Water Temperature

[Jimmy]

Don't worry about it Ethan - the big worry is getting it too hot, if it's too cold it'll either take longer or just pause until it gets warm enough, no big deal. My house is pretty cold most of the time and the instructions rarely bear out what happens. The only way to be sure it has finished is measuring the SG with a hydrometer. Don't worry, you'll get the hang of it all!

[short2]

Wait until it gets to 990 or there abouts. If it stalls give it a stir and that should nudge it on a bit. I have one sitting at 990 and it is still bubbling away and has been for a couple of days now. As it been said not all washes follow the same path and that is one of the joys of this hobby we are all learning all of the time.

[Ethan Olic]

9 days now and still going but slowing a bit (it never was vigerous), checked the SG and its just about 1000. Slight smell from wash not sure how to descibe it, somewhere between vinegar and peardrops, didn't fancy tasting it with Turbo carbon in. Wash temp only 19C, give it a good stir and dropped in a fishtank heater set at 22C, hopefully that will perk it up a bit, what is an ideal wash temp for Still Spirits Triple Distilled Turbo, is 19C a bit too low ?, from what Ive read I expected it to be done, or near to it ??

[short2]

Glad to hear you got there successfully.Did not doubt you for a minute and the t500 was the correct choice to mske. Happy stilling. This hobby is all about trial and error learning discovering experimenting and borrowing and being educated. What others do you may try or not like and discard in preference to your own feel. Its a curve and we are all on it some more advanced than others but we all produce in the end.

[Jimmy]

It's a tradeoff Ethan - the hotter you go, the faster it is, but the lower the quality. 17 is about where yeast gives up and goes to sleep, but in the early couple of days it generates enough heat itself to usually be OK, it's only really at the end where room temp matters more. 22 ish should be fine, it's more 30 odd that you're pushing your luck.

[Ethan Olic]

Mt first SS triple finally got down to 990 after about 14 days and suprisingly cleaned up very nicely but not in the time frame advised with the turbo clear. It looked very clean after 48 hrs so I syphoned it off into an empty bin as I wasnt going to be able to run it for a few days. After another 5 days it had deposited more sediment, not a great deal but definitely better not in the still.

I stupidly ran the still christmas eve and predicatbly ran out of time, had to terminate at about 3.25 litres at 93% but it was very very clean with no odour at all. I diluted it to 40% and ran it through the Z filter that came with the kit but honestly think it was a waste of time. The Z filter strikes me as a bloody messy contraption and dreadfully slow, there must be better out there and like I said Im not sure it even needed it.

Started my other freebie, an SS classic with 7Kg in 26 ltrs pitched just over 26C. Its set off like a volcanic mud pool you see on national geographic, I think maybe I fermented my triple a bit cool

[tedmoo]

I'd just like to say a BIG THANK YOU to all the people offering help and advice for beginners like myself! Pretty much all my questions have been asked by other 'newbies'and answered very decently!

Currently on day 8 of a 25l sugar wash with triple distilled yeast, only at around 1.00 SG but the temperature has been around 18-19C. From what I gather, moving it to a warmer room and giving a stir should help finish the fermentation? I was also worried to take the lid off in the first few days to measure SG, do you recommend in future leaving the lid on for about 7 days until I take the first SG reading? And there's a slight 'vinegary' smell, is this normal because I've read that the smell/taste will be concentrated after distilling?

Thanks Again

Steve

[mozr]

The slight vinegary/cidery smell is usual, especially with the SS triple distilled turbo.

If you double distill (if you are using an air still), and carbon filter, you will get decent results.

Patience and cleanliness and you will get on fine.

Good luck,

Mozr.

[Admiral Toad]

Hey Ethan the classic is much faster and seems to tolerate up to 8kg
Tried it without carbon as on another post so will have some results soon
I thought the z filter was slow but using alcotec 1.4mm carbon it seems better eg overnight so usually do 2 passes.watch out for rough plastic where you screw ends on these can leak if so just gently sand down flat. worked for me

[Admiral Toad]

Cheers mate I think my HBS sells that as well
Do you use it more than once by rinsing or other method ?