Moonshine stills. How to make a moonshine still at home Do-it-yourself moonshine distillation unit

The design of a moonshine still is not particularly complex; for this reason, some craftsmen make devices literally “on their knees.” And device manufacturers are coming up with more and more new designs that should provide people with high-quality alcohol. Moonshine stills have been known to mankind for quite a long time; some of them were familiar to the Egyptians back in the 3rd century. In Rus', similar devices appeared a little later - in the 16th-17th centuries.

Classic version

What exactly is included in the design of the device and what are its parts responsible for?

Design principle of the classic model:

A moonshine still of the correct design must certainly have a distillation cube and a container for storing mash. The cube must be made of durable material, preferably stainless steel, but it is permissible to use an aluminum can as a distillation cube. An aluminum milk can is best used for this purpose as it has a sealed lid. If the cube is made of stainless steel, then it tolerates contact well with aggressive substances, alcohols and fusel oils. Aluminum is not as stable as stainless steel, so over the years, harmful substances that are formed during the oxidation of aluminum can enter the mash.
The thermometer helps maintain the temperature: the fact is that during the boiling process, fusel oils and water evaporate at one temperature, and alcohol at another. For this reason, it is worth monitoring the indicators and avoiding overheating, since it is dangerous for moonshine and can affect its quality.
The device is also equipped with a coil - it acts as a connecting element. It is through the coil that alcohol-containing vapors pass, which arise during the heating or boiling of the mash. The vapor enters the steamer from the coil and is converted into a ready-to-use product.
The role of the vaporizer is to clean alcohol-containing vapors from fusel oils and other harmful substances. The dry steam tank is often called a deflector or sump. Passing through the device, harmful substances settle in the steam chamber. But this part of the device can not only clean alcohol from impurities, it is often used to add a certain aroma to the drink. Orange or lemon peels are placed in the steamer to give the moonshine additional piquancy, pleasant taste and smell.
A refrigerator is a zone in which condensation is produced and the vapor is converted into an alcohol solution. If we are talking about a device that has a connection to running water, then cooling occurs due to its circulation, and if there is no access to water, then use a container filled with cool liquid.

Moonshine still design

But good alcohol can be produced not only with the help of a moonshine still; ratification columns are often used to obtain high-quality alcohol.

Ratification column and its structure

Many people think that the ratification column is the apparatus for distilling moonshine, but in reality this is not the case. A ratification column is a device that has a unique structure and differs from a device for producing moonshine from mash in that it allows you to obtain high-quality alcohol with a strength of up to 90 degrees.

In the production of tinctures, liqueurs and other strong drinks, a ratification column is indispensable, since only this device can be used in the production of such drinks.

To understand the principle of operation of the device, it is worth considering what the ratification column consists of and what are the features of its design.

The device has:

A container that heats up during operation of the device.
Distiller with nozzles and cooling device.
There is also a column in the design.

Today, such devices are used not only for the production of alcohol. The ratification column has found application in pharmacology, the oil industry and other industries.

The operating principle of the column is as follows:

The container containing the mash or solution is gradually heated, and the liquid is brought to a boil. During the boiling process, abundant steam is released.
The steam that appears during the boiling process gradually rises as a result of rising temperatures; the steam flows through the column. It “gains strength” due to attachments that increase heat transfer.
The steam reaches the cooling device and distillation converts the vapor mixture into alcohol. The liquid returns back, it flows down the column again, nozzles are involved in this process.
As the liquid moves down the column, it encounters vapor and goes through distillation a second time. Thanks to the repeated distillation process and contact with vapor, the quality of the main product and the strength of the drink increases. This ultimately allows you to obtain alcohol with a strength of up to 90 degrees.

The design features of the ratification column ensure its high productivity. Naturally, this device cannot be compared with a high-power moonshine still. But it is worth noting that given the column’s ability to produce high-quality alcohol, it is not much inferior in characteristics to a home brewing apparatus.

However, any device has its pros and cons, but for those who like to produce alcoholic beverages at home, a ratification column or a moonshine still are essential devices.

Naturally, the devices are quite expensive; the price of a good apparatus for the production of strong drinks can reach 20–30 thousand rubles. But some people successfully solved this problem and made their own moonshine still from improvised materials. What is the operating principle of these devices?

Manufacturing of moonshine stills

It’s not easy to make a moonshine still with your own hands, but don’t despair, the devices of some devices are so primitive that even a beginner can assemble them with their own hands without certain skills.

Everyone knows that most often devices are made of stainless steel, since it is durable and resistant to acids, alcohols and solvents.

A homemade moonshine production plant at home can have the following varieties:

You can make the device from a can, which is used for storing and transporting milk. Instead of a can, you can take a flask or any other container. The can will play the role of a distillation cube; it will be equipped with a flow-through coil or a refrigerator, which is basically the same thing. The refrigerator is made of copper tube. To improve product quality, it is worth attaching a steam steamer to the structure.
The second type of device can also be assembled from a can for storing milk; it is equipped with a powerful refrigerator of five tubes, which increase the reliability and efficiency of the device. In order to obtain the highest quality alcohol, a steamer is attached to the apparatus.
For experienced engineers, a device made entirely of stainless steel is suitable. Its advantage is its compactness and the possibility of complete disassembly. The design is very interesting, it is full of unique engineering solutions and ideas. In addition, the device will help to expel high-quality alcohol due to the fact that it is equipped with a double steam chamber.
You can make a device for dispensing strong drinks from any pot you have in the house. The saucepan is supplemented with a tube, which serves as a refrigerator, and a steamer, in which harmful substances, fusel, settle.
In 2–2.5 hours you can assemble a moonshine still from a glass jar and a coil. If you need to enhance the quality of the product, then you will have to attach a steamer to the device. Despite this simplicity of design, the device will help produce alcohol of good quality. But, naturally, its productivity is low.
If you combine a glass jar and a computer cooler, you can make a device for distilling moonshine. An attempt to abandon water cooling leads to its replacement with a small fan. And the jar will act as a distillation cube. This device is simple in design and can be assembled in just a few hours.
But this is not the simplest device that was created by craftsmen. If you take a bucket, pour mash into it, cover it with a bag, make a small hole in it and fill it with water and ice, you can get a device for preparing alcohol-containing drinks. Such a device will help distill alcohol from mash, but the quality of the drink obtained in this way leaves much to be desired. Instead of a bag with a recess, you can use a bowl of cold water that will float on the surface of the bucket and cool the mash. But there must certainly be a container above the mash, in which the alcohol vapors will condense, turning into the coveted moonshine.

The desire to create a device for the production of moonshine does not always end in success, although the design of the device is simple. But it has certain features, for this reason there is a risk of spending money on raw materials, time, and getting nothing as a result.

For those who are not good at constructing devices for converting mash into alcohol, you can use special kits. They contain all the parts that are necessary to assemble the device and also instructions - it will help you understand the design features and do everything correctly.

