Rank: Guest
Groups: Guests
Joined: 2/10/2002(UTC)
Posts: 5,254
|
I did quite a bit of reading on this site as well as Homedistiller.org, but here are a few observations that I have ,and some things that weren"t readily apparent to me, after my first couple of batches. For reference, I bought the Essential Extractor Pro Kit with ceramic rings, and I am using a sugar wash.
1. Be patient with the wash and let it clear up before trying to run it. This will take a week or so. If you rush it there will probably be at strange odor and/or taste.
2. The diffuser plate goes between the hot plate and the heating vessel.
3. It will take about 2 - 2.5 hours for the stuff to boil...no matter how hard you watch it.
4. Make sure you have a ton of ice available for cooling. I my experience, if it"s properly cooled you"ll get about 90%, if it"s not properly cooled it will drop down as low as 55%.
5. Start your run early in the day. My last run started at 8:00, it boiled at about 10:30, and I collected until about 3:30. Keeping the cooling water flowing kept the alcohol percentage up, but made the time involved longer.
6. My stuff didn"t taste like expensive vodka. It still has an almost sugary aftertaste, even at 90%. Now that I have two runs through, I plan to water it down, do a second distillation, and then carbon filter it.
Anyone have ideas of how to make the process a bit quicker, or to get a more refined product? I know I still have a lot to learn.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rank: Guest
Groups: Guests
Joined: 2/10/2002(UTC)
Posts: 5,254
|
Welcome,
Well, youve started the learning curve, and pretty good for first runs.
Several suggestions. Insulate the top half of your pot and your column. Disengage the thermostat on the hotplate so as to run full on. And to save time and money and start getting excellent results, do a stripping run. no packing and now reflux water. I do 3 stripping runs, and add those together for one spirit run, like you have been doing. Should get 95%. You can also add bakeing soda to your stripped runs just after the stripping, and some canning salt at time of the spirit runs.
I achieve full boil and vapor temps at head of column in usually 35 min. with a propane burner. Depending on your situation, perhaps you could heat up to almost boil, and transfer to hot plate.
Keep your eyes open for a cheap 1/2 beer keg. Elricko, and others have plans posted in threads, to modify for electric, and thus much faster and double runs. Gives better cuts also. Soaking on carbon or the use of a corbon filter is great. You will achieve, in time better than any you can buy. Took me a while also.
Check threads on the forum here and you will find the imfo. I was referring to. I use propane start to finish and like its speed and control. Proper electric can achieve the same. What you have will do a good job also, though much slower.
Keep learning and experiancingg, you will get what you are looking for soon.
Cheers, John
BTW, In our neck of the woods a Doe is a female.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rank: Guest
Groups: Guests
Joined: 2/10/2002(UTC)
Posts: 5,254
|
Hey JD
Am I sensing a sense of humor in your observations? Fantastic! You'll need it. In my limited experience ,next to John's, a good idea is to do everything John says. And Elricko. And Rick. Also this: practice with the sugar vodka runs as they are the most simple. Get your methodology down, establishing your own guidelines. Then look on the recipe forum for recipes and follow them exactly. Once you get your head around what's going on then branch out on your own, always letting us know of your successes and failures. Everyone here is here to learn and support.
And like John said: Welcome!
Hi John!
Yours,
PJ Lily
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rank: Guest
Groups: Guests
Joined: 2/10/2002(UTC)
Posts: 5,254
|
Thanks to both of you for your replies. Indeed, you've caught my dull sense of humor popping up :-,
John, it sounds like you know what you are doing. I have seen other reccomendations of insulating the top half of the pot and the column. Does this just help speed initial boiling, or does it serve some more important purpose? I'm trying to figure out the science if it's the latter?
Also, assuming I'm going to do a double distillation. If I do a stripping run without packing or cooling water, will that lead to as clean of a product as doing a 'regular' run, then watering down, then a redistillation? I'm new, but it seems that you'd want as pure as possible each time...
Again, thanks for taking the time to read and/or answer. I've tried to read up, but am still looking for more and more answers!
JD
|
|
|
|
|
|
Forum Jump
You cannot post new topics in this forum.
You cannot reply to topics in this forum.
You cannot delete your posts in this forum.
You cannot edit your posts in this forum.
You cannot create polls in this forum.
You cannot vote in polls in this forum.
