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Streven

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Everything posted by Streven

  1. I had a local brewery age some imperial stout in one of our 53 gal bourbon barrels and they dumped today. I am planning to do a finished whiskey in those barrels for 6 months or so. To make sure I understand the post above, your recommendation is no washing / rinsing of the barrel prior to filling with whiskey. Just fill and then filter down to 0.1 micron prior to bottling? Thanks!
  2. Thank you for the great information!
  3. We are preparing to begin dumping our first whiskey and looking for a filtration resource. I had been in communication with Alex Findlow of Findlow Filtration but received a message that he unfortunately passed away last month. My main concern is filtering to prevent any sediment / haziness from settling in over time. Can anyone recommend a resource I can contact regarding best methods with the equipment I have available - ErtelAlsop 10-plate filter press and sediment filter housing? Or in general if anyone is using similar equipment and has any suggestions I would appreciate it.
  4. Update: After last run I filled the mash tun with hot water off the condenser. Added Brew Clean (comparable to PBW) and let agitator run overnight. Result was a clean tank. I will alternate with acid as suggested and hopefully avoid the need to disassemble to remove buildup in the future.
  5. Thanks guys. There is not a port for a spray ball so pressure washer would probably need to be the next attempt. I think that will help, but there will still be some areas where the pressurized water won't hit like the undersize of the cooling coil. I will also try using citric.
  6. Looking for some advice on possible cleaning options for my 150 gal mash tun. I'm mashing bourbon in this unit and it has cooling coil inside the tank. The cooling coil is a pain to clean around. I haven't found a great way to get the tank fully cleaned without disassembling it which I'm currently doing after about 3-4 runs because I start to see some build up in spots that are not easily reached. When assembled it's difficult to reach quite a few areas between the coil and inner tank wall. I'm using Kettle Wash from Ace Chemical which is a high alkaline cleaner. I've tried to fill the tank half way with water and mix in the kettle wash and heat and let soak hoping to remove residue without scrubbing but that has not been effective. So I'm curious if there are any stronger cleaners that anyone recommend I try? Or any other techniques. I don't have room in the distillery for a heat exchanger so I don't want to go that route. The other option I'm considering is removing the coil altogether and flooding the steam jacket with water for cooling. Would make cleaning easier, but I need to check with the manufacturer before attempting that. If anyone has any other ideas please let me know! Thank you.
  7. Rusty, Thank you for the recommendations. I'm going to Amazon now to purchase. Take care.
  8. Can anyone recommend any good books on brandy, or specifically apple brandy? I've read through the brandy forum and there is some excellent information. Just looking for something a little more comprehensive.
  9. Thank you for the feedback. Jedd Haas - yes, I was quoted 1.00 for the box and 1.45 for the partition (2.45 total). After further review, I think I can use the existing partitions from the 12-pack box, so I hope to avoid having to order more. I will check out boxmaker and also have another packaging company sending a sample from a "stock" size box to see if that will be an option.
  10. Does anyone have a good source for 6 pack boxes and partitions for Pirimal 750ml Nordic bottles? I'm purchasing these bottles, but they come in 12-pack boxes. The price I'm getting for the 6-pack boxes and partitions is approximately $1.00 for the box and $1.45 for the partition (if ordering 1,000 at a time). I don't HAVE to do the 6-pack boxes, but if I do decide on this, I was curious if this pricing seems in line with what others are getting.
  11. I am getting ready to place our first order of barrels and have narrowed down to Kelvin and ISC (Independent Stave Company). There is some more recent feedback on Kelvin on the forum, but I noticed the information from this thread on ISC is a few years old. Does anyone using ISC have some recent feedback? Or if anyone has any comparisons between ISC or Kelvin (product quality, accuracy of lead times, customer service, positive / negative experience, etc.).
  12. I have the same result if only adjusting water without grain. 2 tablespoons will drop PH by about 1.5 (100 gallons). However, once grain is added and adjusting, then it was taking about a cup or more of citric. I am adjusting PH prior to each enzyme with grain in so that’s why so much citric was required as far as I can tell.
  13. Newbie question regarding PH adjustment (down) with citric: Last weekend I did my first bourbon mash (150 gallons - 200 lbs of corn flour / 50 lbs rye / 5 lbs malt). Using enzymes from BSG (hitempase and Amylo 300) I was using citric to drop the PH from in the mid 6 range down to the 4.0 range for Amylo. I don't have my notes in front of me, but I'm pretty sure it took about a cup (or more) of citric to drop the PH. Does this seem right? I don't know what I was expecting, but it seemed like a large amount of citric and I started to worry that maybe I needed to let the mash rest longer before rechecking PH after adding citric. I was probably only waiting 5 minutes or so. I have no basis for comparison at this point, so just thought I would ask some of you with more experience if this seems right, or if I'm way off. Any feedback is appreciated.
  14. Does anyone have a recommendation for a thermometer in the 40 - 100 degree range with a 1/4 degree subdivision as described in Section 30.22 of the gauging manual? I have a glass thermometer, but the range is wide, so it makes it difficult for accurate reading. Any good digital models anyone can recommend? I have a local lab that I'll use to do the calibration.
  15. I have for sale a like-new McDonnell & Miller Series 67 LWCO. Float style. I installed on my new boiler, but realized I actually needed a pump controller instead of this LWCO. It was purchased new, hooked up, then disconnected before it was ever used. I paid $260 for it new and will sell for $100. PM me if interested.
  16. Streven

