okay, I haven't cooked any wash since this past spring...I've had a basic sugar and h2o wash ready for about a week now...checked the sg..sg= .099...anyway, I syphoned my wash into my 7.5 gallon brewhaus boiler...i rinsed/backwashed my upper and lower columns...oh, I have the standard brewhaus psII...I use a closed cooling system that has worked for me in the past...it's a big cooler filled with h2o...I assemble my cooling hoses as always and start my blichmann engineering propane burner...i bring my wash up to temp slowly, after about an hour and a half, I begin seeing distillate...at about 175 degrees F, approximately....nothing unusual...I collect about a half pint of foreshots...the head temp begins to fluctuate...and my condenser is spitting and sputtering...I notice vapor coming from my condenser, my pump is working as usual and my h2o cooling supply is approximately 70 degrees F...but I've got vapor escaping from the outlet of my condenser...head temp at this time...180 degrees F...I eased back on my heat input...the head temp drops to approx. 153 degrees F and after minutes, begins to slowly rise, but really fluctuating over a few degrees...output has ceased by this point. before I panicked and eased back on my heat input, my output was coughing, spitting and sputtering distillate....very eratic... eventually, I ease the heat input back up...the head temp is fluctuating over a few degrees as it rises...168, 167, 169, 168, 170...once I begin getting output again, the same thing happens again...spitting, sputtering, coughing...distillate on the floor...I also noticed that the purity of the output went from 90% to 70% approx...pumps still circulating approx. 75 degree F h2o...vapor escapes from condenser output...at this point, I kill my heat source...stopping the distillation process. I'm waiting for the pot and column to cool for further inspection...but, is it possible my copper mesh packing has become to restrictive?...once it cools, this is what I'm gonna look at first...when I backwashed my columns before assembly, h2o seemed to flow with little restriction...any insight in what's happening here is greatly appreciated.

...thanks for the advice JB...I agree that vapor escaping from my condenser output is very dangerous! I've probably cooked on this set-up...this still 10 or 12 times and never had this happen...but like I mentioned earlier, I haven't cooked anything since the spring...I removed my copper packing, and I'm gonna check my hoses and condenser cooling jacket in the morning...when the vapor began escaping I checked my return hose going back to my cooler/cooling reservoir and there was max flow on the return...also, this is a new submersible pump that i just purchased...when the vapor began coming from my output, the quantity of the output, though erratic, was filling a half pint jar rather quickly...ten seconds?...maybe, kinda' happened pretty quickly and I was freakin' out!...but yes, I'm gonna give my equipment a thorrow inspection....again, I appreciate the advice JB.

ohyeahyeah....ya know that may be a possibility...now that I think about it, I syphoned approximately 6.5 to 7 gallons into an 8 gallon pot...then I added 2 or 3 pints of heads and tails from the spring...I remember crossing that line that i normally don't fill beyond...once I check my hoses and cooling tubes and condenser cooling jacket...I'm gonna syphon some of my wash off for later distillation...thanks for the insight ohyeahyeah...if this was the case, at least i know my seals are good!

again, thanks ohyeahyeah...you were right...had my pot too full...don't know what I was thinking...I syphoned about 2.5 gallons out, just to get it to my normal fill line...that was a big mistake!....could of been worse...so, I'm cooking along, all is good...I have my normal 92% output...half pint of foreshots, switch jars and then, my head temp begins to drop from my normal 179.4 degrees F...177, 176, 175...169...I look at my burner no flame!...I'm out if propane!...one day, I'll buy me a spare...so, my lessons learned: 1) pay attention to details, even the simplest details, they matter 2) when something goes awry, instead of looking for something complicated, look at the common variables first...3) heat source...ya got to have one...and a back-up is not a bad idea...I'll get a re-fill tomorrow a.m...pour my foreshots and three half pint jars of product back in my pot and re-cook...thanks again for the advice

...I think ya hit the nail on the head...my fermenter holds about 7.5 gallons with a couple of inches ta spare for bubbling...well, that "couple of inches ta spare" doesn't work in the pot...

"...okay, I had my tank re-fueled, my pot is filled to the proper level, including some old heads and tails, and no distractions. I cooked my wash for almost 6 hours, collecting a half pint of foreshots and 16 half pints of heads, hearts, and tails of 92-93% abv...this equates to about a half pint every 20 minutes or 1.5 pints per hour...I've tried running my set-up faster, but it seems my purity suffers...again, thanks for all the advice...
[ATTACH=CONFIG]649[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]650[/ATTACH]"

"...okay, here's a pic of my product...twelve half pints and three pints...not including the foreshots...ranging from 92-93% abv, the first 3 to 4 half pints, or heads, seem to almost have a mellow banana aroma...half pints 5 thru about eleven, or the hearts, had no aroma at all, almost odorless..half pint twelve and the three pints, or tails, had a much more pronounced alcohol scent...I cover the open containers with a fermentation bag, allowing them to breath, but keeping foreign matter out...just the way I do it.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]651[/ATTACH]"