Alcoengine Reflux Still - How to setup and use this distillation aparatus for home Distillation
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 27 ก.พ. 2018
- This is one of the easiest reflux stills to use so you can distill your own neutral spirit. Great for making vodka, or making a neutral alcohol base which you can then use to flavour into gin, bourbon, whiskey or other spirits
Just got my delivery today, can’t wait to test her out!
Hope you enjoy it. We have a number of new still designs being worked on at the moment too so keep your eye out toward the end of the year.
Love this thing I detuned this little gadget for rum making
How is that done? How well did it work
@@Leadership_matters I removed the packing and used it for making low wines. All up it tastes as expected just like bundie
great vid. Thanks
Seriously impressed with mine as advertised was expecting to to be only half as good for the price but blown my expectations away
Yes it's a really popular design and despite many other "newer" models coming out this simple and eligant solution just works the best.
@@KegLand Why is not working? the water pressure in is at 10l/min directlity from the sewing system no filter, no pump, water coming out from reflux is at 5l/min, i think is not enough pressure or the cooling system is too small, I/ve tested with water, small quantity was coming out and is hot, and the water out line is as cold as the in one in and out was at 5 Celsius, so very cold water, not condensing well the vapours, what do you think? thanks
@@adrianpodoaba4184 Is it possible for you to email us a video of what you are doing. It's hard to problemshoot without seeing what you have got going on.
Awesome. Mine just arrived! Can't wait.
@@KegLand Thanks for your reply! I have run mix of water and vinegar first and than 2nd run water only to clean it, the liquid came hot , up in the reflux the temp was 100C(212f), down in the kettle 97C(206F), is not supposed to distill water?
Informative thank you
Very good presentation well done .
8:56 top video
If you find a way to include the use of molecular sieve's in the 94% section, they can remove that last bit of water, and allow for the manufacture of anhydrous ethanol
Yes you can purchase ceramic molecular sieve but for drinking ethanol this is not very useful. Removing an extra 4% of water will not improve the purity of the spirit as it only removes water not other fusil alcohols or other impurities. The molecular sieve is normally if you need to get rid of moisture so you can put the ethanol into your car or some other industry where the 4% water is undesirable.
@@KegLand well I’m using it in cosmetics so yeah I need to remove the extra moisture
Thanks for this video, I’m just starting and it’s very daunting. A lot of videos expect the audience to have basics nailed down. I haven’t had the guts to purchase everything in case it becomes a white elephant. Is there a step by step from start to finish, especially if using a immersion chiller. Too many blanks (no idea), to see the whole process working.
Its a big topic alright! Give us a call - all the staff are pretty experienced
is it possible to change the bottom of the alocoengine column to tri-clamp style for easier on of fixing from the lid??really appreciate your advice about this ...
its a reflux for Gin etc right, but i don't understand where or how i put my botanicals in after the foreshots come out?
Hi,great video.Whats the best packing to use in this column?and how often should the packing be changed? thanks
Yeah same need to know too
Do you have any still attachments for the digiboil (35L) that work best for 'All grain' fermented mash instead of neutral spirit dextrose washes?
No separate attachments per say but I have used it in the past distill all grain spirit without any issues. I usually cold crash the wash just to remove any sediment to avoid puking.
Hi,
Have you got any videos on set up the digiboil as in what temp to set the digiboil and also video or info on how to replace the mesh or how much mesh is needed to replace? Ive just ordered it for my digiboil and struggling to find any videos on that set up vs brewzilla
For distillation you normally just set the temp on the boiler to max so the elements stay on.
Hi - please help - the hole you mention at 3:14 to have pointed upwards is leaking, and very little (almost nothing) is coming out of the spout. And yes, the valve is open.