Today in stores you can easily find devices that are equipped with all the necessary parts. Such kits are cheaper than the assembled device.

If you want to create a device for producing alcohol with your own hands, then you should approach the process with all responsibility. You should not skimp on the source code and you need to think through all the design features in advance, make drawings, or at least find samples on the Internet. Only by thinking through all the features of the device down to the smallest detail can you not only make the device yourself, but also ultimately get the pleasure of assembling the device and distilling alcohol. And also subsequently enjoy the result of your labor!

The question of how to make a moonshine still at home arises for those who have tried high-quality homemade alcohol. Be it moonshine or variations on the theme of homemade cognacs, whiskey, tinctures or liqueurs based on them. The first questions are asked to the hospitable hosts, they say how they did it, teach and show. Yes, many people in our time fall into the ranks of moonshiners in approximately this way. The next step is to search the Internet for the question of which one to buy or how to make a moonshine still with your own hands.

There are not many options for a beginner if you analyze your needs and preferences. The easiest, but somewhat expensive way to purchase a ready-made kit in one of the many online stores. To do this, you need to spend several hours of your time searching for a model, and most importantly, reviews from real users, which are best looked for on thematic forums.

In this article we will consider the second option - a do-it-yourself moonshine still. Here everyone is their own designer, technologist, and mechanic, as they say, who is good at what, we will try to give some recommendations and give examples.

Briefly (since you’ve probably already found a lot on the Internet) let’s look at the moonshine brewing process.

Quite simply, moonshine brewing is the process of heating an alcohol-containing liquid (mash) to the point of evaporation of alcohols (mainly ethyl). Further cooling of alcohol vapor to a state of condensation into a liquid fraction.

Based on this, you can understand which elements of the device must be present.

Alembic

The first thing you need is a container for heating the raw materials or a distillation cube. The most common household items are aluminum milk cans and pressure cookers. Both are good because they are hermetically sealed. It’s worth noting right away that all rubber sealing gaskets must be replaced with silicone ones, since when alcohol vapor comes into contact with native elements, the final product will have a specific chemical taste. On the flask, the rubber gasket can also be wrapped tightly with fum tape in five or six layers, overlapping. Well, on modern pressure cookers the gaskets are made from food materials that can heat up to high temperatures; for a mini device this is the best option for a distillation cube. The population also has a wide variety of homemade containers in use, most often welded from stainless steel in the form of tanks or cubes with a neck and a screw cap with a thread for a fitting. If you search among friends and relatives, someone probably has such a rarity from the times of developed socialism and Prohibition lying around somewhere in a garage or barn. If you do not have a suitable container at hand, and the question arises about purchasing one, we will give some recommendations:

The material is definitely food grade stainless steel (more about the materials below);
Volume 25-30 liters at least. There is no point in buying a small cube or pressure cooker and going through the whole rigmarole of moonshine brewing for the sake of a liter of drink, and if you like it (friends, colleagues, relatives) you will have to buy a larger container;
The neck should be as wide as possible, try scraping the burnt mash from the bottom through the “bottle neck”, and it’s just more convenient to wash;
Workmanship and metal thickness. As a rule, these indicators are proportional to the price and do not directly affect the quality of moonshine; they remain at your discretion and financial capabilities; it is clear that thin metal can wrinkle or deform from mechanical stress or overheating, but the durability of the container depends on welding and rolling.

Fridge

Flow-through refrigerator with a coil inside

The second necessary element of even the simplest device is a refrigerator. In principle, they can be flow-through or non-flow-through (capacitive). A flow-through refrigerator is compact, takes up little space and is easier to store. It is based on a spiral of a tube - a coil placed in a sealed container through which cold water from the plumbing system is passed. A flow-through refrigerator can also be made direct-flow, this is when the cooled tube is located in a pipe of larger diameter and water is passed between their walls. This type of refrigerator is simpler to manufacture, but it has large linear dimensions and requires a stand to position it. Flow-through refrigerators have an advantage over non-flow refrigerators - they are more efficient, that is, a tube of shorter length and diameter is enough than in a simple capacitive design due to the constant temperature of the supplied cooling water from the water supply.

Homemade static refrigerator for moonshine still from a bucket

A static refrigerator is usually made on the basis of some kind of tank or canister with a volume of 20 - 30 liters. A spiral-shaped tube is cut into it. When distilling, the tank is filled with cold water and, as it heats up, the hot water is scooped out from the top and cool water is added, but this is somewhat inconvenient and not technologically advanced, but it also has its advantages:

The easiest way to make such a refrigerator is to assemble it on your knees from scrap materials;
In the absence of running water, this is probably the only design option;
In winter, you can use snow or frozen water in plastic bottles.

You can also make a simple combined option, for example, take a galvanized 10-liter bucket, cut a spiral from a tube into it and install a drain fitting under the hose almost at the very top. The hose for supplying cold water must be secured to the bottom of the bucket, for example, by tying it with wire to a coil. This design is more compact due to the use of running water. Plus, it is possible to work without running water, you just have to drain and add coolant more often, and drive more slowly (heat the cube less), you can also use snow or frozen bottled water.

It is also necessary to adjust the volume of supplied liquid so that it does not overflow if the drain hose is taken with insufficient cross-section, and the excess water will not be used for cooling and will be wasted.

During distillation, you can adjust the water supply experimentally; the resulting moonshine should be cool or slightly warm, but not hot; if this is the case, then alcohol vapor may escape from the refrigerator. This is unacceptable, since, firstly, the yield of the product decreases, and secondly, it is unsafe, especially if heating is carried out over an open fire.

Sukhoparnik

Let's consider another element of a simple moonshine still, such as a steamer. This detail is completely optional, but very necessary if you want to significantly improve the quality of your product. The steamer will be placed in the steam line between the distillation cube and the refrigerator. Let's consider the principle of operation of a steam steamer.

During the boiling and evaporation of ethyl alcohol, partial capture by steam of heavy fractions boiling at higher temperatures, which contain fusel oils, occurs. This is where the common noun for bad moonshine comes from – “fusel”. It is the high content of fusel oils that makes moonshine smelly and unacceptable to many people. When there is a small amount of fusel oils, they give the product its own uniqueness and depend on the raw materials for making moonshine.

After all, all the famous world brands, be it cognac, whiskey, rum, Calvados, grappa and others, are nothing more than moonshine, albeit made according to their own recipes and technologies, specially purified and aged under certain conditions.

