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"I connected my hoses to the PS II yesterday evening, filled the boiler with water, hooked up the propane cooker and fired it up.
One thing that i noticed right away It takes this thing a while to heat up. The top column felt warm it seems like forever. I sat down had a few beers looked up and it was dripping clean H20 from the condenser. However the temp was way high. As I temped to bring the temps down a bit it stopped dripping. I didn't have my column packed and this was only a test run. It also very hard to read the glass thermometer thats on top of the top column as well. I may need/want to replace that with something digital.
I plan to go to the home brew beer store today and pick up a couple of buckets to use as fermentors and mix me up something to cook for next week."
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"jap - no pun intended.....you'll find that a wash or mash will indeed not need to be heated to the higher temps to atomize like water does to get what you want out of it. We want the ethanol to atomize not the water and hence its a lower temp than h2o. But kudos to you for trying it first with something other than a beer and then saying oh shit what's happening???
Your on the right track and packing the column will not really hinder the vapor from escaping so make sure you use mesh packing when you cook. IMHO, of course dont pack the tower so tight it cant force the vapor out."
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Johnny, It can take a good long while to get output when the boiler is full of water -- you need to get all that water to 100 C and push it up the column. With a 1500w hotplate it takes me two and a half hours with 20L of water -- on a fast day. Once you get your wash in there you'll see output a bit sooner. And if you run some low wines things will happen even quicker. But it's still a far cry from watching a drag race.  --JB
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Great point heeler. I really had an oh shit moment after a few beers yesterday and trying to tinker with this thing. Next time on my real run i'll have to slow my beer roll. But yes both of you are correct.
I'm also figuring out that patience really is key. right no drag race that is for sure. next time i'll get out my bug spray and kick back in the reclining lawn chair and relax, or better yet wire up a tv near the still site.
with my propane it took me about four beers to heat up that's a little over an hour. yes i'm measuring time with beer. b/c it only takes me one beer to get to work or to go to the nearest fuel station for more beer from my house. lol
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measureing time with beer --I dont care who ya are that just funny.
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Johnny I'm just curious. What/how method are you using for coolant. This question isnt even clear to me???? Sorry 
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I would skip the flimsy high dollar buckets from the brew store. Head to HD or Lowes maybe..and snag a 20 gallon Brute plastic Brute trash can. Will give you a bit of elbow room and way cheaper in the long run. Happy hooching. Originally Posted by: johnnyapplepie  I connected my hoses to the PS II yesterday evening, filled the boiler with water, hooked up the propane cooker and fired it up.
One thing that i noticed right away It takes this thing a while to heat up. The top column felt warm it seems like forever. I sat down had a few beers looked up and it was dripping clean H20 from the condenser. However the temp was way high. As I temped to bring the temps down a bit it stopped dripping. I didn't have my column packed and this was only a test run. It also very hard to read the glass thermometer thats on top of the top column as well. I may need/want to replace that with something digital.
I plan to go to the home brew beer store today and pick up a couple of buckets to use as fermentors and mix me up something to cook for next week.
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My plan for cooling is a fountain pump dropped into a cooler of ice/cool water that will pump water up to the condenser and or the column. I plan to install a ball valve between the condenser and the column. I plan to do this tonight so I'll post a photo later. So basically my plan is to put a "T" at the first water connection where it goes into the condenser the "T" will feed into a ball valve and the condenser that will lead to the bottom column water tube route thru the column out the other side up and into the the upper water tube down and "T" again with the upper condenser and upper column feeding back as the drain.
Yesterday since I only ran water thru it I didn't need any water to cool it, however I ran some just to make sure the tubes were all cleared out and everything was working as it should. hope this helps.
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excellent idea Bigwheel! why didn't I think of that. I suppose I can cut a small hole into the lid for the airlock correct?
Oh another question, Where do I buy Turbo Yeast at? I mean do the grocery stores have it or will I need to order it online or get it from a brew shop?
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"Johnny, get your airlock material, whether its a piece of tubing or a store bought airlock and then you can drill a hole in whatever lid to whatever container you choose and it will be the right size.
And no you cant buy turbo at the grocery store. Brewhaus sells it if you must have it, they also sell distillers yeast which is what we are doing here anyway right. Now if you still dont want to order the grocery does sell bakers yeast and it will work too."
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Rank: Advanced Member Groups: Registered
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Okay Heeler, so your saying that I can buy bakers yeast at the grocery store and i'd have to either order turbo yeast or distillers yeast right. okay educate me on the difference between turbo and distillers yeast, bc i thought they were the same.
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No no..not no use in ruining nice buckets by putting holes in the lid. Put the airlocks away and put the un-desecrated lid on it. That will work. If your nervous coon finger around under the kitchen cabinet and find one of Mamas big blue recylce bin bags and pull that upside down over the top below where is the crack where the lid meets the bucket. Twist up the low edges and hold it tight against the side with clothes pins. Thats how I do it so bound to be right..lol. Forget now who gave the tip on the blue bags but big thanks to them. I dont really think it needs one but if it keep folks from losing sleep with worry I could sacrifice one. They are infinitely reusable. Or give the crack a double wrap of Saran followed by a wrap of duck tape. That works but waste too much tape for thrifty Scotsmen. Co2 is heavier than air and will sink like a rock. Just keep it out of a strong breeze and it aint going nowhere. Originally Posted by: johnnyapplepie excellent idea Bigwheel! why didn't I think of that. I suppose I can cut a small hole into the lid for the airlock correct?
Oh another question, Where do I buy Turbo Yeast at? I mean do the grocery stores have it or will I need to order it online or get it from a brew shop?