Hey Mark get in touch with your local distributor or point of purchase. They should be able to help you out if the unit is under warranty or drop us an email with pictures at beer@kegland.com.au
With the ball valve closed, won't the pressure build up too much? I am using it on a 15.5 gallong beer keg, about 60l
I asked them via email. It is not a closed system. Problem solved. 😀
Does it matter if you use the 65L Kegland boiler to put the wash into? Think the one in the video is the 35L version. Thanks
You can use either of the two. The 65L of course has a larger capacity and more power but also needs a 15amp circuit to run.
Hi
Is it possible to run this with a scr to adjust the amount of power going to the boiler
So you can have better control of the spirit
Yes you can do this i you want to.
@KegLand... Why is not working? the water pressure in is at 10l/min directlity from the sewing system no filter, no pump, water coming out from reflux is at 5l/min, i think is not enough pressure or the cooling system is too small, I/ve tested with water, small quantity was coming out and is hot, and the water out line is as cold as the in one in and out was at 5 Celsius, so very cold water, not condensing well the vapours, what do you think? thanks
You have to make sure you are using max 2000watts of power for your elements. then sounds like you need higher water pressure as the water should be running through the coolant head faster than that.
Can you do a video for the use of the alcoengine alebmic still?
We will have a look at this after we release the new Gen 4 brewzilla
what makes your reflux still a better unit than pure distilling reflux? they both look identical, just asking so i know which one to buy for water distilation
Do you need to do a vinegar wash run then sacrificial run?
Yes it would be a good idea to do one on a new still
I can see some one's still is going ka boom lol
Just wondering where is the external cooling condenser???
Don't need one. The distillate may be hot but it's all liquid as the collection cup only collects the liquid falling from the RC. If you are measuring the percentage of the output your readings will be off however. Let it cool first. If you are outputting vapor, you need to address your water supply.
I tried backing off on the power to the point that there was virtually nothing coming out of the spout and still it was way too hot to the point I could not get a proper proof reading plenty of power in my pump any other suggestions
Are you managing to get 8L/m through the condenser head? If not, try dropping the temp of the coolant water.
Had this delivered today ,and the outlet on the column has been dented in . When I blow into the outlet and cover the bottom ,air passes out of the top where the water pipes are coiled . Is this normal ? I thought it was a sealed system but looking at this video it appears not . Thanks
It's best to send some photos to our customer service team with your order number so this can be assessed for you. Sounds like this will be replaced under warranty.
Hi do u use both heating element the whole time or just to heat it up
Normally you would just use both elements to heat up then reduce to one element when distillation begins.
Can you use a pid controller to set the temperature to the 77 - 80 c temperature or the probe is the temperature probe is better ? Thank you 👍
Please DO NOT try and use anything to control the temperature at the head of the still. Leave the elements at a constant wattage.
Any reason why? Do you recommend all elements on full boar for the brewzilla 35? Also, do you just set the temp at say 105°c so it doesnt turn off? Just wondering as i thought keeping the brewzilla set to 80°c would be better?
@@DJRaveDave Yes wanting to know this too
Thanks for the video. I've considered getting a distilling kit to distill base water for brewing beer and allow me to make gin or vodka to boot :). Will this work to distill water also or will I create a calcified mess?
Yes this will work to distil water. That is really easy to do.
@@KegLand Ok. So given the boiloff rate I've measured is 0.86 Gallons per hour, what would the rate of producing distilled water be?
@@marknohr4433 Taking into account some assumptions for heat loss, ambient air pressure etc, with a 2000watt boiler you should be able to boil off about 20liters in about 7hrs or something like that. You should get close to the same amount of boiled water in the end.
The amount of time (yours) and energy (electricity) needed to make distilled water is a heck of a lot more costly than just buying it. A good water filter will be adequate.
what watts do you run this at and what temp setting on the digiboil
I have an older Robobrew with a 500w and a 1000w elements. I did my first run beginning with both elements to get the liquid up to 170 degrees F, then turned off the 1000w element. Took a few hours to finish the run. Second run I turned off the 500w element only and this shortened the time a bit. Third run I just used both elements for the entire run and it worked fine.
Do these need a sacrificial cleaning run before use ?
