Aussiedistiller, Home Distilling, Moonshine, Home Brew

Hi Brendan,
As EG said the flanges need a flat mating surface with the glass. I used a rough file across the easy flange mating surface to create a flat surface about 5mm wide around the whole flange. Ive used the same sort of silicone baking sheet seals as you (thanks for that tip) and mine has sealed up fine. I reckon if you make sure the flanges are flat before tightening the sight glasses you will be OK. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Thanks rustee...I've found two problems with my SG flanges...there is a slight rocking in the glass against it, but also they are a bit wider (more than 5 mm), so think the clamp doesn't grip the glass evenly...

Will file it down and hammer them today (for the 1000th time) :-D

Want be doing vinegar and cleaning run this afternoon!

Hey Brendan,
Yeah mate, sight glass ferrule needs to be flat. I cracked a couple because of a rocking on the glass. Fixed it with a 5" random orbit sander. Just sat the sander on there and ran it till there was no more rock. If ya know somebody with one it could be worth a go.

Bushy

Fuck sight glasses

Brendan, i feel that. Try Harry's'method. Aquaium grade silicone. He uses a release agent ont the glass, puts the silicone on the flange so the gasket is reusable. Ive just siliconed them to the flange and fleft them on untill they need to be removed for any reason. I dont like it as much as i like teflon, but it works great. Dont kill yourself here. Get some silicone, gasket er up and go. Re-visit it again later with a fresh attitude if desired. Fuck, if he does it...right?

Thanks guys...grandfather has got a big sanding disc running off the back of the shaft on his lathe, might give them a good hit on that...should be the same as an orbital sander :think:

Brendan wrote:Fuck sight glasses

Love sight glasses :-D

Thanks to everyone for their input...I have ordered a heap more SG's from Mac, but realising I had only 6 good ones left, I took to the ferrules with the 6" sanding disc on a bench grinder until even a thou of rocking was removed and they were dead flat.

And what do you know, they all sealed without much pressure and did not crack overnight :D

Maiden cleaning runs in the morning :handgestures-thumbupleft:

p.s. Anything I should know before running vinegar through a bubbler? I know it's slightly harder to condense, so should I still be expecting to full reflux it and expect all plates to load as normal?

Cheers

I would have thought there's no way plates load with vinegar?

Experts? Will plates load like they do with a higher abv?

Well done mate :handgestures-thumbupleft: bushy is a bit of wolf in sheeps clothing I think, no flies on him :smile: . Why would it matter if it will load the plates?, it's only a cleaning run, run it hard With the rc off I thought would be the go for a good blast throughout. You have windows, you'll know soon enough of it will ;-) .

BackyardBrewer wrote:I would have thought there's no way plates load with vinegar?

Experts? Will plates load like they do with a higher abv?

as long as you can condense the vapour, the plates will load mate ;-)

Hey Brendan,
Glad ya sorted out the glass caper. Don't worry about the reflux with yr vinegar run. Ya just wanna blow vinegar through it so that you can call it clean. (-|
The sacrificial is the one to load yr plates and see all yr hard work hard at work. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

So stop pissfartin about and run that still.

To the tune of two fists beating on the table
"Run the still, Run the still, Run the still"

Using white gloves bushy, run that still run that still run that still :))

Run the still! Run the still!

Congrate dude, tyou worked hards for it. I can hear it singing now..."Come on baby light my fire.."

Run that bitch!

Kimbo wrote:

BackyardBrewer wrote:I would have thought there's no way plates load with vinegar?

Experts? Will plates load like they do with a higher abv?

as long as you can condense the vapour, the plates will load mate ;-)

Interesting as the first signs wash has given up all it's booze is when then plates collapses and won't load...

You will prob need to run it a bit harder, but as bushy said its not necessary.

BackyardBrewer wrote:

Kimbo wrote:

BackyardBrewer wrote:I would have thought there's no way plates load with vinegar?

Experts? Will plates load like they do with a higher abv?

as long as you can condense the vapour, the plates will load mate ;-)

Interesting as the first signs wash has given up all it's booze is when then plates collapses and won't load...

do you mean on a normal run?, it would. Would have to have good heat and good reflux to knock down and hold water vapor.

Vinegar boils close to the same temp as water. Just get it all hot and steamy.
If you want you can try and knock it down. If you can load your plates with vinegar, its a good sign you can throw what you want at that RC and win. If it dont load, it could just be settings, so don't fret.
Sacrificial alc run is a good chance to practice, but unless its a full wash charge, don't expect a full wash charge to behave the same.
You've crossed to the dark side now mate.

Longest 6 weeks of my life, this has been :D
run the still,
run the still,
run the still.

Howdy,

A picy is worth plenty of words...

Vinegar does just cover the plates if you run it fairly hard it's no way like a spirit bubbling plate btw ...here's the glasser in a vinegar run...


estimate it at about 5mm- 1mm in depth

bt1

As Mr Blackboard would sy "Oh hurry up!!!"

Chill out blokes, it's running with vinegar at the moment...

'John Guest' quick connect tubes and valves are running like a dream :handgestures-thumbupleft:

I'm really excited to see where that alcometer floats at with the alcohol cleaning run :-D