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gad's first build

PostPosted: Mon Aug 12, 2019 6:40 pm
by gad
Having recently retired & being a little bored at times I thought I'd have a go at making a pot still. My experience so far has been limited to making a parrot & a carbon filter.
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I had intended to buy 1M of 2” copper tube & use it for both the column & shotty PC but then thought I may be able to make some sort of a reflux extension with half of the 2” at a later time so I went with a Liebig condenser after reading this post https://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=87&t=9247
So, Sat I started my build with the Liebig which is 620mm long, 3/4" over 1/2" with a solid copper wire turbulator soldered onto the vapour tube and coiled copper wire inside the 1/2" vapor tube (removable). I don't know what gauge the copper wire is, just stripped the plastic coating off some I had lying around. I also forgot to take any photo's prior to soldering it all up.
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Today, Monday, I bought some copper parts from the plumber's (only way I could get it). I have decided to split the 1M 2” tube into two & join them with a tri-clamp. Was pretty apprehensive about making easy flanges but once you do one, it's easy enough.
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Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Mon Aug 12, 2019 6:41 pm
by gad
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Will post some more pics when I get some more done.

Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Mon Aug 12, 2019 7:08 pm
by bluc
Great start :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Mon Aug 12, 2019 7:11 pm
by Wobblyboot
Some tidy work there :handgestures-thumbupleft: have u looked at local scrappys? Iv found lotsa good gear at mine :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Mon Aug 12, 2019 8:08 pm
by dans.brew
Nice stuff Gad!
I wouldn't mind borrowing some of your spare time... trouble is, my list of one day jobs is getting bigger and bigger. :laughing-rolling:
Keep up the nice work. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Tue Aug 13, 2019 5:17 pm
by gad
Used to work near a scrappy but never had any luck there on the few times I tried. Had a feeling they may have been holding anything worth while for someone else but not sure. They are a long way from where I live.
I took eight months long service leave & hols before retiring & for a very long time I wondered where I ever got the time to go to work. Was busy, busy, busy. Almost twelve months since then & things have slowed down, pretty much caught up with everything.

Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Tue Aug 13, 2019 5:23 pm
by gad
Had originally set out to make a pot still & perhaps make a reflux extension at a later time but had been thinking about this ever since. This morning I thought I'd add a RC before putting the head together. I did make this a lot harder than it should have been. I had no copper tubing to fit over the 2” column to make the RC jacket so decided to make one from the left over 3/8” tube used on the Leibig. I did manage to spot solder it to the column & then patch it all up with copper epoxy. Not perfect but should look OK when I'm finished.
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Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Thu Aug 15, 2019 9:42 am
by gad
Assembled. The three sections spent the night in a mild citric bath. The extension had to be left out for this photo as the tri-clamps I have on order won't arrive until tomorrow (only have one).
Will use the dunder from a third gen rum strip with a couple of litres of vinegar added for the cleaning run tomorrow. Will also put down a 45L sacrificial wash tomorrow so probably a week+ before it's run.

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Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Thu Aug 15, 2019 8:12 pm
by Professor Green
I'm not sure I understand what you're doing with the RC gad. It looks like a liebig style condenser which at that scale will not hold any vapor back at all.

I'm not so sure about that copper putty either to be honest.

Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Thu Aug 15, 2019 8:27 pm
by bluc
:text-+1: with proffesor may bump abv 5% but aint gunna help seperation..

Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Fri Aug 16, 2019 4:36 pm
by gad
G'day
The copper epoxy, even though the instructions say " Chemical resistance: Resistant to hydrocarbons, ketones, alchohols, esters, halocarbons, aqueous salt solutions and dilute acids and basis." I would NEVER use it in the vapour path.
The RC is just a jacket / sleeve that goes around the column so that cooling water can cool the column at the top of where, in this case , the SS scrubbers will go (inside the column) when running in reflux mode. While the RC condenser was a rush, rough job & could have been done much better, I had this epoxy sitting around for several weeks & thought that even if I did do a rough job of it I could always use the epoxy to shape & seal it. It's good for up to 140 deg C. It's served it's purpose & is in no way contacting the vapour path. What I'm doing with the RC condenser is making this pot still into a CM still while I'm at it, run the RC whilst refluxing, disconnect it for pot still operation ... viewtopic.php?f=57&t=3117

Will post again soon when I process some photo's but I can say that the Leibig condenser was knocking down the vapour at 500ml p/m with out any problem at all !

Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Fri Aug 16, 2019 5:32 pm
by scythe
See if you can solder some elbows to those RC water lines.
As they are currently, I feel they will be prone to kinking easily.

Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Fri Aug 16, 2019 6:37 pm
by gad
Received an email from Aust.Post this morning saying my tri-clamps were coming today, great. Transferred the rum wash into a keg for stripping ( different still, not this one). Planned to run the wash down to 30%, turn it off, throw in 2L of Vinegar, whack the new still on & do the cleaning run.
I was getting a little worried as I'd already gone down past 40% when the wife came out with a little parcel (said he didn't even knock, just left it on the bench seat), you beauty, ripped the packaging off, couple of little boxes that said fitness watches or some such thing, grrrrr, nah, must have just packed them in these boxes, open a box & whoa & behold, damn fitness watches. Grabbed the packaging & read the address label (small print) …. I live at No 10 & this package was for a guy that lived at No 16. Grrrrrr. Wife said my package was probably at his place, told her I couldn't leave the still while it was running & could she go check it out, take pen & paper in case no ones home as they may not appreciate the fact that the packaging had all been ripped to pieces. I'd hit 30% & turned it off before she returned empty handed. Said no one was home & left the parcel on the porch. Had the little lady phoning Aust.Post & eventually the guy came back with the right parcel. Then, I hadn't tested my flanges with a gasket between them & damn, I couldn't get them to fit. In a flurry I was hammering the flanges, grinding the ends with emery paper etc etc
Finally had everything fit together, yahoo. Turned it on & let it go. First parrot reading said 36% and I ran it down to 10% before turning it off. I had the RC connected only to check for leaks, there was no packing in the column.
Went like a dream, no leaks, was knocking down the vapour at 500ml p/m (which is bugger all). The Leibig PC never got hot at all, was a little hot above the exit hose but that was it. I ran it for a few minutes with the cooling water off so it could have a bit of a steam bath but I feel very uncomfortable when I see steam coming from a still so I didn't let it run like that for long.
Put down the sacrificial wash this morning (now that my large fermenter was free), 45L WBAB (had all the ingredients & didn't need anything else) & will run when ready.
I'm Chuffed !!!! …............ now, what'll I do next week ?
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Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Fri Aug 16, 2019 6:42 pm
by gad
scythe wrote:See if you can solder some elbows to those RC water lines.
As they are currently, I feel they will be prone to kinking easily.


The hose connectors are right at the end of the copper tubes & won't kink. In the cleaning run (photo's above) I had the PC exit hose connected to the RC inlet only because I was testing for leaks. When I run it in reflux mode I will have separate lines for both condenser's (mainly so I can close off the RC when done & then collect feints down to 20%).

Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Thu Aug 29, 2019 3:33 pm
by gad
The sacrificial run. 45L WBAB. (48L in fermenter, Start SG1082 Final SG 910).
Took off 100ml foreshots before turning on the RC (upper column only filled with SS scrubbers). First parrot ABV was 75%. 1L 84%, 2L 83%, 3L 80% (as it's the still's sac. run I did play around with the cooling on both condensers a fair bit, generally the temp at the top of the column stayed stable). Turned off the RC at this point & collected the rest, 80% down to 23%, in pot still mode. Averaged app 30 min per Litre all up.
The Leibig condenser ran at app 500ml per min (measured 450ml the one time I did measure it) & had no trouble at all (my single element is only 2200W).

Problems: had a very small, slow drip from the inlet end of the PC, small gap in solder, easy fixed.
Will take Scythe's advice & solder on some elbows to both the inlet & outlet of the RC as well as the outlet on the PC. The RC connector hoses, whilst OK while water was running through them, didn't appreciate the heat too much when I turned it off.

Don't normally run reflux on a one off wash, so not real sure how this went. I'd be expecting a higher ABV on a 40% Low Wines reflux run but it's going to take some time before I can try that. I also need to learn the coolant flow rates through trial & error.

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Re: gad's first build

PostPosted: Wed Oct 16, 2019 4:48 pm
by gad
First full spirit run today. Parrot showing 93% so around 92% which isn't bad IMHO.
I'm happy!
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