results are comparable if you ask me.
Have been flavouring with commercial flavourings and have also experimented with oak chipping. Keen on bourbons and scotches the most but am still learning, vodka is just too easy so haven't really bothered with that.
So far everything has been more than drinkable and I've received a number of compliments and numerous requests asking for more, so I guess I must be doing something right.

Anyway, that's me, I hope to be able to share experiences and knowledge with some of you in the future!
:text-thankyoublue:

[Woodsy71]

Well mate :smile:

Looks like your more than capable of sailing the ship.

Welcome aboard :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Sam.]

Welcome :handgestures-thumbupleft:

What type of drinks are you making?

And the million dollar question.....................do you do cuts? :D

[SBB]

G'day Ken, Just wondering what sugar wash recipe you used?

my only limitation is the quantity of water I can use as it all comes from the domestic rainwater tanks attached to the house ,so I need to be a little careful with that.

There is a simple solution to that problem, buy a cheap Bunnings submersible pump and recycle your water. Tank- Still - Tank.

[Ken]

Thanks for the welcomes guys.
Yes, after ditching the first 150ml of foreshot I collect into numerous 350ml jars (small coffee jars) and let it sit for 12 hours or so with the lid off to air out the hot ETOH.
Still new to this, but can certainly sense the progression from the early part of the run to the later parts, where things tend to go from the nice estery smells in the beginning to wet cardboard towards the end of the run.
Uncertain as to how I'm really meant to be blending these cuts together, but like I say, still learning and open to advice. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Sam.]

Ah, good stuff mate :handgestures-thumbupleft:

If your using a reflux for purity then you only really want to keep the hearts in the middle. The heads and tails can be recycled as feints to put in your next run or save all your feints and do an all feints run. ;-)

[Zak Griffin]

Welcome mate. South Aussies are always welcome :handgestures-thumbupleft:

We'd love to see a pic of your rig!

As the lads have said, a submersible pump will solve all of your water dramas.

If you want to make whiskey, you will want a pot still or a bubbler... There's plenty of recipes to be found here to suit your tastes.

For making neutral, you want to be tossing the heads and tails (or collecting them separately for a feints run), and keeping the hearts

[Yummyrum]

g'day Ken.
sounds like you're well ahead ...great stuff.

I'm on tank water too ...LOL ,just had to buy in 12,000 liters to day @ $180 .

I've got a small 2,000 liter tank by the shed .I'm on a slopping block so I Distill with the water fed from the 2,000 L tank and the waste goes down into the House 22,000 L tank .Nothing wasted .
If I get low in the Shed tank ,I just stick the hose in it and top it up .........also having 2,000 liters up your sleeve means when the missus turns on the tap and nothing comes out ,dump the 2,000L into the house tank and call the water man :happy-partydance:

Some just use a 1000 liter IBC and a Pump

[Ken]

G'day Ken, Just wondering what sugar wash recipe you used?

my only limitation is the quantity of water I can use as it all comes from the domestic rainwater tanks attached to the house ,so I need to be a little careful with that.

There is a simple solution to that problem, buy a cheap Bunnings submersible pump and recycle your water. Tank- Still - Tank.

I did a recipe that the yanks on the other site call "Birdwatchers" . Basically a sugar and bakers yeast wash with DAP and a squeeze of lemon. Seems to work quite well although was rather slow despite making some good attempts to keep it warm. A good chance that I'm probably using a different yeast to the US guys too so results will vary.
Other washes were just a packet off SS classic and a shed load of white sugar which basically explodes for a couple of days and ends up at around 16% after 10 days or so.

Was running my cooling water onto the ground initially but after I realised how long the run was taking I thought to myself, bugger me, I must have dumped a couple of thousand litres right there, must do something about that. Very low rainfall out here, only about 12".
So basically have been running the outlet hose from the condenser back into the gutter of the house so it goes back into the rainwater tanks. Not an ideal situation but is ok for the time being.

[Zak Griffin]

TPW - click me is our go-to neutral wash for beginners mate... You'll find it hard to go wrong.

[bt1]

Welcome bloke,

Nice to see another South Aussie here. if you need a hand sourcing gear in Adelaide just let us know we've most things well sorted.

If it's scotches/bourbons I'd be suggesting weetbix wash...may as well start with the carry through flavours you want.

enjoy
bt1

[Zak Griffin]

A refluxed CFW might be a good base for bourbon essences...

[Urrazeb]

A refluxed CFW might be a good base for bourbon essences...

:text-+1: I wasn't a big fan of the weetbix wash.. Think the CFW might be the go :handgestures-thumbupleft:

That's the beauty of this hobby.. Don't like it - Change it 8-)

[Ken]

Was thinking of building a pot still type condenser arrangement to fit onto my existing boiler to have a proper go at some whisky actually.
So what if I just hook all of the stainless steel packing out of the column and turn off the reflux valve to distill a proper whisky type mash for instance.
Will I just turn my good fractionating column into a mediocre pot still ? Or is it best to just make a dedicated whisky head for that kind of work?
I'm thinking the latter.

[Bushy]

Hey Ken, Welcome aboard mate :greetings-waveyellow:
Assuming your product condensor can keep up, your column will work fine as a pot still.
Of course that's just the opinion I can offer without SEEING PHOTOS :smile:

[RuddyCrazy]

G'day Ken,
Another Sth Aussie here bout 1/2 an hour down the road going via Harrogate and eh mate if you want to get on and make a bubbler I'm on making one now so who ever said 2's a crowd must be on another planet. I do reckon I have enough copper here to make 2 bubblers so if you want the best and are an honest guy well for what the copper cost me you can have it for and we can chat about making moonshine and have a taste or 3 of the stuff I have left too.... :teasing-tease: . I do have a second keg here also and a mate to weld the required stuff to make beaut boilers.

Anyway if your interested send me a PM and come down for a dwink or 3.... :laughing-rolling:

Cheers Bryan

Still going after 26 hours of non sleep and using pales as stay awake tablets

[Urrazeb]

G'day Ken,
Another Sth Aussie here bout 1/2 an hour down the road going via Harrogate and eh mate if you want to get on and make a bubbler I'm on making one now so who ever said 2's a crowd must be on another planet. I do reckon I have enough copper here to make 2 bubblers so if you want the best and are an honest guy well for what the copper cost me you can have it for and we can chat about making moonshine and have a taste or 3 of the stuff I have left too.... :teasing-tease: . I do have a second keg here also and a mate to weld the required stuff to make beaut boilers.

Anyway if your interested send me a PM and come down for a dwink or 3.... :laughing-rolling:

Cheers Bryan

Still going after 26 hours of non sleep and using pales as stay awake tablets

This is the stuff of a great fourm. Just goes to show the community spirit of Aussie Distiller :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Ken]

Ok, due to popular demand, some pics.

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Will PM you later Bryan1, I've got sick kids on my hands today... :cry:

[Urrazeb]

Shes a bewdy mate :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[RuddyCrazy]

That still design is what I made before I found this forum and found it wasn't the best design so went no further on the build. But it will do for Ken for now and I'm sure a bubbler will be on the cards soon.

Cheers Bryan