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Has anyone used or heard good/bad regarding the Easy Still? I'm thinking about purchasing one, but want to know if it's worth it.
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Um Kevin, just what is an 'Easy Still' anyway? Obviously I can't answer your question since I don't even know what it is, but like most folks, I'd sure like an easier way to cook my sauce too, so please give us a little more description. Could this possibly be Gert Strand's 'Amazing Plastic Still' you're talking about here? I did have one of these and can tell you a little about this kind of 'easy still'!
Spiritmaker
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The easy still is a 4L consumer water pot still that has a weaker heating coil put into it so that it is more suitable for distilling alcohol. Seems to me like an ok idea if you have more money than time. You could make your own by taking a $100 electric still and put a rheostat on it.
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Thanks Lamp. Now, where can I obtain one of these rheostats and at what price? None of the electrical suppliers around here ,USA, seem to know what I'm talking about! I wonder if one could just 'cludge together' something from a standard household electric stove ,a top burner control or something ,to get this result? Also, I would want something to heat around 20ltrs ,5-gallons, of sugar wash.
Thanks for your reply
Spiritmaker
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Not sure on the rheostat source, I have an old one that my father who is a chemist gave to me... it's nice, you plug it into the wall and then plug any AC appliance into it and with the knob you can vary the power to it. I would check lab supply companys. I think an electric stove would do a fine job, you just have to fabricate the boiler etc yourself which really ain't that hard. The first two stills I built were made from lab glassware,from my dad, which if you're new to this I would really recommend because you can see exactly what's going on inside. you can pick up cheap lab glass on ebay... you can buy pyrex boiling flasks, various kinds of columns, still heads, condensers, etc
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There were other modifications done to the still then just the heat element. The following is right from the Brewhaus web site:
'The EasyStill is a high quality, stainless steel electric countertop distillation unit with a 4L capacity. It is based on the design of a popular water distillation unit, but has been factory modified for alcohol distillation by changing the heating element, increasing cooling, and omitting the chlorine release valve. The unit is still capable of distilling water, simply at a slower rate.'
If you want a small still and don't want to buy one they are easy to make. I know someone who uses his doubler as a small still.
The easy still is nice since anyone seeing it would say it was a commercial water still. It would be great for an apartment.
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Thanks again Lamp,I'll check it out on e-bay.
Hans Brenner, I agree that there were more mods made than simply the heat source. But this 'still' was made from a tiny little countertop 'water distilling' unit and It seems to me that the other mod was to a feature that simply wasn't needed for distilling alcohol. ,i.e. 'omitting the chlorine release valve'., It stands to reason that you would want to lower the heat some, and of course you still need adequate cooling, but these things are already a consideration with any alcohol 'still'. I think I will try to fabricate a 20-liter still using a low ,maybe a 1000 watt or less, submersable hot water heating element, wired only on one side, for 110 volts ,500 watts usuable, and controll it with a standard water heater thermostat. I realize that the cooling line will have to be increased in length ,since I intend to operate it unattended like Gert's PLastic Still, to ensure the vapor has time to condense, but this should be made to work with a 20-25 foot long ,maybe less?,3/8 inch copper line coiled in a water bucket and collected in a charcoal vented jug. Anyhow, I'll keep ya all informed of my project! I would like to hear from anyone who may see a potential danger that I'm overlooking ,aside from the obvious one of possibly leaving it unattended overnignt,
Thanks for your input guys.
Spiritmaker
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Bah ! I still want to know whether it has a screw on or lock down wide top or not . My canabilized pressure cooker pot still is really not very good at all, and I am very tired of cleaning gunk out of my column still after redistilling very lumpy berry infusions.
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Easy Still problems!!! Can anyone tell me why it blows its top about 40 minutes in. I checked the seal it seems fine. just seems like it is getting too hot, too fast.
HELP Someone
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We discussed this with the producer, and they found that it has to do with the cooler temperatures. All of the testing was originally done in the summer, and the cooling was set up accordingly. Now, with cooler temperatures, there is sometimes too much cooling ,or more precisely, condensing is occuring too quickly,, and this causes an airlock in the cooing line, resulting in pressure build up and the same problem that you have experienced.
There is a very simple resolution, although it did require some work to find, and requires a very specific piece. We should be receiving that part very quickly, and will send it out immediately.
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"Im new to this distilling thing. I like the idea of making my own alcohol. I bought a water distiller online from http://www.webeatprices.com/product_...5a3cdff762d403. I heard that you have to make modifications to a water distiller to make it distill alcohol. Is that true? If so, what do I need to modify? Or do I just put my fermented mash in the distiller and distill it like water? Im confused as hell!! Someone please have a guide or help. Thanks"
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"If I recall correctly there were three modifications to the normal water distiller model. 1) heat element reduced from 635watts to 375watts. 2) removable of the chlorine valve. 3) Increased fan capacity. You can search for heat element or go the factory, fans can be acquired from the factory or common industrial suppliers like Grainger. Modification is possible. Good luck. http://www.easystill.com/distillation_unit_design.html"
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" Originally Posted by: Rick  We discussed this with the producer, and they found that it has to do with the cooler temperatures. All of the testing was originally done in the summer, and the cooling was set up accordingly. Now, with cooler temperatures, there is sometimes too much cooling (or more precisely, condensing is occuring too quickly), and this causes an airlock in the cooing line, resulting in pressure build up and the same problem that you have experienced.
There is a very simple resolution, although it did require some work to find, and requires a very specific piece. We should be receiving that part very quickly, and will send it out immediately. I,too, have had this problem with the Easy Still. How do I go about getting the new part?  "
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Please try adding an anti-foam agent, and filling to about 1 inch below the fill line. If there is liquid coming out when the top lifts, then it is caused by the liquid either expanding or foaming and plugging the entrance to the condenser, resulting in a build up of pressure. If your product is uncleared, or is a second run that was previously carbon filtered, it will likely foam when heated.
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"I have been using an easy still for over 2 years with good success.
You will have the blowout problem when either the temperature is low or if the alcohol percentage verses water is very high. The distillate is flooding the column. You can stop it by the following; do the first run - 1 gal of fermented wines- for 4.5 hours. collect that return it to easy still. put in .25 cup baking soda, fill to 1 gal. 2nd run is 3.25 hours.
There will be no blowout. If you start with 20 lbs. of sugar and turbo, each gallon of wine will yield about 1 quart of 50% alcohol."
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