Need Help With New Still..

[aCE22]

I Am Attempting To Build A Still, And Need Help Designing One, I Am Thinking Of Some Sort Of Coffee Urn Arrangement And Possibly Eventually Making It Automated, Does Anyone Have An Idea Of How To Make This Arrangement Work, Using The Coffemaker For Heat And I Guess As A "mash Pot" For Lack Of A Better Word?

 

[kornkob]

Two things:

1) Reading sentances in which all the words are capitalized is more difficult. Please don't do that any more. No capitalization is better than that.

2) distilling alcoholic beverages is illegal pretty much everywhere in the US and certainly has nothing to do with brewing beer, which is legal in most places.

 

[God Emporer BillyBrew]

Really? I was under the impression that you could distill as long as you didn't sell it and avoid paying the alcohol taxes associated with it. I'm almost sure it's legal. Of course, I can't prove it!

 

[bikebryan]

Really? I was under the impression that you could distill as long as you didn't sell it and avoid paying the alcohol taxes associated with it. I'm almost sure it's legal. Of course, I can't prove it!

A still has to be properly licensed with BATF or it's not legal. Even if you are properly licensed, it is to be operated SOLELY for the production of fuel - no drinking of the product is allowed.

 

[God Emporer BillyBrew]

That is such a buzzkill.

 

[EternalKnight]

A still has to be properly licensed with BATF or it's not legal. Even if you are properly licensed, it is to be operated SOLELY for the production of fuel - no drinking of the product is allowed.

Having read the laws, I believe if you are making a still for the express purpose of producing ethanol fuel for personal use, you do not have to get a license from the BATF.

 

[DeRoux's Broux]

it's illegal to make booze using a still. just ask your local authority ;~)

 

[AllHoppedUp]

There's a book that I've seen recommended on several sites call "The Alaskan Bootlegger's Bible" that, I'm told, contains detailed instructions for constructing a still.

All the recommendations I've read, however, are followed by warnings that distillation is totally illegal if you're not properly licensed and that the book is for "educational purposes only".

AHU

 

[Orfy]

How about building a still to make distilled water?

 

[DeRoux's Broux]

you can, but you have to register it with big brother :~(

 

[drengel]

laws were meant to be broken...http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~a-hinman/still.htm
might help, i have no experience with distilling, but if you can buy the yeast for distilling from your hommebrew shop, who cares? we're all just making alcohol.

 

[Baron von BeeGee]

Having read the laws, I believe if you are making a still for the express purpose of producing ethanol fuel for personal use, you do not have to get a license from the BATF.

According to this link there are some regulations, even for fuel:
http://www.atf.gov/alcohol/info/faq/genalcohol.htm#g1

 

[Kaiser]

I Am Attempting To Build A Still, ...

Make sure you have done some reading about distilling before you try this yourself. Many people have gone blind from poorly made home liquer. Distilling can significantly increase the concentration of dangerous alcohols in your brew; something you don't have to worry about so much in brewing and wine making.

 

[sudsmonkey]

Wait a minute , guys ! I was under the impression that distilling alcohol for purely personal consumption was perfectly legal as long as you don't get caught. Having a still sounds cool. Making your own liquor as well as beer and wine seems like it should be a given right here in the U.S. Unfortunately, it isn't. If you're willing to risk having to take long, warm showers with Big Bubba, and having to fight some guy so that you can keep your smokes and your toothbrush, By all means, build that still.

Think I'll stick to homebrew...... What's that , Bubba ?

 

[El Pistolero]

Wait a minute , guys ! I was under the impression that distilling alcohol for purely personal consumption was perfectly legal as long as you don't get caught.

Pretty much anything is perfectly legal as long as you don't get caught.

Where you been monkey...hung up in the jungle?

 

[drengel]

the chances of getting caught have to be minimal. have you read your states homebrew laws. i'm sure some of us break those. theres actually limits in some states about how much you can make. anyways, people have been illegally distilling for a long time, think about those old people and their moonshine and bathtub gin stories.

 

[Truble]

Where do you think NASCAR's roots are? Bootleggers racing each other!

 

[Genghis77]

I know the still components should be either copper or pyrex glass. Other metals will make other alcohols than ethanol, which can be fatal. I don't think a small still would be feasable in respect to time and money. That's something best purchased at the liquor store.

 

[sudsmonkey]

Pretty much anything is perfectly legal as long as you don't get caught.

