Slow Z filter

[Admiral Toad]

Hi all
Having had a very successful first T 500 run I tried the first run with the Z filter

I know views are mixed on this kit but was swung by the local HBC as he uses one and can get carbon for a decent price

Had a few problems with weeping joints but more or less sorted that

However seems to be very slow. Approx 4litres of diluted spirit in 14 hours

I used all the SS carbon supplied so have I overfilled ?

also can I use the same carbon for 2 runs ie 16 to 18 litres ?

Don't want to junk this kit straight off so any advice is appreciated

Cheers AT

[mozr]

Did you activate the carbon properly?

The carbon needs to be flushed through with water before running the 40% alcohol through it.

I find Jimmy's low tech funnel/coffee filter/alcotec carbon to be the cheapest and easiest solution.

[Admiral Toad]

hi mate

Yeah gave it a good flush

Bugger just dropped my glass trial jar !

[Capt-Cudellez]

I don't think that is particularly slow admiral, I've had a filter that took 4 days to do 5lts :-) I just pulled pull a bottle each day after work.

I believe the longer the contact the better - have never used a Z filter so don't know if that is out of the ordinary for that bit of kit. BTW glad your run went well.

CC.

[Andy]

If your running the T500 at 55 deg at the water outlet temp, you dont need to filter.
I dont and its fine.

[Jimmy]

Z filter is gravity 'powered' so the greater the distance between the two buckets, the better. I ran 10 litres through one at 40% and the tube was at full stretch (i.e. one bucket as high as it would go and the other on the floor) and it all went through in about 3 hours.

[Admiral Toad]

Ah well just done another decent run. put alcotec .4 to1.4mm activated carbon (as supplied by local HBS cheaper than SS) in Z filter rinsed etc and it's flying through will probably only take couple of hours
Probably give it another pass through tomorrow can't do any harm, spirit seemed to me to be pretty good as it came out anyway !

[Admiral Toad]

Hi mate
Must say I try and run between 55 and 60 and it seems to be tasting very clean. at 55 it's pretty slow so touch faster suits me.if this carbon runs faster then a couple of passes doesn't hurt I think and if you can time 2 washes through is pretty economical Z filter behaving sanded off slight roughness at one end and that sorted minor weeping I had 1 st time.
Personal choice I guess
Started a classic wash whilst it was warming up and it was bubbling like a goodun 5 hours later well impressed
John

[billmcc]

Hi Admiral Toad after i have used the z filter i put 5ltr of boiling water through it.I remove the filter and seal both ends so the carbon can't dry out, then reuse when the next lot is ready. I only change the carbon every three washes.also if you filter the ethanol at 45 abv you can dilute down to 40 abv through the filter thus pushing the remaining ethanol out of the z filter

[Admiral Toad]

Bill
Makes sense thanks
When you say you use the carbon 3 times I assume you are referring to a T 500 run ie about 7 or 8 litres so 1 carbion charge will do 20 ish litres at 45% ish
must say running better with alcotec carbon

[Capt-Cudellez]

A polish bloke I know who has made vodka for years, always chills the spirit in the freezer before filtering, swears it makes the carbon more effective.

I don't filter very often, so haven't tried this.

[Phantom]

Sorry for the late input.........

I've only had mine run that slowly once, but I think I over packed it that time.

What I do do, is when it needs the carbon changing, I follow the instructions in Gert Strands "Activated Carbon Filtration" Book/download i.e. I flush the "used" carbon pellets out, then it gets rinsed, then into a bowl and that gets a kettle full of boiling water on it. Once it's down to hand hot, it gets strained off the water and back into a bowl for another kettle full of boiling water, etc etc.

This is repeated 4 or 5 times, until the smell of the steam (when the boiling water has just been poured onto the carbon) doesn't smell of any sort of spirity smell.

Then it's rinsed with cold water, strained with a sieve and then spread out on a flat baking tray and is dried on the lowest setting in the oven.

Once dry and cool, it's ready for re-use.

I use it for 20 or 30 litres of 40% spirit with each refilling of the filter, and I always change the fine cloth/material filter piece then. This seems to work well and saves on the cost of new bags of carbon (irrespective of whether it's SS or Alcotec brand).

Between that, and using RO water to let the spirit down (and running the T500 between 55 and 60 degree's - and I double distil for maximum purity given the kit I have available), makes for the smoothest (and presumably purest) neutral spirit that I can manage with existing kit.

[Admiral Toad]

Cheers mate I have been using alcotec.4 to1.4mm which seems fine doing a double run each time then a hot water flush using the carbon a total of 3 times ie about 30 litres of 40ish % spirit
I have seen others say you can keep reusing it so is this what you do as well ?