Definitely if each time you clean the still we would recommend a citric acid wash as this will remove the copper oxide and it will help the copper act like a catalytic converter releasing more off-odours. With that said if you produce good clean wash with no yeast contamination then you can probably get away without it. It all comes down to how good your wash is to begin with.
KegLand thanks I more meant a vinegar run before 1st time usage
Can i use this kit for essential oil?
I don't see why not. It's the same process and I use a similar device for lavender oil.
how could one work a gin basket into this system. any ideas? a little hinged door mid way up the still where someone could put a little ss hop basket with juniper and friends in amongst the copper/steel packing?
Firstly I should say if you want to make Gin propertly then you should go with the Pot still that we sell. If you get one of each still that's the best optoin so you can use the Reflux still to make your neutral spirit then use that neutral spirit to make gin using the pot still. That is the ideal scenario.
Most people using this to make gin will probably make neutral spirit then flavour it with gin essence so if you go down this path you dont need to use the pot still and you will save a lot of time but in my opinion this will not give you the complex aroma profile that you can get using a real pot still.
With that said we have had some customers make gin from this design and remove the packing from the still and put some botanicals up the tube. Then you can also soak your other botanicals in the alcohol in the boiler for 24hrs then run the still. If you remove the flow restrictor device and then also fully open the ball valve you will get quite a lot of the flavour and aroma from the botanicals escape this way and this is one way to kinda convert your Reflux still into a pot still but it's really better just to purchase two different stills.
Could you post a link to pot still video. Reading info and recommends 500ltr tank to recirculate! That seems like a big tank.can you use a smaller one with ice?
@@KegLand
Thank you.
Just got my reflux for xmas. Really wanted the pot but stock is scarce due to covid.. really want to make rum & whisky flavoured hand sanitiser.... glad to read you can strip some of the packing and remove orifice plug to get a bit of flavour through. Even if not ideal.👍
@@meyogy2414 Yes we have been selling out this product frequently and we simply can't make them fast enough at the moment. Please let us know how you go and let us know what you think after you have given the reflux still a go as a pot still.
It will help if you keep the wattage to 1500 watts max. I get slightly better results with slightly lower wattage when I do this myself but would be keen to hear how you go.
@@KegLand
Can i use a voltage regulator to knock down the boil wattage on a digiboil?
Got everything ready for my first tpw wash
GREAT VIDEO SIMPLE A CHILD CAN FOLLOW NOW TO SHOW THE PROCESS TO THE FINISHED PRODUCT IN A BOTTLE -- (i USE A WATER DISTILLER FOR WATER TO DROP YOUR WHISKY DOWN TO 40 % DONT USE TAP WATER RIGHT-0R CAR AUTO SHOPS SELL DISTILLED WATER 10 LITRE CHEAP) ------------------------------ :)
Every time you start a new profile this will remove the old data on your dashboard and only display the new profile.
Any news yet on the new "how to" video for the smaller Kegland Pot Still Condenser?
Not as good as a video, but this instruction sheet from Williams Brewing gives a good description of how to distill using the smaller Kegland pot still condenser.
www.williamsbrewing.com/pdfs/c74.pdf
From the 65l how much spirit would you collet on average
It all comes down to how much spirit in your wash. The best way to look at it is that you can get about 80% recovery.
@KegLand at 13:18 you mention keeping an eye out for a 1c change after 80c to show that you’re done. That’s confusing because although I begin collecting at roughly 80c, it continues to rise and I continue to collect all the way up to 99c. Granted the abv drops along the way, but was still collecting 45-50abv when I eventually shut it down at 99c at the top of the column. Can you explain what you meant?
Have been watching barley and hops brewing on youtube and you are caching the tails. the goal is to catch the good stuff and throw away the Methanol and crap with all the off flavours.
do you have packing in the column? sounds more like you are using it like a pot still column. this year i switched from neutral/reflux to flavoured spirits/pot still and the temps you said sound exactly like what my still does when i use it like a pot still.