Where you been monkey...hung up in the jungle?

Even worse, my Brother, SOBER. It was horrible ! Reality is a bad thing in large doses. Getting my buzz on tonight. Feels good to be back.

 

[Denny's Evil Concoctions]

Two things:

2) distilling alcoholic beverages is illegal pretty much everywhere in the US and certainly has nothing to do with brewing beer, which is legal in most places.

Not illegal for personal use (any more) as long as its under a certain amount of gallons per year (don't remember the #) up here in Canada.

There was an owner of a Home Hardware store that used to brew beer and had a still at home. Used to sell brewing supplies out of the store and had a book for sale on how to build a still out of home hardware items. The book also stressed using pressure release valves to keep the unit safe (explosion free is good).

 

[sudsmonkey]

I know the still components should be either copper or pyrex glass. Other metals will make other alcohols than ethanol, which can be fatal. I don't think a small still would be feasable in respect to time and money. That's something best purchased at the liquor store.

Anything you make a still from will make other alcohols. Fusel alcohols come out before the usable stuff, Different things boil out at different temperatures. The way I understand it, you get the headings ( unusable, impure alcohol) , the good part of the run, and the tailings ( see Headings) . The before and after taste horrible and could blind you. I Have researched this. There's nobody on this site that wants to build a still worse than I do. I've finally come to realize that I don't need to. Why go to prison or kill or blind myself through my own ignorance? 80 ounces of most anything I care to brew knocks my ass right into orbit.

Why ask for more ? :cross:

 

[DeRoux's Broux]

the chances of getting caught have to be minimal. have you read your states homebrew laws. i'm sure some of us break those. theres actually limits in some states about how much you can make. anyways, people have been illegally distilling for a long time, think about those old people and their moonshine and bathtub gin stories.

in Texas, i think it's 100 gallons/year per adult in the household. so, right now, i can brew 400 gallons!woo-hoo!

 

[drengel]

yeah ithought it was something like that. ive heard stuff like 10-20 gallons per week. if you go into my cellaar at any given time theres about 20 gallons doing something between my and a buddy who uses my celllar, not to mention about 30-40 gallons in bottles waiting to get cracked open between us.

 

[sudsmonkey]

That's it. I can do 200 gallons of beer and something like 100 gallons of wine. I'd be hard pressed to go over that with my current setup.

 

[Beermaker]

Here is one I am building......

http://www.moonshine-still.com/

for oils of course

 

[God Emporer BillyBrew]

I have no plans on ever building one, but what a crappy law. It's just like the ban on homebrewing before the law changed. It's legal to buy at the store, but you can't make it at home for yourself? That sucks.

 

[Genghis77]

I think the ban on home brewing was a left over from Prohibition. Took President Carter to clear things up.

The 200 gallon a year limit still sucks. 500 gallons a year would be about right. Even as a single household, I have lots of friends that like to drink up my creations. I like to have 15 gallons fermenting at a time.

 

[bikebryan]

I have no plans on ever building one, but what a crappy law. It's just like the ban on homebrewing before the law changed. It's legal to buy at the store, but you can't make it at home for yourself? That sucks.

It all boils down to a money issue. When you buy it at a store, uncle sam gets his taxes from you. When you distill at home, he doesn't. You do the math - what is best for the GOVERNMENT?

If you don't like the law, fight to get it changed. If enough people lobby against it, sooner or later (probably later, but hey) things will change.

 

[Genghis77]

My first experiences with Brewing was in Saudi Arabia. I converted non alcoholic beer to alcoholic content and grape juice to wine. Highly illegal, but if you didn't sell, go into public after drinking and not go to work after more than 2 glasses of wine or 4 glasses of beer the night before, no one really knew or cared. Distilling was another matter. People got caught doing that because stills blew up and the smell carried throughout the neighborhood. That offense resulted in a permanent prison sentence. (till you committed suicide,died from boredom and neglect or were a very old and ill man). The key was to limit production to ones own consumption. A few people did 55 gallon drums of wine. Knew one guy that had 30- 55 gallon drums going and was being investigated by the Secret Police. Barely got him out of the country as they were about to nab him. His volume was what attracted the attention. The aroma carried and a Saudi can smell alcohol at 100 yards.

 

[DeRoux's Broux]

is that Saudi or HELL!?!?!???!?!?!