StillDragon® Community Forum

Welcome!

Be part of our community & join our international next generation forum now!

In this Discussion

Show Us Your Dragon

191011121315»

Comments

  • A humper/thumper between columns 1 and 2?

    I strongly suspect the columns would end up dancing to the beat of the thumper.

  • @jbierling said: Column # 2 right?

    Tricky part would be being able to fully drain it, ideally to the kettle for cleaning purposes.

    Ah was visualizing a DoubleDragon kettle.

    The drain back reservoir would have it's own dump valve. I'll draw it up.

    StillDragon North America - Your StillDragon® Distributor for North America

  • If the vapor is coming over hot to column 2 eventually it’ll heat the reflux off the bottom plate and send it up. Maybe just some heat passing from the boiler to the bottom of column 2 would be enough to redistill and prevent flooding. Kind of like a blank plate heated from below. No vapor from the boiler would enter column 2.

    Sounds easier to use a RC tho. Lol

  • edited March 2019

    The deeper reservoir for alcohol rich bottoms will have more opportunity to flash as incoming vapor enters ahla thumper style into the reservoir.

    This will somewhat shift/manipulate the gradient and force enrichment.

    The reservoir likely can't be sized large enough to ensure optimal flashing with zero alcohol return to the kettle. But the delay in draining back to the kettle should increase the efficiency with respect to maintaining ABV during the run.

    The goal being to minimize as much alcohol return to kettle as possible.

    The problem I see is that sizing the drain back reservoir optimally may steal valuable height needed for more plates for those folks that have limited ceiling height.

    Heavy reflux ratio use may indeed drive up ABV, but in doing so will also drag congeners further up into the higher plate levels and compromise clean product.

    As an aside, the deeper liquid bed in the reservoir will act as a condenser as entering vapor enters below the liquid level. This vapor condensation will pull heat and as such should reduce a measure of cooling medium needed for the dephlegmator down stream,,,,er, well up stream haha.

    Anyway, it's the same concept as all the bubble ball experiments (At the base of a packed column) back in the day. BTW, the Humper Thumper predates those experiments that verified I wasn't crazy as per Harry and Pint.

    Shift as much alcohol into the column as possible and minimize alcohol return to the kettle, and reduce unwanted heat (customarily needed for collection speed).

    StillDragon North America - Your StillDragon® Distributor for North America

  • edited March 2019

    image

    Bottoms Drain Back Rez.jpg
    800 x 394 - 38K

    StillDragon North America - Your StillDragon® Distributor for North America

  • edited March 2019

    image

    Bottoms Drain Back Rez ll.jpg
    800 x 378 - 35K

    StillDragon North America - Your StillDragon® Distributor for North America

  • This is what I was picturing, but I do think there should be a way of draining to the kettle even if it’s out through that valve and back in.

  • @jbierling said: This is what I was picturing, but I do think there should be a way of draining to the kettle even if it’s out through that valve and back in.

    Yeah, I think you're right Joel. Really would be more user friendly that way.

    Could still put a sample port/valve to draw off liquid to insure all useable alcohol has been rendered or the like.

    StillDragon North America - Your StillDragon® Distributor for North America

  • edited March 2019

    Did a re-draw and my program forced me to change the resolution because the added details increased the file size so much. So doesn't look as sharp.

    image

    Drain Back Rez 2.0.jpg
    800 x 399 - 38K

    StillDragon North America - Your StillDragon® Distributor for North America

  • edited March 2019

    I must say 3D rendering always looks great. I wish I could start using my Autocad Inventor 3D package in preferance to my 2D Autocad. I think I am getting too old. :)

  • edited March 2019

    This one here is IronCad @richard. Super intuitive.

    StillDragon North America - Your StillDragon® Distributor for North America

  • edited March 2019

    Liquid bed is drawn in at 7" deep. 18" x 18" chamber. 6" DIN sight glasses. 12" main connections. 2" vapor inlet. 2" bottoms inlet. 1" dump valve back to kettle.

    image

    Rez Mock Up.jpg
    800 x 346 - 31K

    StillDragon North America - Your StillDragon® Distributor for North America

  • How about rather than having the drain straw go straight down, have it angle close to the side of the kettle so it stays clear of any potential paddles — or rather than being centered have the drain straw on the side?

  • edited March 2019

    @jbierling said: How about rather than having the drain straw go straight down, have it angle close to the side of the kettle so it stays clear of any potential paddles — or rather than being centered have the drain straw on the side?

    Joel,,,,,,,,yer a genius!! Yep, good call.

    StillDragon North America - Your StillDragon® Distributor for North America

  • great idea... I am probably going to cut a hole off-center in my current double dragon drainback, rotate, and re-weld so that the drainback tube is closer to the wall... I wonder if the drainback could be integrated like a thick plate with plate gasket, so it could rotate? maybe even have the chamber ferrule machined to accept thicker one...

  • edited March 2019

    image

    Drain Back Rez Assembly 2.0.jpg
    800 x 569 - 21K

    StillDragon North America - Your StillDragon® Distributor for North America

  • edited June 2019

    Finished version of my CCVM reflux column, mostly StillDragon components except for the CSST RC coil of course. All set up for a neutral spirit run.

    image

    image.jpg
    446 x 800 - 87K
  • That PC has enough knock-down power to stop a charging rhino! Nice.

    I'm more like I am now than I was before.

  • edited June 2019

    @Kapea said: That PC has enough knock-down power to stop a charging rhino! Nice.

    Yeah, I went with the long condenser because I am using recirculated water for cooling. The water comes from an inground pool so the reservoir is certainly large enough but the starting water temperature is around 28C. The long condenser presented the best efficiency for the cooling water flow rate I am operating with.

  • edited June 2019

    Finally ran my Double Dragon. Reflux in both columns. Vapor lock working. Thanks guys for the tips. Now i just need my shed.

  • Sorry I tried to post an MP4 and it didnt work.

  • @DonMateo said: Sorry I tried to post an MP4 and it didnt work.

    Not possible, please use YouTube or Vimeo and then post the link to the video.

    Your Place to be >>> www.StillDragon.org <<< Home of the StillDragon® Community Forum

  • OK Moonshine. I am going to run it later today with Ethanol as a trial run after I get my water cooling pump replaced. The one I had died with the vapor temp was up to 70 deg. Sooo close but no cigar.

  • Got a couple of pretty bits and I figured I would share a couple of photos. I just got the whiskey head and the gin basket. I know the gin basket is upside down so I'll have to fix that. I haven't had a chance to run it yet but I really excited to try.

    image

    still plus gin basket small.jpg
    600 x 800 - 61K
  • Oh you're going to be able to throw some heat at that outfit then.

    What are you going to do to get your elevation a bit more user friendly?

    StillDragon North America - Your StillDragon® Distributor for North America

  • I assembled it on the floor but I usually run it on the adjustable height table on the left of it in the pic.

Sign In or Register to comment.