But let’s return to the steam chamber, and so, hot steam from the cube enters it and condenses into the liquid fraction; as it heats up due to fresh vapor, the alcohol begins to evaporate again. Since the process of secondary evaporation occurs in a cleaner environment than the previous one, in a smaller volume and from a liquid with a higher percentage of alcohol, the capture of fusel oils is significantly reduced and most of them remain in the steam tank. Thus, the final product is less smelly and a little stronger. It is also common to use dry steamers in a cascade, that is, when they are located one after the other, in this case the cleaning is even better and the strength of the product is up to 75 - 80% (of the entire batch between the heads and tails). If you use two or three steamers in succession, you can get really high-quality moonshine in one distillation. It is not worth using a larger amount, since the process will drag on significantly, and the effect of each subsequent steamer is reduced. The design of the first steamer is more important here; the simplest solution is a glass jar with a screw cap.

Homemade steamer from a can

If you have a distillation cube of 30 - 40 liters, it is better to take a jar with a volume of about 3 liters, since by the end of the distillation, up to 1 liter of liquid (reflux) can accumulate in the steamer, if the container is small there is simply not enough space. The screw cap has fittings cut into it for supplying and discharging steam; it is advisable to extend the inlet channel inside the can with a tube or hose almost to the very bottom. This is necessary to eliminate the possibility of non-condensed vapors passing from the cube into the refrigerator, since the holes in the lid are located very close. In this case, when liquid accumulates at the bottom of the container, active seething will occur, and if there is a lot of reflux, it may splash into the outlet pipe and get into the refrigerator and into the final product, which is extremely undesirable, so the volume of the jar (height) must be sufficient.

Very often, various aromatic components are added to the steamer during the second distillation, such as:

Dried fruits, dry berries;
Fragrant herbs;
Spices;
Lemon, orange peels, etc.

These components give the moonshine an additional aroma and taste, but it depends on your taste and preferences; the flight of fancy in experiments is simply unlimited.

Tubes and hoses

Silicone hoses for moonshine

The distillation cube and the refrigerator must be somehow connected to each other. Ideally, of course, the system should be without connectors and connections, and by the way, such devices are on sale when the steamer and the refrigerator are rigidly welded to the lid of the cube and to each other with a tube. But when you make a simple device at home, and do not have the skills to weld or solder metals, repeating this option is quite problematic. No, of course, you can find a welder, a turner, or anyone else, order and make all the components, but then it’s cheaper to buy a ready-made device, and the design will already be proven and tested by more than one user.

In our case, you can use silicone hoses on clamps. Hoses with nuts for supplying gas or water made of corrugated stainless steel are also suitable, the main thing is to replace the rubber gaskets with silicone ones.

Do not under any circumstances use rubber or PVC hoses for the steam line and the outlet of moonshine from the refrigerator, if you do not want to get a product with a persistent chemical taste, they can only be used for the cooling system.

The easiest way to purchase silicone hoses is in an online store, or in pharmacies, or some specialized retail outlets. How to identify a silicone hose, at subzero temperatures it remains quite elastic, unlike PVC and rubber counterparts; if you set fire to a piece, it burns without soot and a light, crumbly ash remains.

Which metal is preferable

It is difficult to find a definite answer to this question on the Internet, as they say, there are so many people and so many opinions. We can say, more or less confidently, that the best solution for making a moonshine still at home is to use food-grade stainless steel.

There is a lot of controversy about the use of copper in structures. Many argue that previously all devices were made of copper, but this is because there simply were no other technologically advanced and widespread metals. And we must not forget that all strong drinks were aged in oak barrels, and there, under the influence of oxygen entering through the walls, aldehydes and ethers decomposed (they are formed when hot alcohol vapor comes into contact with the copper elements of the apparatus). And during breaks between uses of the device, a film of oxides that is hazardous to health is formed on all copper elements, which must be washed off with acid solutions, such as citric acid, before using the equipment for its intended purpose. Aluminum, in the presence of acetic acid (always found in some quantity in mash), forms salts of little use - alum. Stainless steel for technical purposes may also contain components of little use.

Sooner or later, everyone who has at least once tried homemade moonshine (or its variations - cognac, bourbon, liqueur, etc.) sets out to make the same thing, only even better. First, the owners are interrogated - as best they can, teach, show, lend. This is the first wave of moonshiners. Afterwards, he begins to explore the Internet in the hope of finding how to make a moonshine still with his own hands. This is the most inquisitive wave, which is trying to understand tons of information, what is true and what is false. We have already talked about how to manufacture and assemble individual parts of the unit, now it’s time to talk about how to assemble a full-fledged device.

History of the moonshine still

They first learned about moonshine back in the 4th century AD, when a Chinese alchemist compared the drink to clear wine distilled 9 times. Its technology was used at different times by the Greeks, Romans and even the Egyptians.

This is what, according to official documents, one of the first moonshine stills developed by the ancient Greeks looked like.

But if this unit was mostly made of stone, then the Arabs went further - and made the structure out of copper. This allowed the mash to heat up evenly, gradually, completely remove fusel oils (remember, extremely harmful to health) and create a drink suitable for internal use.

The term alcohol was also proposed by the Arabs; literally translated, the word meant an intoxicating drink - al gogol.

In the 9th century, a coil was invented in Persia - a copper tube was bent into several turns, but still left in the air for cooling.

From the 10th century, with the help of alchemists and healers, moonshine literally flourished, combined with the development of recipes for potions and elixirs. At the same time, in Italy, the monk Valentius declares that he has invented the water of life, which is capable of turning old people into young men. Need I say that it was moonshine?

In the 15th century, Basil Valentin came up with the idea of immersing a coil in cold water to increase the alcohol condensate, and this was the starting point for the creation of a modern apparatus with a distillation cube, a refrigerator and a steamer.

This is what the device looked like in the 16th century (the principle of operation has been preserved to this day):

A vat for heating the tincture
Tube for supplying hot tincture to the cube
Stove
Cap
swan neck
Coil
Coil in the refrigerator
Refrigerator with cold water

The first moonshine still in Rus'

In Rus', moonshine was first tried only in the 17th century, when a unit was brought from Venice to Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich as a gift.

Until the 17th century, only mead and mash were consumed among homemade alcoholic drinks in Rus'. It was only in the 19th century that they learned to create highly purified 96% alcohol.

This concludes the brief excursion into history; now it’s time for modernity.

Buy or collect

There is no clear answer to this question. Of course, for a beginner, it is much more preferable to buy a ready-made device, when there is no need to look for individual parts and bring them to perfection. But, on the one hand, such a purchase can cause a hole in the budget - a good device with normal performance will cost 15 thousand rubles or more, on the other hand, it is still more interesting to create and invent.

We will tell you how to make a moonshine still with your own hands, and from what materials.

First, let’s define what moonshine (distillate) is and how it differs from rectified distillate. The principle of obtaining one or the other is absolutely identical. A sugar-containing (less often starch-based) mash is prepared, yeast is added, then over a certain period of time the mushrooms create a colony and secrete waste products. Actually, they are precisely the concentrate of various alcohols, of which only ethyl is suitable for internal consumption.

Under the influence of temperature, the mash decomposes into a liquid residue and alcohol-containing vapors, which during the distillation process break down into gaseous and liquid fractions.

Even after repeated distillation, it is not possible to clear the drink of all harmful impurities. The only way that allows you to obtain a perfectly pure product is rectification using a drawer or distillation column. In this case, alcohol-containing vapors are divided into fractions in several stages. Making a distillation column with your own hands is not easy, and a completely reasonable question arises - is it necessary to obtain pure alcohol in this way, if it can be bought at any pharmacy?

Rectified alcohol is extremely harmful to health precisely because of its purity, since pure poison is absorbed by the body much faster and better than moonshine with a certain amount of harmful impurities. In addition, all famous drinks - bourbon, rum, whiskey, Calvados, scotch, etc. - are made on the basis of distillate.

So, taking into account the given characteristics of moonshine, it is clear that the main stage of production is heating the alcohol-containing liquid to a state where the alcohol begins to separate. Afterwards, it is cooled until it is converted into a liquid fraction in the form of a finished drink.

Taking this into account, we can determine the main components of a moonshine still:

a distillation cube, where the mash is heated to the required temperature;
refrigerator - a storage or flow-through container with cold water where the coil is cooled;
coil - a spiral tube made of copper, stainless steel or glass, through which alcohol-containing steam moves and is divided into fractions;
steam trap - catcher of fusel oils and mash residues;
receiving tank - a place where cooled moonshine flows;
connecting elements.

This is the first and main element of the moonshine still, on which the efficiency and final taste depend.

Most often, milk cans, pressure cookers (multi-cookers), and beer kegs are used as such. Less commonly, a distillation cube is made by hand from stainless steel or steel, welded into a container, but this option is not reliable. On the one hand, the mash will stick to the stainless steel, and you won’t be able to stir it due to its tightness. On the other hand, the slightest error in the weld can lead to the fact that when the mash boils, when the pressure reaches 180-220 Pa, the cube will simply burst.

How to make a still from a can

This is the simplest version of the still, since the can is relatively airtight, especially if we are talking about a new container. But its “adaptation” for distillation has its own characteristics.

The rubber gasket on the lid of the can is absolutely not suitable for heating - the mash will absorb a specific aroma, which will immediately affect the taste of the finished drink. It is optimal to use silicone gaskets, or even better - aquarium silicone. Experts advise using food-grade silicone as such gaskets, which is used to make baking molds. But in general, this option is suitable for sealing the lid and will not give any taste or smell.

How to make a silicone seal correctly

This process is carried out in several stages, the minimum of which should be three. First, apply aquarium silicone sealant to the edges of the lid, let it dry completely, apply a second and third, also leaving time for drying. After the third layer has been applied, apply regular cellophane to the neck of the can and close the lid. Leave for several hours to allow the silicone to dry completely. The result is a truly airtight vessel that can be used for several years.

To prevent the can from becoming like a colander over time, wash it thoroughly after each use. You can use regular or laundry soap and plenty of running water. The use of soda is strictly prohibited. Stainless steel or aluminum reacts very poorly to alkali.

If you don’t want to change the rubber gasket to silicone, you can simply wrap it with several layers of overlapping fum tape. This is also a fairly tight connection.

Some “experienced” moonshiners recommend using dough to seal the joint. It would seem, why not? It seems like a decent sealant, and it smells like bread in the room, and not fusel during the cooking process. But! After the first volumetric distillation, when you have to start the unit several times, you will get tired of constantly scraping off the dough and gluing a new one. Scraps of dough all over the kitchen, broken nails and wasted time are unlikely to make the process enjoyable.

To connect the can with the coil, make a hole on the lid for a 22 mm pipe and a 12 mm coil using a 0.5 inch thread. You can buy an adapter at a plumbing supply store.

What else to look for when choosing a flask for a moonshine still:

the material of manufacture is stainless steel, since aluminum will withstand a small number of cycles;
the minimum volume is 25 liters to obtain 4-4.5 liters of moonshine;
wide neck, which is convenient to work with - pour mash and wash after cooking;
wall thickness and overall build quality directly depend on the price, and ensure a period of normal operation.

Distiller (moonshine still) based on a milk can

How to make a distillation cube from a pressure cooker (multi-cooker)

Scheme of a moonshine still based on a pressure cooker:

This is a minimum program for a beginner. Today, every second person tries to make a moonshine still with their own hands using a pressure cooker. And there is a completely logical explanation for this:

price - the cost of the most inexpensive pressure cooker is 1500-1700 rubles, which is quite acceptable for any budget;
tightness - this is an absolutely sealed device that does not require any additional manipulations;
ease of inserting fittings into the lid - anyone can handle this.

The downside, it should be noted, is much more significant than all the advantages - this is the volume. The bowl of the largest household pressure cooker is only 6 liters, respectively, the mash will fit only 4.5 liters, since the volume should not exceed 2/3 of the total quantity. With this amount of mash after double distillation you will get a little less than 750 ml of moonshine. You can try, but it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to taste it.

Screw a fitting into the place of the valve on the lid, to which attach a connecting hose (silicone or copper).

If you don’t want to reinvent the wheel and look for a suitable option for making a cube, buy a ready-made one. The average price of such an element depends on the volume - 12-liter up to 4,000 rubles, 25-liter - from 5,500 rubles, etc.

Moonshine still from a pressure cooker with a steamer on video:

Fridge

An equally important element of a homemade moonshine still, on which the distillation speed and volume of the finished drink depend.

If the water in the refrigerator is not cold enough, the volume of moonshine is reduced by 15-20%.

Refrigerators for moonshine stills are divided into 2 types:

flow-through;
cumulative.

In flowing water, as the name suggests, it constantly moves through the coil without having time to heat up. In order to make such a unit, it is enough to connect two hoses to the container - the inlet, as a rule, from the tap, and the outlet - from where the water comes out into the sink.

The storage tank is a closed container into which water is first poured and drained as it heats up. This is the worst type of refrigerator because it does not allow the coil to be fully and constantly cooled, thereby reducing condensation and reducing the amount of final product.

A storage refrigerator is installed only if it is not possible to make a flow-through one. It’s precisely the lack of opportunity, not laziness or lack of time.

This type of equipment is quite compact in size, where the main area is occupied by the coil. The refrigerator itself is closed on both sides, but two tubes are connected to it - receiving and discharging water. Making a refrigerator with your own hands is not difficult, but it is necessary to ensure that it is level in relation to the device so that the water moves constantly.

A flow-through refrigerator is more productive, unlike a storage refrigerator, even with a smaller coil size. At the junction of the two media, the tube is instantly cooled, which ensures faster separation of fractions.

Manufacturing process

You will need:

pipe and adapter weave - 300 mm;
2 meters of bellows hose for the coil;
half-inch nipples;
3 half-inch nuts;
soldering iron;
gun and silicone;

Procedure:

Roll up the bellows hose into a spiral

Make holes in the pipe and cut the plastic with a knife

Screw in the nipple

Install gaskets and tighten nuts

Screw the coil to the plug

This is what the entrance and exit look like

Anything that leaks or leaks is filled with sealant; the vessel must be completely sealed.