@@cabji Yep, had it packed just as it came. It was very odd. And I agree, it acted just like the alembic dome I use too. I went back to my potstill too, prefer the flavors I get from it more. But I'm a whiskey, rum, tequila guy at heart.
Should I block the pump inlet of the brewzilla?
You would not need to. You can just keep the ball valve on the recirc arm closed while distilling.
What kind of pump would I use with this to cool the condenser?
These pumps are not expensive and do the job:
www.bunnings.com.au/ozito-350w-dirty-water-submersible-water-pump_p4816179?store=6299&gclid=CjwKCAiAv_KMBhAzEiwAs-rX1Bn8P4i62ud0HK2gCiZq7_vKGDFkseJL4tBMMA2uVTsJ7zXLmLPIbxoCw2AQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
I would not recommend anything less powerful than this.
Just installed Ryobi. 750 watt sub pump , getting 4.5 lt per min
What temp and setting do you use for the kettle?
Jeremy Falkner used mine today and just let ‘er rip. Using a grainfather and just set it to boil and collected along the way.
I’ve been using this for some time but can only get 4 lts of 95% out of a double batch , I would easily get 7lts out of my turbo still .
It’s not the wash same wash for each still .
What could I be doing wrong
If you have measured the wash is the same the only place where you can loose alcohol is via a leak somewhere in the lid for instance or alternatively if you have not cold enough water or the water flow is too slow as this will cause vapour to be lost out of the top of the still that doesn't get condensed.
Hi just wondering what I'm doing wrong mine is taking 10 to 12 hours to finish 6kg wash
It comes down to what insert you use. If you use the larger insert it will produce alcohol faster but at a lower purity.
Would this work with a turbo 500
Yes it would but why would you want a T500. These cost more and dont work as well.
Not sure about these. I have been give one to try out and the temperature does not stabilize. Water flow also does not affect the temperature. Interested to hear if anyone has had any success.
That is correct. As long as you have enough water that is all that matters. Please read the instructions. The benefit of this unit is you do not need to worry about adjusting water speed.
Can you take a video and send it to us and we can better diagnose the issue.
So when will I be able to get this in the USA ?
Looks like they are already:
www.williamsbrewing.com/KEGLAND-REFLUX-COPPER-CONDENSER-P4485.aspx
It's already over there:
www.williamsbrewing.com/ALCOENGINE-POT-STILL-CONDENSER-P4490.aspx
Probably More Beer will have some stock soon too. www.morebeer.com
Can I remove the coil for cleaning the column? Or will that break something?
The top is riveted
@@KegLand it's working great so far. Thank you
any way to get this in Europe?
You can order through one of our distributors here:
www.kegland.com.au/distributor/
What happens when it never reaches an equilibrium and say the temperature rises into the high 80's and low 90's C?
a reflux column shouldnt see that sort of temp afaik. my guess is, the packing in the column is too loose. vapour is rising too quickly up the column to the thermometer if it's reaching those temps. reflux columns should be hitting about 77-80C like he said in the video. ethanol's sweet spot is 77.8C if i remember correctly. try packing the stainless/copper scrubbers a bit tighter in the column and see how that goes.
How did you seal the thermometer hole
The thermometer hole is sealed at the end. It's a thermowell so no spirit can leak out of this hole.
@@KegLand ahhh. Good to know. Thanks!
How much water is required as in liters per minute?
You need to run the water at 8L per minute.
@@KegLand wow that's a lot of water...
Is the alcohol coming out suppose to be HOT?
your water flow is probably to low
i'd say it could be warm, but shouldn't be hot. if you're using water directly from the town supply tap, you might consider making a set up with an esky full of ice and water, and a small pump ro recirculate the cooling water through the condenser coil.
It will be, but other than throwing your % readings off, it's no big deal.
is it possible to destill water with this?
Yes absolutely.
theres much cheaper devices for that on ebay
Has the brass been treated for lead?
