The cleaning run

[Crusty]

I fired up my new FSD 4" modular post still today for it's maiden voyage. Just a cleaning run or steaming run for 20mins or so, 50/50 vinegar to water.
I won't be running this thing on gas but I decided to do the cleaning run & have a little play around with boil temps & water flow.
I was running it pretty hard to get it to the boil & the first steam coming out the back & top of the parrot almost made me run for the hills. I wasn't quite expecting the steam & the splattering parrot. I turned it down a bit to maintain a good venting of steam. After about 20mins, I turned on the cooling water to the condenser & watched as the parrot filled & played around with the settings to simulate the speed of a strip run & a product run. I had a little bit of wind playing havoc with the boil temp which made a constant fine collection stream a bit harder to achieve but apart from that, it ran like a dream. I did have a small leak in the 1/2" nipple that went into the gate valve but I turned it off, fixed the leak & fired it up again. I have a 25lt TPW which has finished fermenting & will run this through as my sacrificial alcohol run in a few days time. It's an awesome bit of gear & I'm looking forward to my first real run after I get my elements installed & my control box finished.

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[Zak Griffin]

Good stuff :handgestures-thumbupleft:

You can always get a few washes stripped while you're building your controller ;-)

[Irritable]

Nice set up.
This is my next move also - so keen to see how this goes for you.
Cheers
Si

[Irritable]

Just a query - in the pic, it looks like you have clamped the still to the flange/ferrel that is on the keg originally?
On my keg that's a 2 inch outlet - so is the still a 4 inch or a 2 inch? If its a 4 inch intake on the still, but you only have a 2 inch outlet from the keg - isn't that a huge restriction to output?? Or is it regarded as a 4 inch still because of the widest point on the pot?
Thanks
Si.

[Zak Griffin]

It's a 4", the 2" ferrule doesn't create a restriction...

A lot of 4" pots and bubblers are clamped to the standard keg ferrule ;-)

[WTDist]

Question for a cleaning run...

Does the sacrificial run need to be good spirit? what i mean is that i have about 5L of feints, and feints of feints @90% and i was wondering if i can just water this down and use this after my vinegar run instead of using one of my 2 WBABW that i have. They are taking a long time this winter so i was hoping to drink them rather than wast them. i have no need for the 5L of feints and using them in a cleaning run would be good, if i can.

Is this possible or not :think:
Cheers

[Zak Griffin]

Feints of feints will be fine :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[bayshine]

I'd throw in a bag of goon as well :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Crusty]

Just a query - in the pic, it looks like you have clamped the still to the flange/ferrel that is on the keg originally?
On my keg that's a 2 inch outlet - so is the still a 4 inch or a 2 inch? If its a 4 inch intake on the still, but you only have a 2 inch outlet from the keg - isn't that a huge restriction to output?? Or is it regarded as a 4 inch still because of the widest point on the pot?
Thanks
Si.

It's a 4" as Zak pointed out.
It simply clamps onto the standard 2" outlet on the keg. I want to turn this into a 5 plate bubbler with a packed section later on for neutrals so it will end up being quite tall & I'm more comfortable with a 4" take off than the standard 2". I'll get a 4" ferrule welded in place of the standard 2" outlet on the keg then add a 4" 100mm pipe section then my first Tee & so on. When stripping, I'll just use the 4" pipe section from the 4" ferrule, then one of the 4" x 2" reducer into the 2" bends & onto the PC. I do plan on running 4 plates for my coloured spirits but I'm still going to do a stripping run beforehand. I know it's not essential & you can get great results with a single pass with 4 plates which is probably why most people get a bubbler but that's the plan.

[Irritable]

Cheers.
I was under the impression - possibly wrongly - that a 2inch outlet from the boiler would restrict vapour take off...but I suppose it assists in retaining heat and vapour speed would be up.
Not wanting to hijack anything crusty, just Wondering what this 4 inch pot would perform like if it was direct 4 inch to keg as well? You'd need two elements. If your going bubbler 4inch anyway would it be worth trying this step first as then you'd stop a bit faster?
Si

[Crusty]

I can't see any problems whatsoever running it straight from a 4" takeoff.
I have 2 x 2400w FSD weldeded elements & will get the 2" ferrules welded in shortly.
The standard configuration that I have is straight off the shelf & quite fine as is but the 4" take off for neutrals & stripping is what I'm going to do.
If someone can see any problems using a 4" take off & the 4" 100mm pipe section with this setup, can you chime in as I'd like to know as well.
I will probably be using the said setup for quite a few runs until I can get all the components to get it finished.
I'm happy to accept a lower ABV & more mellowing time as opposed to 4 plates but that's where I am at the moment.
I'm thinking about doing my first sacrificial TPW cleaning run tomorrow morning.

