HedgeBird

I dont have a good answer but did some searching and found another guy that seems to have had a similar issue. There are a few suggestions in this thread but no clearly identified cause: http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=23103

Just the Viscoferm - http://www.novozymes.com/en/solutions/food-and-beverages/distilling/hgf/Viscoferm/Pages/default.aspx This product has a very noticeable impact on the thickness of our rye mash. Does a great job of thinning things out, and its hard to imagine us running without it at this point.

and I second red's motion. there are a number of guys on here who do private label bottling..

I notice that unit had a minimum PSI of 20, so I may need to replace the pressure switch if I went with that unit. Did you have any issues with over-pressure on your closed loop when this pump kicks in? My understanding is that the pressure tank basically operates as a reserve of pressure to keep the pump from cycling as often. As far as expanding and warming water, the only part of the loop that will ever be closed and able to build pressure would be in PEX (good to 150+ PSI) so I am not sure thats really a concern for me either?

Generally if I can do it myself, I do do it myself; and it seems this project should be well within my capabilities. One of my competitive advantages over other start-up distilleries is that I own a Pex crimper and can do (most of) my own plumbing. I am still considering plumbing the fermenters into the existing glycol loop as you suggest. The mash tun will almost certainly need to be on the CLT as we need to crash cool that quickly with a large volume of cool liquid and the chiller only supplies a slow steady stream of chilled glycol. The chiller is set above freezing so that should not be an issue. I will need to make sure the pressure switch can operate at 10 PSI as my tank jackets are only rated for 15PSI. Additionally I plan to put the jacket control valves on the input side of the jackets so that when the valves do close the jackets remain un-pressurized. The output from the jackets would go back into the open to the atmosphere CLT. I will also make sure to add Pressure Relief Valves to each jacket just in case something goes wrong, or the return pipe inadvertently gets clogged, bent, plugged, etc. That is not something I had though of! I used an air bleeder valve on my dephlagmater so I know what your talking about and actually have at least one here in the shop. Thank you for your feedback Tom!

After doing some more of my own research it looks like many home water pumps have a pressure switch built in. (apparently I have been on municipal water too long and forgot most homes would need a pump like I described above for their wells) Seems like this might be a good option: ? http://www.amazon.com/Hallmark-Industries-MA0345X-6-Shallow-Pressure/dp/B012NBE0UY/ref=pd_sim_sbs_328_9?ie=UTF8&dpID=41KXJO22GeL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=0Y0GX5R1S2TY4BTQCDN9

I am in the process of adding a Cold Liquor Tank (CLT) to my setup that will be used to cool our mash tun and fermenters (and possibly to chill filter). I will be using a 300 gallon stainless tank that contains a stainless coil as the CLT. Cold glycol from an existing installed chiller will be constantly circulated thought the coil in the tank to keep the 300 gallons of water in the tank cold. The part I have questions about is how I circulate the now chilled water though the mash tun and fermenters and back into the CLT. Is there a specific type of pump I can use that will automatically start pumping when one of the thermostatically controlled valves on the fermenter jackets opens, and then automatically stops if all the valves close again? Or do I need to use a pump that is constantly running and plumb in a bypass for the water the flow though if none of the valves are open? My understanding is that most glycol loops are constantly running and have bypass lines for the times when nothing is calling for cooling and the valves are all closed, but I am hoping their might be another option. Is there a pump that automatically stops pumping when the output pressure gets to a certain PSI and then starts up again when a valve opens and allows the pressure to drop? I hope that all makes sense!

Are you looking at mounting this in a way that it is normally below the fill level on a tank? If you don't mind me asking; what is the usage that you feel must have PTFE?

http://m.glaciertanks.com/product.cgi?group=1810&product=4380 this maybe

We are in the process of replacing (and enlarging) our copper shotgun style condenser with an all stainless one. I am a convert to the copper up and stainless down setup and would also strongly recommend that for anyone buying or building a still. I built my own still and as such wish I would have done a number of things different. Number one is the stainless and not copper condenser, number two is the lack of CIP in the column/plates, number three is the flange connection system I used and number four is the pain in the ass sight glass mounts I made. Thats probably about all my regrets actually, and the only one I plan to fix/change is the condenser.

This is like telling a new baker he does not need to bake his cookies because you saw a recipe for no-bake brownies.

A sugar wash can ferment without being cooked; a grain mash will not.

interesting stuff. are the regulations in Wyoming that much more favorable than Idaho?

Subscribed and will give a listen!

Using deoxidized copper rod helped us eliminate pin hole leaks we experienced when welding SS to copper. We started using electrical wire and the welds looked good visually but had a lot of tiny leaks.

Do you guys operate under another trade name or product name?

It would seems this listing is for Moonrise Distillery: http://moonrisedistillery.artisangrown.com/ http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/print-edition/2014/06/13/distillers-say-changes-needed-in-georgia-laws.html // Jun 13, 2014, 6:00am EDT

hoping to find an option that cost a lot less than $4,000 a year. for that much money I could just pay someone to count every item on the shelves each time I wanted to know

Just curious is anyone can recommend some inventory software? Ideally I would love to find a web based service that could keep track of all items that are needed to produce a bottle and then subtract inventory from each item/part (label, cork, bottle, etc.) automatically when I tell the program that we bottled x number of units.

did you see this recent post: http://adiforums.com/index.php?showtopic=6702&hl=

We had to do a health code inspection of our tasting room pretty much the same as any restaurant or bar. All the stuff County Seat mentioned plus make sure to have your little red sanitizer bucket, soap and sanitizer on hand, PH strips or a PH reader for testing your sink, etc. (this all assumes your having a tasting room with more than samples in disposable plastic cups) For us the health inspector did not check our production area as its not part of their jurisdiction. PA Department of Agriculture does a bi-yearly inspection of the production area. The only thing we got called out on during this inspection was having food ingredients (juniper berries) stored on a wood shelf that she deemed "not easily cleaned" and evidence of an animal in the production area (i had left my dogs water bowl in the sink). We moved the juniper berries to a stainless shelf while she was there and let her know the dog stays upstairs and we where good. I *think* this is the correct form to register with the department of ag: http://www.agriculture.pa.gov/Protect/FoodSafety/Processing%20Wholesale%20and%20Distribution/Wholesale%20Food%20Processing,%20Manufacturing%20and%20Distribution/Documents/APPLICATION%20PACKET-FOOD%20ESTABLISHMENT%20REGISTRATION%2002-2015.1.pdf

Hey Paul - can you tell us where these are located?

I am presuming: MRC stands for monthly recurring charge? NRC stands for non-recurring charge?

my experience was that the state was pretty responsive. if you have your ducks in the forest they should be able to get it done in two months. I think most delays are on the applicants side, not the state.

I think one mistake people make is qualifying 200 cases a month with an "only".