As such a device, a bucket or tank with a volume of about 20-30 liters is usually used, where a hole is made in the lower segment for collecting water.

In non-flowing devices, water is always drained from the top, and always poured into the refrigerator from the bottom.

The simplest and most affordable is a regular plastic bucket. In winter, it is easier with such a handy device, since you can add snow or ice, which is much better for cooling the coil than water.

When choosing a storage refrigerator, try to keep the temperature in the distillation cube at minimum heat in order to reduce the amount of alcohol-containing steam released and, as a result, increase the volume of the finished moonshine.

In order to check how effectively the coil is cooling, periodically test the escaping moonshine on your wrist. Ideally, it should be cool, worse - if warm, and very bad when the drink is hot - in this case, a third of the steam comes out unprocessed. In addition, this is also dangerous, since the distillation cube is heated over an open fire, the alcohol can catalyze and there will be a big disaster.

Coil

The best material for the coil is copper. This is a relatively inert material that does not react with alcohol materials, has good thermal conductivity and an adequate price.

Those who are truly professional in preparing moonshine only have a copper moonshine still based on such a coil. Any experiments. Including fragile glass, they are fraught with loss of quality of the drink and the raw materials.

How to make a coil

Before we begin the description, we note that a coil is a tube connected to a distillation cube (if there is a steamer, with it) and placed in cold water, through which alcohol-containing vapors move and the fractions are separated into gas and moonshine.

The longer the coil and the more compact its spirals, the more the steam is cooled and the greater the amount of condensate.

You will need:

copper tube with a diameter of 15-20 mm and a length of 2000 mm;
base for winding the tube, fixed in a vice.

Before you start screwing the tube onto the base, it must be filled with sand. This is done in order to prevent deflection or one-sided deformation, which will subsequently retain condensation. Close the tube on one side with a wooden or cardboard cap, pour sand in a thin stream, periodically tapping it on the table so that the sand is compacted well. When the tube is filled to capacity, close the other end with a similar clip and begin to wind it onto the base, making even turns and trying to ensure that they do not touch each other.

This is what a ready-made coil looks like, which is immersed in the refrigerator and connected with hoses through fittings to a cube or steam chamber.

This completes the assembly of the required elements of the moonshine still; all that remains is to find out which hoses can be used and what materials are acceptable when working with alcohol.

Well, for now let’s focus on such an optional, but extremely useful device as

Sukhoparnik

We do not know whether there were discussions about the need for a steamer in those ancient times, which were written about at the beginning of the article. But now there is fierce debate on this issue. Some insist that fusel oils should be removed as much as possible, others claim they are useless and a waste of time.

Without actively taking either position, we will present only dry facts.

The steamer is really not an integral part of the moonshine still, and it is installed at will. Structurally, this container is 10 times smaller in volume than the distillation cube, which is located between it and the coil.

The main task of the steam chamber is to instantly reduce pressure and, as a result, temperature due to different media. When the steam enters this container, it suddenly becomes liquid, but is immediately pushed out by the next portion of hot alcohol-containing steam from the cube. And although this is only a moment, during this time some of the fusel oils have time to settle on the walls of the steam tank. With double or even triple distillation, practically no fusel remains in the finished drink, which has a very beneficial effect on well-being.

How a steam generator works according to the laws of physics

As water boils in the distillation cube, alcohol begins to separate and evaporate. Taking into account the fact that boiling is a rather violent process, the alcohol fractions have time to “pick up” the heavier fractions of fusel oils. Probably everyone has heard that moonshine is often called fusel - precisely because of the characteristic smell that fusel oils emit. The less fusel in moonshine, the less aggressive its aroma and the more acceptable its taste. It is not possible to completely get rid of oils; this can only be achieved using a distillation column, but no one set out to obtain medical alcohol.

The vast majority of alcoholic drinks are bourbon, whiskey, rum, Calvados, etc. made on the basis of moonshine with a certain amount of fusel oils. The production process varies in nuances, but in general it is the most banal distillation of mash.

Collecting fusel oils with a steamer allows you to make the drink, on the one hand, not so strong and “fragrant”, on the other hand, safer for health with an almost imperceptible feeling of a hangover (if consumed wisely).

Particularly common is the use of three steam tanks at once, located relative to each other in a cascade. With this organization, the strength of the drink reaches 80% already on the first distillation. This will really be a very high-quality and maximally purified product that can be consumed immediately after distillation, and without waiting for it to be purified with a carbon filter or potassium permanganate.

Three cans in a cascade is the optimal number. Less is not enough, more is a waste of time, since after the third can, each subsequent can does not perform any function.

How to make a steamer from a can

We remind you that the volume of the container should be 10 times less than the volume of the distillation cube. If you have a 20-liter cube, take a 2-liter jar, for a 30-liter jar, take a 3-liter jar.

The method of preparing such an element is quite simple and suitable for any volume. All manipulations are carried out with the lid - holes are made and fittings are cut into. Next, the lid can be put on any jar with a threaded neck.

You will need:

screw-on jar lid;
2 fittings;
connecting tubes.

Cut 2 holes in the lid - they can be made with a screwdriver in a circle or with a knife, so that there are no burrs.

Insert the fittings and connect them to the hoses.

The steamer is placed immediately after the distillation cube. In any other place it is of no use. It is necessary to periodically drain the accumulated liquid so that excess does not enter the coil and spoil the taste and aroma of the product.

By the way, the steamer can be used not only as a fusel oil trap, but also as a flavoring agent for moonshine. Here the same process of sharp cooling of the steam and its movement further occurs, but with the collected amber of berries or herbs.

As an aromatic component in a jar you can use:

dried fruits - apples, pears, apricots;
berries - any, preferably dried, they give off more flavor;
spices - any to taste, you can use hops, suneli, cinnamon, vanilla, etc.;
aromatic herbs;
citrus fruits - orange peel, lemon zest.

Since such a binding of aroma will be subtle and not palpable at all, you can try a variety of additives. In this case, experiments will only be beneficial, even if the result is not impressive.

Connecting tubes

The finished moonshine still is a detachable connection of all required elements using threaded connections. There is no need to look for additional tubes and choose their quality in order to connect everything together.

There are completely permanent connections, for example, the lids of the distillation cube, steamer and refrigerator. This is done to facilitate labor and installation.

You can, of course, make the work easier when assembling a homemade moonshine still by connecting all three pipes by welding, but this will not in any way affect the taste of the final product, but maintenance can make it very difficult.

The most optimal way to connect the elements is a silicone hose. Some people don’t understand the difference between PVC and silicone and don’t even pay much attention when choosing. We explain - polyvinyl chloride is a non-inert material with respect to alcohol. When in contact with hot alcohol-containing steam and alcohol, PVC releases toxic substances, which in high concentrations are harmful to humans. It is clear that nothing will happen to you in 1-2 times, but if we are talking about systemic use, it is better to refuse such a connection.