[tipsy]

I do plan on running 4 plates for my coloured spirits but I'm still going to do a stripping run beforehand. I know it's not essential & you can get great results with a single pass with 4 plates which is probably why most people get a bubbler but that's the plan.

I wouldn't, you'd be stripping out flavour. For Vodka I'd say go for it :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[WTDist]

did doc say he always does stripping runs before 4 plates? http://www.aussiedistiller.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=8010#p139476

[tipsy]

Might be just me then..
I spend a lot of time and effort getting the flavour in I don't want to risk stripping it out...
but then again if I haven't tried it...I better not comment :-D

[Crusty]

I do plan on running 4 plates for my coloured spirits but I'm still going to do a stripping run beforehand. I know it's not essential & you can get great results with a single pass with 4 plates which is probably why most people get a bubbler but that's the plan.

I wouldn't, you'd be stripping out flavour. For Vodka I'd say go for it :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Really?
I saw the doctor on youtube doing a 4 plate bubbler run for a single malt whisky.
I thought the main benefit of the plates was to achieve a higher ABV & with no packed section, just a small roll of copper packing for sulphur removal, the flavours will carry over to the finished product. Adding back some tails & possibly heads to the heart jar is what I thought I was going to do.

I did a sacrificial cleaning run this morning using TPW. I just threw 20lt or so into the boiler & fired her up. I ran it pretty hard with a slow flow through the PC & I was collecting around 90-100mls per minute @70% ( good, bad, yes, no? ) I stopped collecting when it hit around 30% ABV & had collected just shy of 4lts. I am blown away ( not literally, even though I was using gas ) insert nervous smiley here at the quality of just the cleaning run. This stuff was better than I have ever made using turbo & the old T500 & I didn't do any cutting obviously. It was seriously the best stuff I have tasted & so help me god, this is not going to end well for my liver. I'm itching to get a rum ferment going as we speak & waiting the required time on oak is going to be a challenge.

[P3T3rPan]

Don't drink the cleaning run save it for the next cleaning run

[Crusty]

Don't drink the cleaning run save it for the next cleaning run

I won't drink it. This was just the cleaning run.

[tipsy]

I do plan on running 4 plates for my coloured spirits but I'm still going to do a stripping run beforehand. I know it's not essential & you can get great results with a single pass with 4 plates which is probably why most people get a bubbler but that's the plan.

I wouldn't, you'd be stripping out flavour. For Vodka I'd say go for it :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Really?
I saw the doctor on youtube doing a 4 plate bubbler run for a single malt whisky.
I thought the main benefit of the plates was to achieve a higher ABV & with no packed section, just a small roll of copper packing for sulphur removal, the flavours will carry over to the finished product. Adding back some tails & possibly heads to the heart jar is what I thought I was going to do.

Sorry I'm confused.
I strip for Vodka, then run it through four plates and a packed section.
For whiskey I just do a single run with four plates.

I am just questioning the need of stripping before a whiskey run.
I might have to try a strip run before my whiskey run but I would be scared of stipping out too much flavour after all that mashing effort.

[MacStill]

I do a single pass through four plates for flavoured spirit, for neutrals I'll strip then run through the Neutralizer :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[WTDist]

im with you tipsy. just thought id mention it before. When i finally own a bubbler in the distant future i will also be doing single runs and double runs for vodka :handgestures-thumbupleft:
Just seems right from what ive read.

Really when you think about it what is a strip :think:
A strip is to reduce the water content and conogers down retaining as much of the flavor as possible and to bring the ABV up.

Now what does your first plate do :think:
Well from what ive read your alcohol re-condenses down through your downcomers onto all your plates before going back into the still. From here it re distills upwards into the next plate (once you've loaded your plates) and the next and so forth.

So really cant we say that 4 plates is like doing 4 strip runs? but in one go :think: This utilizes the Joules of energy from the boiling water/alcohol to power the plates above which saves energy/time while seperating the fractions better with a better hearts cut

Ive never run any bubblers but this makes sense to me although i wouldn't call a single bubbler run a quadruple run 8-}