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"Well I cant say BW is wrong but most folks like the 5 gallon bucket with a resealable lid and an airlock. Again niether is wrong just different. Cleanlyness is indeed next to godlyness.
Most folks have a boiler that is in the neighborhood of 8 gallons and a 5 gallon recipe and ferment is pretty standard so no real need to invest in a 20 gallon bucket. And just something to think about .... if a 5 gallon run takes 6-7 hours to run how long would a 20 gallon run take. Nothing wrong with going big.
I've got a 15 gallon boiler but damn that would be a looooooog cookout. These are the things you will have to figger out and see which fit into your setup. Good luck and happy stillin."
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"Hey Johnny, I'm not sure if I understood you cooling hookup correctly. The cooling water goes in at the top of the tower and comes out at the bottom. Then goes in the condencer at the bottom and comes out at the top, right? Originally Posted by: johnnyapplepie My plan for cooling is a fountain pump dropped into a cooler of ice/cool water that will pump water up to the condenser and or the column. I plan to install a ball valve between the condenser and the column. I plan to do this tonight so I'll post a photo later. So basically my plan is to put a ""T"" at the first water connection where it goes into the condenser the ""T"" will feed into a ball valve and the condenser that will lead to the bottom column water tube route thru the column out the other side up and into the the upper water tube down and ""T"" again with the upper condenser and upper column feeding back as the drain.
Yesterday since I only ran water thru it I didn't need any water to cool it, however I ran some just to make sure the tubes were all cleared out and everything was working as it should. hope this helps. "
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" Originally Posted by: johnnyapplepie Okay Heeler, so your saying that I can buy bakers yeast at the grocery store and i'd have to either order turbo yeast or distillers yeast right. okay educate me on the difference between turbo and distillers yeast, bc i thought they were the same. Yes you can buy bakers yeast at the grocery store in a little jug or in the envelope and pretty cheap I should add. Dude I wish I could explain the exact difference between the two (Turbo's and distillers) but what I do know is Turbos come with lots of nutrients and enzymes as in an overabundunce and that tends to make them work off hard and fast which causes the production of lots of nasties. Of course I think you need them but in lesser amounts from what I have found. Lots of folks use bakers yeast with no nutrients and seem to make it work and distillers yeast will work without them too. I have been useing distiller yeast latley and adding Brewhaus yeast nutrients which have enzymes in the jug. Thats seems to be working for me now but I did use bakers yeast for a while too and that worked too. Its just a matter of what YOU like when the time comes, if a recipe you like calls for Turbo then try it this time and next time try the other. At one time I had 4 different yeasts in my fridge."
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Something I forgot on this yeast issue...I did order several packs of Turbo one time and when it came time to pitch I opened the pack and just used 1 tablespoon in a 5 gallon wash, it sure made that pack go a long way. I seem to remember it did'nt come out very Turbo-ish (if thats even a word) so again -- what does the recipe call for and which one floats your boat??
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You can get free 5 gallon buckets with tops from a Sam's Club bakery department. All the icing they get comes in these buckets ... and they have the nice tops with the rubber gaskets. They go through tons of these.
I just walk up to the boss-lady and ask for them ... I tell them that I use them for my son's lacrosse balls ... (which I do) but I only needed one bucket for that. You can get the icing smell out of them by just cleaning them a few times and airing them out ... like any other fermenting bucket. You'll have to punch the hole in the top (for the airlock) yourself and gaskets/grommets for the hole are readily available at a Home Depot or Lowe's, etc.
--JB
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Great points Sir. I aint gonna say your wrong either since you got the gun and the steeken badge..lol. Not even counting the delete button. I have about decided this boiler size debate is real similar to bbq pits. Best buy the biggest one you can afford and learn to work with it. They are real easy to outgrow and they downsize for smaller loads much more than they can upsize for bigger ones. Object of a 15 gallon boiler and a 20 gallon fermenter goes thusly: you ferment ten gallons in the big bucket and dump that into the big boiler. Simple huh? To confess in advance I only did one 10 gallon load and the only difference noted was the extry wash extended the hotplate heat up time by about 15 mins (this in comparison to a 5-6 gallon run which take 90 min in hot weather longer in the winter). Did not notice any additional time spent to do the essential extraction process. Kindly dont let deputy Barney..er I mean Scotty..know we been prattling over here. Some debate is you a Texas Boy gong on around here. Is so general vicinity or something? If not cough it on up. A person can only be embarrassed about not being from Texas for a few years or so..lol. Even being accused of possibly being from Texas can give a person a good reputation. Originally Posted by: heeler Well I cant say BW is wrong but most folks like the 5 gallon bucket with a resealable lid and an airlock. Again niether is wrong just different. Cleanlyness is indeed next to godlyness.
Most folks have a boiler that is in the neighborhood of 8 gallons and a 5 gallon recipe and ferment is pretty standard so no real need to invest in a 20 gallon bucket. And just something to think about .... if a 5 gallon run takes 6-7 hours to run how long would a 20 gallon run take. Nothing wrong with going big.
I've got a 15 gallon boiler but damn that would be a looooooog cookout. These are the things you will have to figger out and see which fit into your setup. Good luck and happy stillin.
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"Nope not from Texas although I go there 3-4 times a year to rodeo. I'm in Florida and its just as hot here as it is there, as in slavery hot down here.
I too have made some large ferments and these days I have come to relize that a 5 gallon wash and cook is plenty for me. The boiler I'm useing now is as 8 gallon Heinikin keg and it works like a champ. I do still have a 15 gallon keg just dont use it."
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Rank: Advanced Member Groups: Registered
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alright Bushy here's what ive done, not sure its right but i've read about this hookup and in theory sounds good.
If any others want to chime in do so...
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