Mverick160

Being from the Refining industry where we have every weld xray'd, scanned and then reheatreat the metal.  I'm always amazed at what I see others get away with.  But being in industry for 38 years means I've seen it all.  Stainless was never what was stated until the guns came out reading the metal.  When we first got one we sent a lot of materials back that were finished product ready to be installed with the wrong metals used but still labeled as the right metals.  And fitting were also always wrong.  

When a small producer that buys materials from someone else states what their product is made out of.  I always cringe.  Knowing that if they don't have the abilities to check, someone is probably screwing them over.

 

On 12/18/2014 at 6:14 PM, Dehner Distillery said:

I use the cold cook method with great success. For the heat source I use an instantaneous water heater that puts out 184° at 9 gallons a minute.

I also use Alpha and gamma amylase. I average about a 10% loss on yield compared to a full boil cook. But the time saved in the energy saved far outweighs the 10% loss. So it puts me in the black more.

You just saved me a whole lot of money.  LOL

I was considering trying this.  As for Mash pots I have a 120 gallon Stainless steel commercial Hot water tanks that had be taken out of service.  They're fully insulated already and were high Efficiency.  The plan was to cut the top off to put grain in, and use a small torch head in the bottom port that used to house the HE burner to heat it up.  To get a speed increase on heat up I got a Instant hot water heater to use to fill the pots.  So that will put the water in around 185.  It sounds like I won't need to mess with the burner in the bottom.  They're tall so was trying to figure out a way to get a mixer in it.  But it sounds like I don't really need one.  Plan was to fill with cracked corn.  Add hot water and enzyme.  Let enzyme work.  Stir with something a few times.  When temp drops.  Add second enzyme.  Let it do it's magic.  Stir it up and filter out to a holding tank.  Add yeast and let it go to completion.

My plan was to use enzymes.  I got Ferm Soulutions Aha 400 and GA 150 to use.  

 

Is anyone running a continuous still?  With the knowledge out there from the oil industry using them for a hundred years and the efficiency they have by reusing heat from exchangers and condensers I'm surprised more don't use them.

I've run distillation units for years so maybe it just seems easier for me.  

And I wish there was a easy program for design out there then what we have.