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Distillation Equipment Guide
Essential Distillation Equipment Gear Guide
We aspire to provide the highest quality all-copper still kits at the best price possible. We also offer a beautiful 8 gallon pre-built stainless steel still. We’re 100% focused on that goal so we don’t carry much additional distilling equipment in-house.
We’ve found the best priced, highest quality goods (the stuff that WE prefer using) and have provided info below.
Basic Distillation Equipment (Level 1):
Here is a fermentation kit that includes everything necessary to conduct basic fermentations.
- 7 Gallon Bucket Fermentation Kit: Includes 7 gallon plastic fermenter, fermentation thermometer, air lock
Intermediate Distillation Equipment (Level 2):
- Making Pure Corn Whiskey (A great intermediate to advanced book) Caution: this book can get pretty complicated.
- 10.5 Gallon Stainless Steel Boil Pot (for heating water or making 5 gallon mashes) - our starter brew system is great for this
- 20 Gallon Stainless Steel Boil Pot (heating water or making 10 gallon mashes) - our 20 gallon starter system is great for this
- Nylon Mash Bag (for making easy all grain mashes)
- Boil Pot Thermometer (measuring water temp during boil)
- Wort Chiller (for cooling mash before introduction of yeast)
- 7 Gallon Fermenter - Plastic Bucket (for initial fermentation)
- Carboy Thermometer (measuring fermentation temp)
- Air Lock
- Auto-siphon (for sanitary, easy siphoning
- Racking Cane Clip (another must have item)
- Beer Hydrometer (for determining starting alcohol)
- Spirit Hydrometer (for determining final proof of whiskey)
- Proofing Parrot (for use with hydrometer)
- Cheese Cloth (filtering mash and wash)
- Star San (for sanitizing all equipment)
- PBW (for cleaning all equipment)
- Large digital scale (for measuring grain, etc.)
- Small digital scale (for measuring yeast, etc.)
- Copper Scrubbers (for packing your column)
- Digital Thermometer (for measuring mash temperature)
- Stainless Steel Thermometer (for measuring the vapor temp of the still)
- Stainless Steel Spoon (for stirring and mixing the mash)
Expert Distillation Equipment (Level 3):
For the advanced distiller we’d suggest picking up everything on the “intermediate” list above AND all of the items in this category.
- Grain Mill (for milling your own grain)
- 20 Gallon Stainless Mash Tun (for 5 or 10 gallon all grain runs)
- Mash Paddle (long paddle for stirring mash)
- Brix Refractometer (determines sugar content of liquid)
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Heating Sources
Get either a gas or electric heating system.
- Electric Heating Source (the preferred method if power is available)
- Gas Heating Source (for when power is not available)
- Wood Stoves 2.0 (guide to making ultra-efficient wood stoves)
Do you still use the copper filling/scrubber in to the column of a stainless steel still
Keith
I have a five gallon copper still. Where can I get a hot plate and how many watts would I need?
how big of a still would i need for 5 gallon mash recipes….thanks in advance
@ ERIC
you can find the controllers at http://beveragecommander.com/
Excuse me,… I’d like buy the temperature controller box that was shared on your site last year. Can you tell me how to find it sir.
Eric
great site , i have been making schnapps for years
but nice to see a site where you can learn something new
thanx so much
takeme to next level.great,I learn are lot from you guys how to make moonshine thanks. ET.
i’ve been distillen a wile i keep seeing stuf that says u get 2 gal shine from 10 gal. of (wash mash) is there a rule and no one talkes proof
I have a 5 gallon stainless steel still. I have never used it but am getting ready. I have a friend with an apple press and he is going to make cider. I want to take the left over pressings and make apple moonshine but am not sure how to make the mash. should I use the pressing left overs or just the cider itself and what would the proportions be for a 5 gallon still ie sugar, water yeast? thanks for any help you can give. your site is AWESOME
I would like to buy a therometer for my three qallon pot still.Do you have a catlog I can look at?
You all inspire me!
under the intermediate distillation equipment u have a 15 gal boil pot recommended for preparing mash for a 10 gal run, but only 6.5 gal carboys… do u split the mash up into two carboys of 5-6 gal each or is there equipment better suited for 10-11 gals of mash?
from the “honeyshine” recipe u have on ur site, i assumed that u needed only a single glass carboy to ferment the mash. the beginners kit above says it contains a plastic primary fermentation vessel AND a glass carboy for secondary fermentation… is it necessary to have both? or do u just use the plastic jug for aerating the mash?