Pot still

[googe]

Hey all, just wondering if this slap together half assed pot still will do for a first one?. Going to put a 2 ring burner under it for 25L wash. Thanks for any feed back.
Bloody hell my sheds a mess!!! :-|

Cheers

[mitcho89]

She looks good mate! Very good work for a first. Heat source may be your only problem, You'll need a pretty high output regulator and maybe a 3-4 ring burner but I'm sure the veterans will guide you in the right direction.

- Mitch.

[googe]

Thanks mate, was wondering if it might not be big enough. Might have to wait longer till i can afford a bigger one :crying-blue:

[MacStill]

As long as the worm has a steady downhill slope it looks good & will work fine, only thing would be your burner will make heat up pretty slow..... but it will work :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[bt1]

+1 Mcstill

It's fine bloke,

I started with a 2 ring years ago not fast but hey...

Tip: don't take the heat of the wash while settling if you can will save an hour or so heating up.

bt1

[crow]

Yeah bout that burner , personally I wouldn't fuck around with it . buy , make , borrow , beg , steal a better one . Check this bruz ya might come around to my way of thinking
viewtopic.php?f=25&t=1211&start=100#p17562

[googe]

Thanks Mcstill, its got a steady downhill flow. I think i will go the 3 burner, dam!, more brownie points down the drain ha. Thanks bt1, what exactly do you mean by this?, "Tip: don't take the heat of the wash while settling if you can will save an hour or so heating up." Bloody hell croweater that sounds painfull!!, wont be going down that road i hope haha.

[Sam.]

Think he meant don't take the heater off the wash and let it cool before charging the boiler. Huge difference between heating a 10 degree wash and a 30 degree wash

[googe]

ahh okies, with ya now. Cheers

[emptyglass]

Depends on how many brownie points you got in the bank, and how hard it is to get brownie points back.

A 3 ring or 747 would do good, but a 2 ring will work. Not many more clams for a 3 ring, and it will run on 2, or 1.

I found I got the best from a pot if I heated up slow and stedy. Yes, I've had the bottom ring glowing red, but I found it smeared things if you pump too much heat in too fast. You have to back off before collection starts, or it will all taste like heads and tails.
Try it both ways.

Either way, super heat is only helpful for boil up time. A jacket will help you get there fast too.

S&L has a good point, the warmer you can put your wash in, the less boil up time.

[googe]

Thanks for the info WineGlass, helps alot. I ll do a lot of experimenting when i get it up and running, dont want to harm myself or anyone else for that matter. I have a fair amount of spare time some weekends so go slow doesnt bother me. Cheers again.

[googe]

Also, when i do a test run for leaks and such, do i run it flatout with just water?. Or will the cleaning run nut out any probs?. Cheers

[cdbrown]

I'd definitely recommend getting a medium pressure adjustable reg first. Just can't get the gas out fast enough with the LP (normal bbq) regulators regardless of what burner is attached. Get the reg and use it with the 2-ring, until you've got the brownie points to upgrade the burner.

[SBB]

Going to put a 2 ring burner under it for 25L wash.

A 2 ring job should go ok on 25 litres, would probably be painfully slow if you had 40L in that keg though.

[bt1]

googe save ur $,

+1 sam ...yeh meant exactly that...a warm wash to start with will save time...

start with the 2 ring it ain't fast but hell no one has ever yet to my knowledge said "this whisky was made with a 2 ring...i can taste it" i.e. other than time makes shit all diff.

enjoy
bt1

[googe]

Thanks all, i think i ll stick with the 3 burner, i do want to do some bigger washes down the track. I ll just use the normal reg for now and see how it goes, will change it if need be. No sence going big first up, its only cost me $60 to build it so far so im happy. Cheers