StillSmart

Essencia carbon filter system,no complaints here,easy to use.Carbon filter does 45L

of 40%abv spirit before it needs replacing(im getting a bit more from mine though).

spoke to a home brew shop owner and he gave me a tip.

1) the small holder and "teabag" filter system doesn\'t work!!

2) the solution is to use a long pipe or in my case a long plastic hydrometer jar, drill a hole in the bottom, put filter paper in the bottom. fill it 3/4 full of activated carbon granules and wash through with water a few times, place this under the still and place the collector below it.
I have found that the spirit is much nicer

Do both. That\'s what I do with my smart still, though I just use a "Z filter" (a commercial version of "tube full of carbon") if the spirit comes from my reflux still.
The problem with the "teabag" filters, is that it\'s only gonna work with 1 batch of wash with any efficiency, whereas, if you use a tube type filter, you can use it for a couple of 25 litre batches and then "rinse out" the carbon with boiling water (you do that 5 times) and then dry the carbon in the oven set on low - it reduces the cost of replacing the carbon and you just top up any losses incurred during the "cleaning" process..... Seems to work fine for me......

Hey guys what\'s your take on leaving the neutral spirit to \'air\' for 24-48 hours before filtering/flavouring etc in order to remove smell? FRANK