Filtering yes i know its frowned apon

[JDB]

There is a great book on another home distiller site about types of activated carbon, methods of use and how to re-use it. A quick google search should find it.

[the Doctor]

When you say granular carbon what size are the granules :-B is it a bit like black sand :-B

A bit coarser than that mate...more like fine vermiculite or course rock salt...
Doc

[1 2many]

Buggar the stuff i bought is a lot finer more like sand , should still work will give it a go. :doh:

[MacStill]

Buggar the stuff i bought is a lot finer more like sand , should still work will give it a go. :doh:

I'm sure it will be fine mate, most of the stuff in the HBS is the same as you have :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[the Doctor]

Buggar the stuff i bought is a lot finer more like sand , should still work will give it a go. :doh:

Mate that will work fine... if you look at this stuff under a microscope it has millions of natural pores...I think you would have to go very fine for it to make any difference.
Doc

[1 2many]

I think with the size carbon I have i won't pack it down just give a good shake and then just hold down with rock wool..

[the Doctor]

I think with the size carbon I have i won't pack it down just give a good shake and then just hold down with rock wool..

I agree give it a tap to get the air out and good to go mate.
Doc

[Kimbo]

Doesn't the rockwool have pigments in it?

[Aussiedownunder01]

I recon Dacron like they use in fish filters would be the go

[gad]

"Saltwater Aquarium Rockwool"

I phoned the local pet shop who said they do not sell it & to try a specialist in our region. That specialist shop has never heard of it.

Would this rockwoll their selling on ebay, be ok?

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/GRODAN-WRAPPED-ROCKWOOL-CUBE-40MM-X-40MM-hydroponics-50-PACKS-/190922490567?pt=AU_Seed_Starting_Hydroponics&hash=item2c73de02c7

Many thanks.

[Kimbo]

I recon Dacron like they use in fish filters would be the go

Dacron is a polyester, I wouldnt go running spirit thru it,

"Saltwater Aquarium Rockwool"

I phoned the local pet shop who said they do not sell it & to try a specialist in our region. That specialist shop has never heard of it.

Would this rockwoll their selling on ebay, be ok?

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/GRODAN-WRAPPED-ROCKWOOL-CUBE-40MM-X-40MM-hydroponics-50-PACKS-/190922490567?pt=AU_Seed_Starting_Hydroponics&hash=item2c73de02c7

Many thanks.

http://grodan101.com/sites/default/file ... _Q_DEF.pdf
there is a mention in the MSDS which says to keep the rockwool away from strong acids and strong bases.
I would regard ethanol as a strong base.
Whats wrong with plain old cotton wool?

[Aussiedownunder01]

Ok thanks no Dacron a mate gave me a roll of filter stuff [as big as a 20 litre drum ] that they use in mc Donald's to filter there hot oil so will try and find the specks for that
other wise I think the dock said makeup remover pads, swabs, that the girls use

[gad]

Thanks Kimbo, cotton wool or makeup remover pads it will be.

[the Doctor]

Just be careful some of the make up pads are only cotton in the outside layers and have an unknown acrylic wadding inside... As for dacron here do your own research as Dacron is also known as Polyethylene terephthalate or PET which is approved for alcohol storage in many nations... for example Canada... see here http://www.theplasticbottlescompany.com ... c-bottles/
I must say that I am sometimes amused by the vehement opposition of incredibly minute spatial and temporal passing of alcohol through a material which is used for long term storage which has undergone peer reviewed investigation in a number of western countries with strong food safety regimes.
While I do not do long term storage in plastics ... I think that with the scientific evidence on the table, the short term passage ( we are talking seconds ) of alcohol through a dacron fibre filterbased on the Canadian research is acceptable. If you disagree fine don't do it. There is some fine research out there for Polyethylene terephthalate. If you have an interest you will find a wealth of quality academic discourse. Cheers
Doc

[karrotbear]

Hey Aussie,

Just my few cents. Not sure if you can say that the filtering stuff used in the oil vats, can be compatible with alcohol, because lets face it they are very very different.

The filter pads for McD is there it prolong the life of the oil, it gets rid of any floaties and off tastes produced by shit always in there boiling away. And if you have seen that oil before and after you can definitely see a difference! I also know that you need a special powder added to the filter pads (talcum powder essentially) for the oil, so maybe these filter pads only work in conjunction with the powder?

There is a maccas manager on the forums I'm sure hed be able to shed some light. Or even get us a scan or photo of the MSDS for this

[Aussiedownunder01]

Good point come on mackers manager put in your 2 cents worth :D
Actually I am just looking at all the options

[crow]

With all due respect
I am one vehemently opposed to the use of Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or promotion of its use
. It has some pretty horrible stuff in it and some of it is soluble (antimony springs to mind) yes its legal is some places (not here) and its used in storing soft drink as its considered reasonable safe in consumed before the used by date. Thing is you can taste it in anything that has been in it even for a short time and personally that is all the evidence I need to tell me there is an issue with leaching. I once stored a sizable volume of beer in PET. All batches stored in it were plastic tasting after a couple of months to the point of barely consumable and after six months would make you violently ill causing nausea and vomiting with in min of consuming and this in a solution that was 5 to 7% abv . sorry but I don't care how cheap and easy this stuff is I would dissuade members by any means of using this product entirely in any contact with their spirit. I'm sure there are more stable forms of this compound employed than those of soft drink bottles but there are also much better options
Policy on plastics

[the Doctor]

With all due respect
I am one vehemently opposed to the use of Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or promotion of its use
. It has some pretty horrible stuff in it and some of it is soluble (antimony springs to mind) yes its legal is some places (not here) and its used in storing soft drink as its considered reasonable safe in consumed before the used by date. Thing is you can taste it in anything that has been in it even for a short time and personally that is all the evidence I need to tell me there is an issue with leaching. I once stored a sizable volume of beer in PET. All batches stored in it were plastic tasting after a couple of months to the point of barely consumable and after six months would make you violently ill causing nausea and vomiting with in min of consuming and this in a solution that was 5 to 7% abv . sorry but I don't care how cheap and easy this stuff is I would dissuade members by any means of using this product entirely in any contact with their spirit. I'm sure there are more stable forms of this compound employed than those of soft drink bottles but there are also much better options
Policy on plastics

I shall with respect withdraw from this conversation...as I said if you have a problem do not use Pet in any form ... I respectfully disagree Crow ...short term contact (seconds) at 55% is determined to not be a danger. But each to his own ... i withdraw as I saw what this argument did to destroy the American home distillers. I respect your position. But there is much evidence to back my opinion too. I shall not continue to contribute. Cheers to all. Bye.
Doc

[Sam.]

It may be proven that it is not "dangerous" to use it as stated, but for the bloke distilling at home for a hobby why would you run the risk of any flavour leaching? Let alone anything "dangerous"?

I sure as hell wouldn't.

But like said so many times before whatever practices people want to perform then so be it, we are all grown up here and all have our own acceptable level of risk. As crow rightly pointed out there has been a policy developed for this matter. If you want to go against it then we do not want to hear about it. x_x

[Kimbo]

Ok guys, what this comes down to is the fact that we need to err on the side of caution.
We, as a forum can't give advice which may have the potential to harm ( no matter how small the risk)
Therefore, we take the stance that NO plastic should come in contact with ANY spirit.
Otherwise this just leads int misinterpretation and people will start storing Azeo in milk bottles.
:handgestures-thumbupleft: