Inexpensive home still, for making ethanol?

[Brett Robson]

Not that this adds to your original distilling question, but I've been using the Klean Strip green DNA for shellac, which according to their MSDS, has < 5% methanol, compared to the 40% or so in the regular DNA. I get it at Ace Hardware.

http://www.kleanstrip.com/product/gr...atured-alcohol

[Allan Speers]

Well, I dunno if it was worth the money or not, but I got my Graves 95 proof today.

I did a quick test vs Klean Strip. Performance & appearance seem pretty much identical, though the grain alcohol dries just a tad faster, which isn't necessarily a good thing. Still, the fumes are much more pleasant. There's a noticeable difference.


Sadly, I have already succumbed to the trap of "One for me, two for the shellac flakes....."
- but I'm sure I can learn to resist in time.

[Jason Roehl]

Just so we're clear on the legalities of distilling in the U.S.:

http://www.ttb.gov/spirits/home-distilling.shtml

[Frank Drackman]

Not that this adds to your original distilling question, but I've been using the Klean Strip green DNA for shellac, which according to their MSDS, has < 5% methanol, compared to the 40% or so in the regular DNA. I get it at Ace Hardware.

http://www.kleanstrip.com/product/gr...atured-alcohol

Good thing were are only making perfume!

[roger wiegand]

I've redistilled ethanol in the lab. You'd want a 4 or 6l round bottom flask, appropriate size heating mantle, Variac to control the heat,a condenser, and a few other odd pieces of glass to plumb it together. These days the setup would run about $2K I'd guess. A gallon would take several hours and use a fair amount of power and water for cooling the condenser. Without special procedures you can't go higher than 95%, even if you do the pure alcohol will quickly pick up water from the atmosphere.

Then there's the risk of blowing it up and starting a fire-- admittedly low if you're careful, but it has happened.

Buying it is starting to look cheap! Applying for a tax free license from the ATTB is not particularly expensive or difficult if you meet and can prove you meet their criteria. I'm the holder of such a license for my day job. You really don't want to abuse the license.