 Rank: Junior Member Groups: Registered
Joined: 3/17/2014(UTC)
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Now I know this is a loaded question, just trying to get an idea on how much time to allow for a slow pot still run. I read posts about 10-14 hour durations, during which you need to attend the still. Naturally, I need to plan a weekend, but how do you get all things together and ready to fire off and still do the 10 to 14 hour shift? I would plan a stripping run, but how much longer is a slow run as opposed to stripping run? What do you do during the run time, waiting for the next cut jar to fill? B.
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 Rank: Senior Member Groups: Registered
Joined: 11/15/2012(UTC)
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I allocate around 6 hours for a slow pot run on a 5 gal wash. Stripping runs are quicker, but it all depends on wash size and EtOH content of said wash.... With a strip, you just blast thru the temp zone (168-182) and collect all you can with the stream being that like a pencil.. A slow spirit run on the other hand is about 2 to 3 drips per second, and it's obvious that's a LOT slower....
I run very low and slow when doing a pot spirit run - so it's right at 6 hours for a pot run...what do I do? I play musical instruments in between recording container information and switchin' them out... |
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Rank: Senior Member Groups: Registered, Moderator
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me too...5-6 hours for a slow collection. Then the cleanup time is added so my day takes about 6 hours plus and done.
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Rank: Senior Member Groups: Registered
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What's really bad is if I am doing a new SF wash using the backset from the run as I have to cool that backset down before mixin it into the next SF wash - those are 12 hour days.... (And I thought I did a lot of overtime for corporate  ) What I have learned is to just do one activity at a time, be patient, and resist corporate's conditioning of trying to shove 5 lbs of dung into a 2 ounce sack.... |
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Rank: Junior Member Groups: Registered
Joined: 3/17/2014(UTC)
Posts: 74
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Thanks, That time period is much easier to figure into a weekend. Being a newbie, I'm sure I will be checking and rechecking all aspects of the process, so the time may fly by quickly.
Do you find that doing stripping runs, saving up the product, then doing one slow run with cuts is more efficient time wise?
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Rank: Senior Member Groups: Registered
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I just do one run slow. Seems to me the easiest and can't tell any difference in the finished product
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 Rank: Newbie Groups: Registered
Joined: 4/10/2014(UTC)
Posts: 7
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"I envy your patience guys! My pot still is mounted on a 15.5 gallon keg thumper (fed from a boiler of the same size) and is 2"" copper pipe to a 1"" over 3/4"" liebig condenser roughly 20 inches long. In the vertical portion before the liebig (vapor is moving downward at this section) I put a double helix coil pre-condenser in.
I always do a double run... strip/spirit. Never really timed my strip runs, but I run as fast as my condensers can keep up and the product is still coming off at a luke warm temp. I would guess around a rate of 2 gallons an hour.
My spirit runs are at a takeoff rate of roughly 1 gallon an hour."
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Rank: Junior Member Groups: Registered
Joined: 6/24/2013(UTC) Posts: 53  
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I can strip 20 gallons of wash on my 3" potstill in under 6 hours. After 3 stripping runs I load the low wines into the boiler at 30% abv and can do a spirit run in about 9 hours. The only reason for the long spirit run is because I collect my foreshots and heads at 1 drip per second. Once I'm confident that I'm out of the heads, I crank the power up to a pencil lead stream. This is what it takes for me to fill a 5-gallon barrel at 58% to 60% abv. I think it's a good mix of speed and quality.
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Rank: Junior Member Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/10/2013(UTC)
Posts: 52
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So far I have only done one spirit run and it took me about 12 hours or so for 6 gallons of low wines 40%. I distil into 250ml jars 2-4 drips per second when doing my spirit runs in order to get the best possible product. When doing my stripping runs I run it pencil lead stream and collect 6L of low wines from a 25L wash. I don't take off heads and tails until my spirit run. They are bottled for a later feints run. I'm looking forward to this weekend when I am going to bottle 1/2 of my first run that is now 3 months old.  I hope to leave the other half a few more months.
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