You're thinking of bronze.
No lead in brass
No I'm definitely thinking of brass
Isnt it made of Copper?
Hi if you're doing a stripping run should you take the packing out
This doesn't apply to reflux stills.
Time to update to 4K!
Thanks for the suggestion!
@@KegLand Only saying this because finally ran mine for the first time after having it sit there for ~10 months and had to go back to this video often. ps. Any tips for fixing leak on inlet of the head(where water flows in, leak behind the bolt, nice welding boys! ;p)? Prolly should just email ya but sure past warranty ;p
How much flavour do these strip out
if you run it with the packing and use a slow collection speed it will pretty much stip almost everything
Why are they made of copper?🤔
Copper is good for removing sulphides from the vapour
I’m having trouble with temperature the dissolute he’s coming out way too hot cold water going in cold water going out can’t drop the temperature
Best to back off the power on the boiler.
When replacing the stainless Steel scrubbers, how far up the column should the first one go?
Right up as far as you can push it. The column should be firmly packed but not so tight that air cant easily circulate. If you blow on the bottom of the tube with your mouth you should not feel any resistance.
KegLand thanks. Wasn’t sure if any packing should go past the product outlet pipe
@@KegLand how often should the scrubbers be changed? Any why not copper? You mention in the video that you have copper in there too. Is it a mix in the column?
Not sure why you closed the valve. For those who don't know the valve handle should be straight with the valve to be open.
I assume you are talking about the small 1/4 inch valve where the spirit exits the column. The main reason we close this is because when you start heating up you get a small spike in temperature. We would normally start with the valve closed until the temperature reaches a stable equilibrium. Once this happens we would open the valve and start collecting the spirit.
It would probably still work with the valve open right at the beginning like you say but we find that this gives us a stable temperature that is easier to record so we get a solid starting datum point.
Looks like a Bokakob, but seems to be sealed at the top, boom. 🤣
Sealing would be quite dangerous indeed - hence these are not sealed.
Instructions call a water flow of 8L/minute. That's a tremendous amount of water. Why does it need to be so much when the T500 calls for 0.5L/minute?
As these stills are based around vapour management and not water management, the temp of the coolant water is not as crucial as the flow rate through the condenser head.
@@KegLand What would happen if I ran only 2L of cold water per minute?
I Thought it's illegal to distilling spirits in Australia lol.
Shhhhhh 😉😂
Driving above the speed limit is slso
Wrong. It is not illegal to distill spirits in Australia. There are many distilleries in Australia. You are obliged to obtain a permit to manufacture exicable goods though, and there are other process, record keeping and security obligations too.
Its not illegal as long as you pay your taxes.
8 litres per minute is crazy.
I have the Pure Distilling Reflux Still which is very similar to the cheapo AlcoEngine still.
I run it with 1-1/2 litres/min....no problem.
8l/min....are you kidding me???
The cool water going through the condenser is to make the steam into liquid.
It does NOT control the temperature of the still.
You can run a 4" fire hose through it and it won't affect the temp of the wash.
The wash happily boils at 100 deg C in the boiler and the resulting steam rises upwards 'till it comes into contact with the cool coils and magically turns into a liquid and begins its journey through bends and pipes and valves and drips/streams into a collection vessel.
8l/min....surely you jest.🤣🤣🤣🤣
1-1/2 liter/min works great when you have good cold water supply. Many of our customers are recirculating the water to a water tank and as the tank heats up the requirement for more coolant also increases. We say 8L per min as this covers us for all use cases.
If you use 8L per min you can have coolant water as hot as 40C and it still works.
I have no clue why this thing doesn't work. I followed every instruction
And not a damn drop its doing my head in
Did you end up getting this working?
@@letskebab101 I had a breach in the silicone and it caused a tonne of heat to escape. I re-sealed it and ran it at a higher temp. Brand new. My only other issue was the sheer expense in electricity. So I crafted a new bottom and modified it to run on open flames
@@thethirstymason9684 thanks for the heads up. I may make a dough paste to seal the lid and make it all airtight if I have the same issues. Thanks Anthony
Get in touch with us if you are having trouble.