How to distinguish silicone from polyvinyl chloride (PVC)

Set fire to a piece of both materials. PVC burns hard, smoky, with a very specific smell. Silicone burns with a subtle aroma, does not smoke, and light ash remains after combustion.

Silicone feels much more pleasant to the touch than PVC, it feels silky.

If you suddenly find yourself in a dilemma - silicone or PVC - outside in the cold, know that silicone, even at -10, remains flexible and elastic, and polyvinyl chloride hardens, although it does not lose its properties.

What metal is suitable for use

Despite the abundance of opinions on this matter, there can only be one definite answer - food-grade stainless steel. It is this material that does not react with any of the elements in the moonshine chain and is easy to maintain and use. And over the entire period of time it does not form deposits that are of little benefit to health.

Previously, it was believed that copper was “the head of everything,” since copper moonshine was ubiquitous. However, this is a misconception. Copper began to be actively used during Soviet times. Because it was an affordable material both in price and in quantity. If we talk about a truly correct tincture, then you won’t find anything better than an oak barrel. Oxygen penetrates through its walls, aldehydes and ethers evaporate, which, by the way, are formed, among other things, when the copper elements of the device come into contact with hot alcohol vapor.

Aluminum reacts negatively to vinegar, which is always present in mash. In this case, poisonous salts - alum - are released.

Glass, which is inert (not active) to aggressive environments, is also considered optimal, but a moonshiner’s kitchen bears little resemblance to a laboratory, and this material is also very fragile.

Of course, you can get poisoned or die more quickly from general intoxication due to alcohol abuse or purchasing low-quality products than from copper oxide. Moreover, as a coil, copper has no analogues at all in terms of thermal conductivity and manufacturability. Therefore, a combined combination of materials is completely justified. This can be a cube made of stainless food steel or an aluminum can, and a refrigerator with a copper coil in a stainless or plastic case.

And finally, a video on how to make a moonshine still with your own hands

Unfortunately, the statistics of poisoning with vodka and other alcohol make us think. Sometimes counterfeit goods that are very dangerous to health end up in stores, so some people have a question about how to make a moonshine still at home. With proper production, you can only get a high-quality product.

General description and principles of operation

The circuit of the moonshine still is simple, like everything ingenious. In design and operation, it is not much different from the distiller used in many chemical laboratories.

Device structure. The main components are the following:: container for raw materials (mash); refrigerator with coil; tube to connect them.

To obtain higher quality moonshine, the device is sometimes supplemented with: a steamer; bubbler; carbon or wood filter.

You can buy a ready-made device. However, many are more interested in assembling it themselves. They even do electrical installations using automation.

Mechanism of operation

The raw material is mash based on sugar or starch. Yeast is also added here. The composition is optimal for the growth of the necessary microorganisms - fungi.

In the process of life they will release waste- alcohols in concentrated form, of which only ethyl is of interest. During distillation the following happens:

In the distillation cube, the mash is heated and breaks down into liquid and vapor containing alcohols.
The vapor moves through the tube, the coil. Alcohols are divided into fractions (types).
In the refrigerator, a container of water, suitable alcohol is cooled and condensed.

The difference between moonshine and rectified

It is worth considering that, even if you carry out this procedure several times, using additional devices (filter, bubbler, steamer), harmful impurities will remain. The quality of the product depends only on their volume.

There is a method that allows you to obtain alcohol with a minimum amount of impurities. This is rectification, in which alcohols are divided into fractions in several stages. To carry it out, you will need more complex equipment, which is difficult to make yourself.

The rectificate can be found at the pharmacy: this medical alcohol(95.57%). Moonshine is also called distillate based on its production method.

The following drinks are prepared using rectification:

vodka;
liqueurs, etc.

In the process of obtaining rectification properties are lost required for some drinks. For example, the aroma of cognac appears due to fusel oils, so this drink is best made from distillate. It is usually obtained in a professional industrial way. As an option, flavorings are added to the rectified product.

The opinion that rectified alcohol is safer than moonshine is erroneous. The purer the alcohol, the its intoxicating effect is stronger. Molecules move from the blood into the nervous system faster, and harmful products take longer to be eliminated. The poison is better absorbed and comes out harder.

Installation assembly

Distillation cube. Any container with suitable qualities is suitable for the distillation cube. It is often heated on the stove.

The main requirement is tightness. Some weld the container themselves from regular or stainless steel. This option may be unreliable for the following reasons:

The mash sticks, but there is no way to stir it, since it needs to be sealed.
When exposed to high temperatures and pressure, poor quality seams will come apart.

Fridge. The quality of the refrigerator as part of the distillation unit determines: speed of operation; quantity of product. Refrigeration structures are divided into two types:

cumulative;
flow-through

In running water, the water moves, so it does not have time to heat up. The design includes tubes.

Through the first, water enters the refrigerator.
From the second - it comes out.

Storage refrigerator- closed container with water. Inferior in quality to flow-through: the amount of condensate and the volume of product are reduced. Cooling is not as effective, which is why there is 15-20% less moonshine.

You can find many drawings of a storage refrigerator for a homemade moonshine still. The simplest design is regular plastic bucket with holes for draining and collecting water and a coil inside. In winter it is especially convenient, as you can collect snow and ice.

In storage containers, the hole for draining should be at the top, for collection - at the bottom. It is advisable to keep the temperature in the distillation cube as low as possible. This will produce less steam and more product.

The moonshine will come out through another hole. To control, try on the wrist. If it’s cool, the cooling system is excellent, if it’s hot, it’s bad. In the latter case, the product will be about a third less.

Coil - tube, placed in the refrigerator and connected to a cube or, if available, to a steamer. The longer, the better the steam is cooled. The following simple manufacturing options are common:

Copper tube measuring 15-20 mm, screwed onto the base. During winding, it is advisable to fill it with sand to prevent deformation that would interfere with the escape of condensate. To prevent sleep, they plug it with a rod, for example, made of wood. The base is in a vice.
Siphon hose, the desired length is 2 m. It is also twisted into a spiral. Fastened using nipples, gaskets, nuts. Additionally, a sealant is applied to any coil.

Steamer and bubbler

The steamer is an optional part of the design of a moonshine still, made at home with your own hands.

He is needed for removing fusel oils. It is located between the still and the coil. With its help the following happens:

The pressure and temperature decrease, so the vapor becomes liquid. The next wave of vapor pushes them out.
Fusel oils collect on the walls of the vessel. When repeating the procedure 2-3 times, almost no of them remain.

The drink itself is often called fusel because of its characteristic taste and smell. Fewer amounts of these oils make the product safer for health: The hangover is not so severe.

