StillSmart

Got this to start with



Pot, Reflux?? what's the difference Brian?

Whats the plan for heating , electric or gas ?

optic wrote:Whats the plan for heating , electric or gas ?

Thinking about buying one of those single ring electric camping stoves, I was going to use a gas camping jobby but it'd cost a fortune in aerosol gas canisters, plus I can set this up on the kitchen worktop near the sink.
I reckon this still will hold around 1 demijohn of wash and if a success I might go larger.

Would it be an idea to design it with interchangeable condensation chambers?? can this be done? Is it worth the hassle?

John

It depends on what you want to make ? , if its going to be grain mashes for whisky then just simple neck into a condenser would be fine , but if you where after trying for high ABV vodka a reflux column would be the way to go , that said some very good Vodka can be made in a pot still .There is no reason why you cant make both and just interchange if you wish . Although to be honest trying to run whisky mashes in a boiler that only holds a gallon is going to be quite a challenge but not undo-able .

sorry to put a damper on your idea but I be carefull
using a naked flame to heat your still it could blow up
either the fumes or the spirit it self could ignite
as for a gallon still you wont be getting much spirit

Magnu420 wrote:sorry to put a damper on your idea but I be carefull
using a naked flame to heat your still it could blow up
either the fumes or the spirit it self could ignite
as for a gallon still you wont be getting much spirit

Thanks' for the advice...
If I had an 8% wash how much would I get from a gallon?

One gallon is 160 ounces (assuming we are talking UK measurements here), so at 8% you have a theoretical maximum of 12.8 ounces of 100% alcohol (theoretical as you can't distill to 100% purity). If you assume 60% of good alcohol (allowing for some remaining in the still, heads, tails, fore shots), that give you 7.68 ounces of pure alcohol, so maybe 3/4 of a bottle at 40%. Just as a rough guide.

Chuck

If running all grain wash at 8% you would really need to be doing a goodly volume to make it worth doing at all.

I've found my 50lt boiler is just about enough to justify the amount of time/work put in with all grain, to produce sufficient finished product so I don't have to do it all the time, leaving me time to make other delicious concoctions.

I only do completely all grain three times a year. The rest is a cheat with sugar added to bring the wash to 12%

BTW - naked flame is a no-no unless you're going to run it completely outdoors...and even then I'd be wary. Immersion elements are by far the safest and cleanest heating option and can even be cheaper too

I shall watch your build with huge interest and best of luck with it, we're all behind you

AM

Hi B.B.

I'm not capable of a self-build so my observations are those of one who having run malt washes through a 4litre Smart Still for some years, decided to upgrade.

I was guided by the fact that I would be concentrating on malt washes, therefore I chose a wholly copper built system.

A major limiting factor, for me, had also been the 4 litre capacity of the Smart Still. As my washes were 23/25 litres in volume, I decided that I wanted a boiler capacity to take such an amount in one run.

I feel that to simply build a boiler with virtually the same limited capacity of a Smart Still would be to build in early obsolescence and frustration.

I admire your go for it attitude, together with you apparent skills and hope you get what you want.

How about this sliced in half for a top and bottom??

"I reckon this still will hold around 1 demijohn of wash "

IMO go bigger NOW you can laways run larger 1/2 full.
Minimum size ought to be 30 liters (25l is a sensible wash size + 20% 'cos you can't brim it) .. or but a secondhand airstill for £60

Another thought, you might find to get a small still to work correctly will be a right PITA.

Elements will be too big, probably require power controllers to reduce their output.

If you are new to this make your life easy until you get the hang of it !

Just fancy making a small sexy copper still that looks great but able to produce small amounts of alcohol then if I ever see a bargain priced T500 or an an airstill maybe buy one.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with that. They are a very pretty thing.

If you look at some small alembic stills you could probably get away without needing water - some of these really are pretty.

When it gets really pretty and polished and lovely ... just don't stand it on the front window sill, if you are thinking of this as a hobby!

Something else to think about is how much time you have for distilling.

Any still that has running water is running a higher volume (of wash) and will need constant attention. Probably 4 – 6 hours.

One of the beauties of an air still, is that you can fill it up, put it on a timer and come back when it's done (certainly the stripping runs) Spirit runs aren't much more complicated.