The instructions on the website are wrong and it is impossible to get the recommended 8l per min water flow. Even when having the boiler temp just above the target temp the Coil is too small to cool properly ( under many conditions) The most consistent thing you get is boil overs and lost product. after nearly a year the product is also deteriorating. I suppose it was cheap and under engineered!!!!!!
How are you running the water in? Thinking I may need to buy a external pump to push the water through faster..
@@letskebab101 Hi I am running a 40BAR pump ( from memory) with 6000l water tank ambient temp. you can shoot the hose across the backyard with the pump it is the same or a bit higher pressure than the mains. With a 50cm hose and the 850w pump I could get 5l per min. I felt the product was faulty as it is impossible to achieve the target 8l per min through the coil ( as per instructions) under any circumstances. NO ONE!!! would talk to me to discuss. It was all Email and felt guided by legal eagles. In the end I sent it in and they hooked it up to their industrial water supply and 8l per min no worries. Your still works perfectly no further discussion. After a bit of research I found that this is a looks exactly the same as the Australian made Pure Distilling Reflux head which only requires 3l per min. In winter this head works perfectly This time of year forget about it. I tried to make sanitiser on the weekend water temp 19C a tad humid. Running the boiler as low as possible initially at 94C Lost most of the product out the top. I believe that the coil is under engineered to cut costs and is way too small to cool sufficiently. Or as I said originally is there a crimp in it? Either way the product does not work consistently. I feel Ripped off as I expected the product to work as promised first time and every time without having to hook it up to a fire hose or wait for specific conditions. If it had of cost another $50 to work properly I would have happily paid extra.
@@PetePhotographer thanks for the reply. I've just ordered one so now a bit worried about the water pressure issues. Lucky for me I'll only be using it in the winter time so I may be lucky with this device.
Is it possible to buy a more powered pump for you to get more input?
Also do you think ice packs around the top would help you get the temperature down? Might be a silly suggestion but just throwing some ideas around for you . Cheers mate
@@letskebab101 The biggest issues are corrosion of parts. after through cleaning and washing after use the flow tap and flow tube/ catching tube are rusted. all product is running over these surfaces. In addition the water flow issue. a bigger pump who knows they got 8l with a fire hose ( high pressure industrial water supply) . Question would I buy one again No does it work great 3/4 of the time yes. Do I think the cooling coil is too small yes. have I wasted several hundred dollars on lost sanitiser yes. . Would I buy another one no way. Also with a sugar wash after tossing 150ml catch around 2l the rest it not usable wet dog flavour. then filter filter filter and awesome sanitiser
I only get a litre or 2 a minute through it. I use a 250W , 130l/min , 7m head submersible pump. (I do use my swimming pool) but worked fine in summer.
I had vinegar steam spewing out the top, 2400W element, ran pump and it knocked everything down.
Have you clowns even researched how to make sanitiser?
talk to much
not true. not enough even for novices. for example....when the temperature regulates....i bought this column and didn't know it takes time for the temp to calm down and regulate. it bounced up and down at first which freaked me out. running water and vinegar for first run and it hit 74C then bam!!!! dropped to 35C for around 10 minutes then shot up to 99C.
@@badgerfactory I really don't understand. 77-80 is the temperature you want for alcohol but when I ran mine it was a lot higher than that... Think I am missing something
what a stupid fucking comment, are you suggesting he should have said nothing and just had a 15 minute video of a still just sitting on a bench with no explanation of what it does or how it works ? you should fuck off back to facebook because youtube is obviously a bit advanced for you yeah
Do I start water at 50-60 on the Digi gauge or the stick thermometer?
You can have the water running right from the beginning if you want. Alternatively if you start at 50-60C that is fine too.
How much water flow rate,we need?
Full instructions online. e recommend 8l/m