It is not possible to completely get rid of them during moonshine brewing (distillation). In many well-known drinks, these oils are necessarily left in a certain amount (whisky, rum, etc.). Such products are “advanced” analogues of moonshine. Three steam steamers are often used in a cascade. The advantages here are:

the moonshine comes out to be of very high quality, with a high degree of purification;
Already on the first distillation, the strength is about 80%.

Three containers - the optimal number: if it is less, then the effect will be insufficient; a larger number plays almost no role.

The volume of one steamer is approximately 10 times less than that of a container with mash. It's easy to make. Usually a glass jar of the required volume is taken, and the lid is “modernized” to it.

The lid must be screwed on. Two holes are made in it, for example, with a knife or screwdriver. You need to try to avoid burrs. Fittings are inserted into the holes and secured with nuts. Next, the tubes are put on.

Periodically, the water is drained to avoid it getting into the coil, and then into the moonshine. The steamer is also used for flavoring. Add something to taste, for example:

berries, preferably dried;
herbs;
citrus peels, etc.

Feel free to experiment with scents. They will be barely distinguishable, and more by smell than by taste.

The bubbler is used for the same purposes as the steam steamer. The differences are more related to the design. In the bubbler there is usually liquid, through which the pairs are passed. The supply tube is lowered much lower, almost to the bottom of the container.

Connecting tubes and filters

If flexible hoses are used for connection, it is better to choose silicone ones. If you use PVC pipes, toxic substances will be released upon contact with hot vapors. Externally, these materials are sometimes confused. You can distinguish by some signs:

A piece of PVC burns with a lot of smoke and an unpleasant odor. Silicone does not smoke, has almost no smell, and leaves behind a light ash.
The silicone is pleasant and silky to the touch.
PVC hardens at -10 °C, silicone remains elastic.

Filters for purifying the finished product are made, for example, like this:

The bottom of a plastic bottle is cut off.
There are many small holes made in the cork.
The filter itself is prepared from cotton wool and coal fractions inside. Roll a ball at least 4 cm in length.

Moonshine is passed through the resulting device. Before filtering, the drink must stand in a container with coal.

Selection of materials

In Soviet times, it was widely believed that the best material for a direct-flow distiller was copper. It was easy to find and inexpensive.

However, when alcohol vapor interacts with copper, ethers and aldehydes are formed, which remain in the system. There is always vinegar in the mash. When interacting with aluminum, harmful salts - alum - are obtained.

Glass has neutral qualities and does not react. However, this material has a significant drawback - fragility. Food grade stainless steel- perhaps the most reliable option:

does not react and does not form deposits;
reliable;
easy to care for.

Although, in terms of thermal conductivity and ease of making coils, copper is much better. In terms of accessibility, other materials may benefit. The harm from their use is usually not significant. Therefore, a design made from various suitable materials often pays off.

Examples of simple installations

A moonshine still of the simplest design can be made from available materials. The main thing is to follow simple rules and use your imagination.

Moonshine still from a saucepan. Even a regular five-liter saucepan is suitable for the device. It is better to use a pressure cooker as it is more airtight. In addition to it, you need to find: a 5-liter plastic bottle; copper tube: length - approximately 1 meter, diameter - 4-5 mm.

The handle is removed from the lid. A fitting is inserted into the hole and secured on the inside with a nut. If the hole is small, you need to drill it out.
A silicone tube will be used as a connecting tube. It is harmless and does not change the taste, so it is often used by industrial producers.
The refrigerator will be a plastic bottle with a copper tube placed inside. The bottle is turned over and the bottom is cut off. A coil is made from a tube, about 8 cm in diameter. It comes out through a hole made in the bottle cap.
Water is poured into the mini-fridge and mash into the pan.
For sealing purposes, the lid of the pan is pressed with clothespins. Its edges can be covered with dough. It will harden when heated. Another clamp option is carpenter's clamps, and the seal is a cut silicone tube.
The design can become more complicated and improved. For example, there is also a hole in the lid for a pin thermometer.

Can based distiller

Often a large milk can (flask) is used for production. It is initially quite airtight.

The rubber gasket must be removed. The mash will absorb its smell. Instead, it will do food grade silicone gasket.

You can make it yourself from aquarium silicone:

Apply to the edges of the lid. After complete drying - at least two more layers.
Ordinary cellophane is placed on the neck of the can, after which the lid is closed. You need to wait a few hours.

Further, a hole is made in the lid under a tube or a long coil. The thickness of the latter is about 12 mm. As a refrigerator, you can use, for example, a specially designed plastic bucket with holes at the bottom for water to flow in and moonshine to come out.

To submit hose used connected to the water supply. Draining occurs through a hole in the top of the tube.

If done correctly, it may well compete with store-bought products. He also has clear advantages: low price and comparative safety.

Attention, TODAY only!

How to make a simple moonshine still with your own hands

Nowadays, given the large amount of counterfeit alcohol in stores, more and more of our compatriots are leaning towards making moonshine at home. Nowadays, the law does not provide for punishment for moonshine brewing for personal purposes, so this is a good solution for those who want to have 100% high-quality alcohol at their feasts. Today, stores offer a huge variety of different moonshine stills, ranging from the simplest distillers to almost professional home mini-distilleries. The price also ranges from quite acceptable to very impressive amounts.

But still, for a novice moonshiner it is better to use a homemade moonshine still. Firstly, it will be cheaper than buying ready-made equipment. Secondly, without much understanding of moonshine equipment, you can ruin expensive equipment, and in the process of making a moonshine still, you will begin to understand what is needed for what and how exactly distillation occurs. Thirdly, and this applies not only to beginners, when buying a homemade moonshine still in finished form, you will not be sure of its quality or you may even run into a fake.

In this material we will try to reveal in as much detail as possible all the intricacies of how to make a moonshine still at home. We will consider the classic version of the distiller. Using it, you are unlikely to be able to make exclusive or exotic drinks like Calvados or whiskey, but it is time-tested, simple, reliable and inexpensive to assemble.

Design of the simplest moonshine still

The simplest scheme of a moonshine still consists of a distillation cube and a refrigerator. The mash boils in the distillation cube, and alcohol vapors settle in the refrigerator, resulting in the formation of moonshine. However, this simple moonshine still will saturate the drink with fusel oils and other harmful impurities. To get rid of them, you need to add something else to the design, or, as it is also called, a reflux condenser. We will tell you how to make a moonshine still from available materials, with minimal financial investment.

Alembic

So, the first element we will look at is the alembic. A distillation cube is a container in which the mash will boil during the distillation of moonshine. What can it be made from?

Most often in old, still Soviet devices, there is a cube made of aluminum. The distillation cube was made from a flask or can, in which milk was previously transported. It is not recommended to use such material for the manufacture of a moonshine still, because aluminum partially reacts with various acids and alcohol in the mash. In addition to the fact that unnecessary impurities appear in moonshine, with frequent use the aluminum still begins to leak after a short time and fails.

