I have angered the stilling Gods!
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2011 7:25 pmI have had a shit old time lately, things have been running too well for a while so the stilling Gods have thrown me a few wobblers.
Charged the still a few weekend back with 30L of 40%AVB strip to do a sprit run with my VM head, the plan was to start Friday evening after work, take the heads and faints, shut down, then do the spirit run on the Saturday as it’s going to be a long run with such a large still charge.
Heated up, equalised for an hour, then spent the next 2-2.5 pulling off the heads, was in no hurry as I knew the main gig was the next day. Was okay for time, and not doing anything that night so increased the power to the setting I use for hearts, during the equalisation the column floods and I’m venting vapour out the top of the column, so I shut down and call it a night, and have a drink.
Heat up the next day, equalise without any problems. Start pulling off hearts, go to increase the output opening her up, can’t get more than 300ml an hour out of her. So I pull off a few jars painfully slow then it clicks, I had left a load of copper saddles in the connector from the boiler that I use for adding come copper in to the vapour path when I’m running as a pot, this must be restricting the flow and the cause of the flooding the day before.
So I pour a litre or so of cold water down the column to collapse the vapour, remove the column, and remove the saddles.
Attach the column and equalise for the 4th time this run so far, tick tock tick tock. Start pulling off hearts at 1.2-1.5l/h, I can run as fast as 2l/h while maintaining 95+%, but I think I can taste the difference, so I keep the output down. Get a good way through the run then my CO alarm goes off, I look up from reading my book there is alcohol pissing down the side of the column, fuck!.
Now I find out I have no PTFE tape on hand, so I tighten it up as much as I can, add some flour paste, everything going okay, pull off a few more jars, alarm goes off again, pissing more spirit, shut down and leave it for he day as the car was at the mechanics being fixed, I couldn’t get to a shop that would stock any plumbers tape.
Get the missus to bring some tape when she gets back from being away that weekend around tea time Sunday – fix the still and continue with the run. Now I can’t seem to pull more than 94%, continue until I taste tails. Turns out I had lost count of the jars, and was actually into tails shortly after firing up, so had been running too fast for where I was in run, and could have pulled a few more jars of clean alcohol if I had run slowly.
Finished 9pm Sunday night. Time for a drink!
I know most of the above is down to me and not supernatural interference, but right on queue later that week a 55l wash stalled and stuck at 1.020 (even though it was the same starter, and mix as one that finished right on que) and a cornflake wash stuck at 1.020 too, after months of having no issues with my brews. Left it a few more days then grew a big starter of a restart yeast, checked the PH was between 3-3.5 which is right for the yeast, added some B-vit, aerated it, pitched, left 2 days, still dead. Ended up pitching a load of bakers yeast and its still slowly working off.
Yesterday, dropped and smashed my last bottle of rice vodka, the nicest and most time consuming drink I’ve made, hopefully this sacrifice will appease the Gods and normal stilling will result.
rolling with the punches, CC
Charged the still a few weekend back with 30L of 40%AVB strip to do a sprit run with my VM head, the plan was to start Friday evening after work, take the heads and faints, shut down, then do the spirit run on the Saturday as it’s going to be a long run with such a large still charge.
Heated up, equalised for an hour, then spent the next 2-2.5 pulling off the heads, was in no hurry as I knew the main gig was the next day. Was okay for time, and not doing anything that night so increased the power to the setting I use for hearts, during the equalisation the column floods and I’m venting vapour out the top of the column, so I shut down and call it a night, and have a drink.
Heat up the next day, equalise without any problems. Start pulling off hearts, go to increase the output opening her up, can’t get more than 300ml an hour out of her. So I pull off a few jars painfully slow then it clicks, I had left a load of copper saddles in the connector from the boiler that I use for adding come copper in to the vapour path when I’m running as a pot, this must be restricting the flow and the cause of the flooding the day before.
So I pour a litre or so of cold water down the column to collapse the vapour, remove the column, and remove the saddles.
Attach the column and equalise for the 4th time this run so far, tick tock tick tock. Start pulling off hearts at 1.2-1.5l/h, I can run as fast as 2l/h while maintaining 95+%, but I think I can taste the difference, so I keep the output down. Get a good way through the run then my CO alarm goes off, I look up from reading my book there is alcohol pissing down the side of the column, fuck!.
Now I find out I have no PTFE tape on hand, so I tighten it up as much as I can, add some flour paste, everything going okay, pull off a few more jars, alarm goes off again, pissing more spirit, shut down and leave it for he day as the car was at the mechanics being fixed, I couldn’t get to a shop that would stock any plumbers tape.
Get the missus to bring some tape when she gets back from being away that weekend around tea time Sunday – fix the still and continue with the run. Now I can’t seem to pull more than 94%, continue until I taste tails. Turns out I had lost count of the jars, and was actually into tails shortly after firing up, so had been running too fast for where I was in run, and could have pulled a few more jars of clean alcohol if I had run slowly.
Finished 9pm Sunday night. Time for a drink!
I know most of the above is down to me and not supernatural interference, but right on queue later that week a 55l wash stalled and stuck at 1.020 (even though it was the same starter, and mix as one that finished right on que) and a cornflake wash stuck at 1.020 too, after months of having no issues with my brews. Left it a few more days then grew a big starter of a restart yeast, checked the PH was between 3-3.5 which is right for the yeast, added some B-vit, aerated it, pitched, left 2 days, still dead. Ended up pitching a load of bakers yeast and its still slowly working off.
Yesterday, dropped and smashed my last bottle of rice vodka, the nicest and most time consuming drink I’ve made, hopefully this sacrifice will appease the Gods and normal stilling will result.
rolling with the punches, CC