    Ventilation

    Sailor, Out of curiosity, what explosion proof fan are you using? My insurance inspector asked for the same thing. I have an RKI model PS-2 gas monitor, but still need to get the explosion proof ventilation fan to connect to. He references FM Global Data Sheet 7-74 for distilleries (attached). The building inspector hasn't required this in my area, but insurance is. This may or may not be of use to you, but thought I would share. FMDS0774.pdf
  17. Following up on this thread, I am looking for a source for a low pressure (0-10 PSI) pressure gauge to install in the steam jacket of my mash tun. I would like a center back mounted gauge with NPT connection (I can work with any size up to 3/4"). I have found one at http://www.supplyhouse.com/Burnham-100325-01-Steam-Pressure-Gauge-for-IN-INPV-Boilers that goes up to 30 PSI which would work, but was hoping for a 0-10 or 0-15 PSI gauge since I won't get near 30. There are also plenty of gauges online from McMaster-Carr and Grainger, but what I'm finding is that most are limited to 140 deg F, which I don't think will work with steam. The jacket does have a pre-set relief so it's not necessarily a safety issue, but I would also like to monitor the steam pressure inside the jacket with a gauge. Thought I would check with the forum to find out if any of you have purchased anything similar and where from. Thank you!
  18. Confirming what others have shared. Citric acid "wipe passivation" is all you would need. We own a contract manufacturing business for medical devices (spine and ortho surgery instrumentation and implants). The passivation spec all of our customers use is ASTM A967. This allows for citric or nitric passivation. Our customers and ISO 13485 require all of our "special processes" (which includes passivation) to be validated, so we have done all of the boil and copper sulfate testing on coupons that have been wipe passivated with citric (which is literally a thousand pages of documentation and who knows how many hundreds of coupons tested). Anyone working in ISO environments knows IQ, OQ, PQ.....blah blah blah. All of our instruments are wipe passivated after laser or tig welding. We wipe on, let sit for a couple minutes then wipe away with rubbing alcohol. We use a product called CitriSurf 2250 Gel. We avoid nitric at our facility just because of the added EPA regulations. I figure if it's good enough for the FDA and sterile instruments being used in the OR, should work for your application! Happy passivating.
  19. Looking for feedback on plans for water treatment. Water Info: City Water. Results from Ward Lab attached. Process Water: Carbon Filter - Softener Blending Water: Same as process water but additionally run through RO system I am planning to run through the carbon filter before softening because I detect a faint smell of chlorine as the water comes out of the tap. The water results show 47 PPM for Chloride, so from other's experience, I'm curious if a single run through a carbon filter will be sufficient? Or is it that critical for process water? Is there anything else in the report that I will need to address through treatment either for process or blending water? Water1.pdf
  20. Can anyone recommend an online source for ordering steam supplies (traps, condensate return, etc.)? I have purchased the boiler (Williamson Thermaflow 300k BTU input low pressure with trim kit and LWCO included), but I am still in need of the remaining items. I'm hoping to get some feedback on any online company with good pricing and service. If anyone has any recommendations I would appreciate it.
  21. Model #: SIN9LNIP-LED Serial #: 65229433 Year: 2010 Includes: Low water shutoff and pressure regulator Location: Indiana Price: $750 + buyer pays shipping IMPORTANT INFORMATION: I purchased this boiler from a distillery in Colorado in 2016 and have NOT put it in service so I cannot verify that everything works but from talking with the previous owner it does work (or at least it did when it was loaded on the truck to Indiana). So why didn't I ever put it into service? Great question, and the short story is that buying this boiler was one of my (sure to be many) rookie mistakes. I didn't realize that apparently the "LED" designation behind the model number indicates that this boiler was specifically outfitted for higher altitudes. After checking with my local Burnham distributor they have indicated that it cannot be refitted to standard altitude (about 850 ft. MSL where I live). At least that's what they have told me. So, unless you plan to use this boiler in a higher altitude DON'T BUY THIS FROM ME or I think you will be disappointed. PM me and I will provide all of the details and answer any questions that I can.
  22. Sorry I'm a little late on this, but wanted to share our timeline for TTB approval. We submitted in May of this year (2016) and received approval on December 5, 2016. In total it took 201 days. TTB did come back with a couple of questions / clarifications around the 10th of November, but those were answered within a day and we received approval about a month later. Reading through some of the other posts in this forum it doesn't appear as though we set any speed records obtaining approval. However, we're fortunately not against a firm timeline, so the 201 days did not cause any burden on the business. I contracted Dave Dunbar to assist and file the application with the TTB. While hiring a consultant may not be for everybody, my experience was positive and would recommend him to anyone else like me coming into this industry with no prior experience. Dave obviously cannot guarantee his services are going to expedite turnaround with the TTB, but (at least for me) his help with the application drastically sped up the timeline for submission. I also learned a bunch in the process, and by having Dave as the point person for the application, it allowed me to focus my time on other things.
  23. I filed my federal application in May, so we are not up and running yet and therefore have no input on floor drains. However, based on feedback from everyone I've talked to, I am spending the money to have them cut in. I am just doing 4" trough drains. I am not sure what local codes require for sprinklers, but I just met with my architect last Friday (who is also an attorney) and his feedback was that if I sprinkle the distillery, it will simplify everything else. Our distillery is attached to another building, so without sprinklers it increases requirements for fire rated walls / doors. Also, I spoke with my insurance agent, and he also indicated that they will want to see the distillery sprinkled. Regardless what you decide, I would talk with a local contractor or architect familiar with fire code, and also talk with your insurance agent. They can both likely give you the feedback you need.
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