Enameled dishes. This material is neutral to acids and alcohol. If used carefully, without hitting or scratching, it can last quite a long time even with frequent use. However, it is quite difficult to seal a moonshine still from a pan well. Craftsmen have also learned to make cubes from a milking machine tank for cows, but this option is unlikely to suit a city dweller.

The most reliable option is food grade stainless steel. Such a cube will serve for a long time; it does not come into contact with the mash, which eliminates additional harmful impurities in the finished product. However, cubes made from this material are quite expensive, and often ordinary galvanized steel is sold under the guise of stainless steel, and this is also not so durable.

You can also use a copper container as a cube, but as a rule, this is too expensive an option for a moonshine still.

The volume of the distillation cube must be selected according to the volumes in which you intend to produce moonshine. Ideal for household needs from 25 to 35 liters.
It is important to follow one rule! Never fill the still completely, it should be filled to about 80%. This is done for safety reasons, so that when boiling, the pressure in the cube does not exceed the permissible value and the cube does not burst. When choosing a container for the distillation cube, pay attention to the width of the neck. It should be large enough to make it convenient to pour the mash and wash the cube after distillation.

Don't forget about the size of the container either. The cube must be placed on the stove, be stable and not interfere with access to the entire apparatus.

You can make an electric moonshine still. For him, a distillation cube is made from a pressure cooker. It has a small volume, but it has its advantages - there is no need to use a stove, since it has its own heater, and it is initially sealed. You only need to make a hole in the lid for the steam outlet tube.

A milk can, preferably made of steel, is best. This is the simplest option. Just be sure to change the rubber gasket under the lid to silicone, because alcohol vapor absorbs harmful substances from rubber. This will certainly affect the quality, taste and smell of the finished product.

How to do it yourself: remove the rubber gasket, then apply silicone sealant to the edges of the lid and leave to dry. Repeat several times. Place cellophane on the neck of the can and close the lid. Keep it this way until completely dry. This will make an excellent silicone seal.

Moonshine still refrigerator

The refrigerator in the moonshine still plays a very important role - it is in it that the alcohol vapors condense and the finished product flows from there. To make a refrigerator, it is enough to understand how the principle of its operation works.

There are two types of refrigerators - direct flow and coil. A straight-through refrigerator consists of a straight metal tube that is placed inside a pipe with a wider diameter. Water continuously flows through this pipe, acting as a refrigerant. You can make a simple refrigerator for a moonshine still with your own hands from a copper tube with a diameter of up to 10 mm and a polypropylene pipe with a diameter of more than 20 mm. Fittings with plugs are screwed onto the polypropylene pipe, and holes are drilled into them with a diameter similar to that of a copper pipe. The copper tube will need to be inserted into these holes and seal the cracks. The copper tube is connected to the distillation cube, and the fittings are connected to the water tap.

Coils are made of glass, copper, aluminum or food grade stainless steel. Copper and aluminum have good thermal conductivity and are easy to make coils from. But they have disadvantages - they are oxidized by alcohol vapor, so they must be cleaned with vinegar or citric acid after each distillation. It is impossible to make a glass coil yourself; you can buy it in a special store. However, they are very fragile, so it is not recommended to use such devices. Food steel does not oxidize and does not release any substances into the finished product, however, the thermal conductivity of steel is three to four times lower than that of copper. The best option is a copper coil. In some countries, copper is even the only permitted material for the manufacture of distillers. But it must be constantly cleaned.

The longer the coil tube, the more contact there is with the cooling element, but tubes that are too long have poor performance. The optimal option is 1.5-2 meters. The inner diameter of the tube is approximately 8-12 mm.

The copper tube must be twisted in a spiral with a small distance between the turns. The coil itself is lowered into a reservoir with a coolant, usually water. Systems can be closed - the water is constantly in the tank and does not circulate, and open - the water is constantly moving. A closed refrigerator is easier to manufacture and uses less water, but its characteristics are worse - even if you change the water regularly, it heats up quickly enough, as a result of which alcohol condenses poorly. Therefore, the losses of moonshine are quite large. An open system is more difficult to manufacture, but moonshine condenses better and its quality is higher.

The simplest and cheapest option is to wind a copper tube into a spiral with an outer diameter of approximately 100 mm, and use a 110 mm piece of sewer pipe as a reservoir. Drill two small holes on the sides of the pipe for silicone tubes leading to the coil, place the spiral inside and close the pipe on both sides with special plugs. They also drill holes for the cold water supply and outlet hoses. The structure must be connected to the water supply in such a way that cold water flows in the opposite direction to the movement of steam.

These elements are designed to clean steam from fusel oils and other harmful impurities. The principle of operation of the device is that the condensation temperatures of these impurities are lower than the condensation temperature of alcohol, therefore, alcohol vapors passing through these devices are cleared of fusel oil vapors.

A steamer can be made from an ordinary glass jar with a screw-on lid. You need to drill two holes in the lid for inlet and outlet of vapors, screw the fittings into them and connect the hoses. After which the lid is screwed onto the jar. The inlet tube must be lowered below the outlet tube by 15-30 mm. Alcohol vapor will escape through the outlet tube, and fusel oil vapor will settle on the walls of the jar. A steamer made in this way is easy to clean and rinse.

The bubbler performs the same function as the steam steamer. The difference is that the alcohol vapor passes through a layer of water. In a bubbler, the inlet tube descends almost to the bottom of the jar, not reaching 2-3 cm. Before distillation, cold water must be poured into the bubbler. The outlet tube must not touch the water.

How to assemble a simple moonshine still

Assembling the device is very simple. A hole must be drilled in the lid of the distillation cube to which a tube must be connected to allow steam to escape. This tube is connected to a steamer or bubbler, and from there it is connected to the refrigerator. A refrigerator with an open cooling system must be connected to the water supply and drain. A container for the finished product is placed or connected under the outlet tube of the coil. The assembly of the moonshine still is completed.

Pay attention to the material from which all connecting hoses are made. It is best to use food-grade silicone; it does not react in any way with alcohol vapors. The main thing is not to confuse it with PVC pipes, which begin to melt from the high temperature and harmful impurities are added to the alcohol vapor. You should also not use rubber, due to the fact that alcohol vapor absorbs harmful substances from this material.

It is not recommended to seal the entire structure tightly after assembly. The tubes must be made easily removable, and the connection must be airtight. If you make the tubes non-removable, then servicing, washing and moving the assembled device will be very inconvenient.

If you wish, you can install thermometers on the still or the distiller itself to make it easier to control the temperature of the process.

That's all, the homemade moonshine still is ready. Now you know how to make a moonshine still with your own hands. You can put in the mash and start distilling; you can get your high-quality alcohol at home.

If you still have questions about making a moonshine still, you can look at photos and videos that explain each step in detail. Descriptions and drawings of all devices can be found there.