StillSmart

I lost the post where I described my DIY carbon filter.

Briefly its 25mmx600mm copper pipe blanked off at one end with a small hole in the blanked off end.

3/4 filled with carbon and a piece of filter paper over the hole.
I found this was WAY to slow it was filtering about 200ml-ish overnight saying that it tasted bloody great.
Anyhow I have since changed it a bit and its much faster I filtered about 2L tonight in between watching tv.

I just removed the filter paper over the (very small) hole and completely filled the pipe with carbon and jammed a funnel in the top.
Filled the funnel and went away came back in 10mins or so and ran it through again.

I done each 3-400ml two to three times but hardly takes any time at all.
After 2-3 filters I then ran it through some coffee filter paper to remove any bits of carbon.
I'm drinking it now, it still tastes great

The money I could have saved if I started this sooner

Cant you post a picture ?

its 12:30am here and xmas eve tomorrow so will be a bit busy/drunk/sleep lol

I'll post a pic soon as I get a moment.

Excellent work - don't forget, filtering works best if you chill the spirit first too - plus then you get to tell people it's chill filtered and sound all professional!

works better chilled, hmmm didnt know that thanks.
I read somewhere that filter works better at about 40% rather than higher vol levels?
Seems to work fine for me, I have been putting through 60%+

Hi

The pic looks odd because its taken at an angle then rotated.
You can see the copper pipe with the funnel I jammed in the top.

*I will repace the funnel with a metal one as soon as I can find one. The join between the pipe and funnel leaked a bit so I wrapped it with plumbers tape.
If you look at the bottom you can just mke out the stopper, (with the small hole) and a metal beaker catching the distilate.
Once its petty much stopped driping i just put my finger over the hole and pour it back in the top.

I suppose you could have the still drip distillate down the pipe so its like super filtered as its made.
I am a keen aquarist as well as homebrewer/moonshiner and was thinking of using a substance called polyfilter - its a manmade sponge/fibre that works like a super-carbon, but with the added effect that it will not leech anything back, once its in its in forever. Because its white you can also get an idea when its reached saturation point.
Now for all I know it might strip out the alcohol - dissolve - lol
regards
Ian

Yeah Ian, that's what you need to be careful with - contact the manufacturer if possible and see if it will dissolve in alcohol (especially stronger than retail) - chances are you don't want it inside you if it does!
And on the filtering - yes, it does work best chilled and at 40% but it works at higher strengths too. Whatever works for you, but that's where you will get the maximum filtering... ummm, filtering-ness.

Haha, the very picture I\'ve been looking for. Exactly what I wanted to know. I\'ll make one like that. Fantastic, I can nick 25kg bags of (powder or granulated) activated carbon from work! What do you put the filter paper in to filter it later?

I haven\'t read my copy yet but here\'s the link on Gert Strands website to his free ebook about \"Activated Carbon for purification of alcohol\".
Yes, the actual document is a pdf and it\'s located at \"books24-7\" you have to register and make out like you\'re buying it, but there\'s no charge and you end up with a link for the document.
Or failing that, I could email it to you or to jimmy if he\'d put it on the site for download.
PM me if you want a copy!
and yes, there\'s a picture of his version of a home made carbon filter, very similar to HangOvers one...

Cheers dude.