TPW with a Cranky Column

[dropbear]

Guys I'm mixing my first TPW this weekend. I'm only doing a 22L wash the first time just to see how long it takes to still.

Most threads seem to say do a striping run on a pot still first but all I have is a Cranky with the extention.

Should I do a first run without the extension and packing to try and do a striping run that way? or should I not bother and just run it with the extension and packing?

Also for a cleaning run I've read people say to boil some viniger and water. How much of each and for how long?

Cheers,
Dropbear

[unsub]

Stripping run should be fine with the extension and most of the packing removed but because it's that particular still you will probably need to watch the temp and water flow carefully.

As for the cleaning run there is a good tutorial posted here I have used and it works a treat, viewtopic.php?f=41&t=467 There was a lot of crap that came out of the cranky still I bought when I cleaned it.

[dropbear]

Thanks for the reply.

Yeah I have read that tutorial but it doesn't mention quantities.

So are we talking a couple of cap fulls of vineger to 5L of water? or more like 1L on vineger to 5L of water?

Cheers
Dropbear

[Trustme imdrunk]

I've never run only 20odd litres, in a 50 ltr keg. . . 40 litres is what we normally run. anyways, you can either wait for another 20 litres to add, or run with what you have??!!


We have done about 10 TPW 40litre runs with the cranky extendo rig, all with pretty good success.

Crankys instructions suggest 500ml of water coolant per 2 minutes (i think??) We found the MORE water the better ABV, and it also keeps the temp down nicely, and when I say more, I mean MORE WATER!! We use a 44 gal drum to collect the waste water, then when it's cool, pour it on some plants....

Good luck!

[unsub]

So are we talking a couple of cap fulls of vineger to 5L of water? or more like 1L on vineger to 5L of water?

First thing I do is clean the still with a non-scratch scourer/sponge and flush it through with water before doing a cleaning run.

Probably not the best way but all I do is dump a no name brand 2 litre bottle of vinegar in the keg and top it up to about 25-30l, boil the shit out of it until the liquid coming out is clear, leave it boil for a bit longer and then flush it all with fresh hot water. You need to make sure you have enough water in the boiler to keep the element covered at all times if you are using electric.

[dropbear]

Thanks unsub,

sounds good to me.
I'll be using gas so no need to worry about the element