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nabtastic

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Curious here, what is the proper way to evacuate a still - post distillation? To my understanding, we are supposed to capture all distillate, but some stills requiring the manway or a pressure release to be drained releasing what could be potentially hazardous vapors right? I don't think I've heard anyone talk about this and haven't came across it anywhere.

Also, are people actually checking and recording each batch to verify that their waste distillates are actually below 10%?

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Personally I don't think it is an issue. There should be no pressure in the vessel anyways. Once I've collected what has been distilled it gets dumped as stillage. If there is more than 10% abv in the stillage then I won't be in business very long.

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Thank you for your response, I suppose I should rephrase my question though: When you drain your still, do you have to open it (manway/relief valve/etc) while it is still hot or do you let it cool before draining?

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  • 2 months later...
  • 2 weeks later...

I wouldn't recommend dumping boiling stillage down the drain. ABS pipe can only withstand 180 degree water. you are gambling with your plumbing dumping boiling liquid down the drain

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normally, you have so little alcohol left in the stillage at the end of distillation, opening to "vent" is not going to be a problem. the only place with higher alcohol content vapors would be closer to the head of the still in a hybrid still with a plated or packed column.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I recommend running a cast iron pipe for your floor drain, its kinda old school, but will wick off a tremendous amount of heat before dumping into a ABS drain.

theres no worries about it rusting out in your life time.

My landlord informed me all the drains in the building are cast iron--music to my ears.

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  • 2 months later...

Peeple, hear me! the proper way to vent and drain a column still is important! Do it wrong and you're looking at hot mash sprayed everywhere.

Step one: turn off energy/heat/steam

two: observe trays in column. When the bubble caps stop showing bubbles, you have somewhere close to pressure equilibrium

three: vent boiler with vent valve, prepare to close it quickly if hot mash is still under pressure (it shouldn't be if you followed steps one and two)

four: open manway

five: empty boiler, don't get scalded

Notes: adding cold anything to that hot stillage creates steam reactions and can splash. Adding cold anything to that boiler creates a vacuum in your steam jacket (if equipped). Helps to have a vacuum relief valve on the jacket or the baffles and internal welds may deteriorate over time. if they do, you'll know it by the bong-ing noise on heat up and cool down.

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  • 3 weeks later...

^that's a good answer. It seems pretty common to have a positive pressure relief but not so often do you find one with a negative pressure relief.

Still evacuation, in regards to plumbing and code, is not something I've came across often. Thanks to everybody for your inputs.

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  • 3 months later...

I know this thread is a little older, but I also wanted to 2nd what Blackheart said. The cooling mash will create a vacuum. This is very important for the few commercial distilleries running traditional pot stills with a doubler/thumper. Being that the inlet tube in the doubler is submerged in liquid, the vacuum upon cooling will pull that liquid from the doubler back through the column. Depending on the strength of the still, the vacuum can damage it causing it to collapse inwards.

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