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Making Ethanol in the 25 Gallon VonHeltzen Still

The following instructions are general guidelines. The details of the process are dependant on so many variables that specific instructions for every variable are not possible. Variables include: the different sugar/starch based plants used to ferment, whether those plants are dry or wet, the temperature and how long it is sustained, the yeast and enzymes used, cleanliness. . . . The variables will effect the time required and quantity of ethanol produced in your batch. So these instructions will assume you are using dried, cracked corn.

1. Place the 25 gallon pot on the stand and hook your propane tank to the burner. Fill the pot with 20 gallons of water. Light the burner and start heating the water.
   
2. If you are using batch processing there is a slight chance that the corn will be tainted with bad bacteria, which can destroy the yeast and stop the fermentation of ethanol. If you are concerned about the cleanliness of your corn, boil the 20 gallons of water. If you know your corn is clean, heat the water to about 200º.
   For your safety, turn off the burner before you add the corn.
   
3. Add 40lbs of corn and let the mixture cool down.
   
4. At 200º or less add a little less than a tablespoon of the alpha-amylase enzyme, stir.
   
5. At 144º or less add a little less than a tablespoon of the gluco-amylase enzyme, stir.
   
6. At 120º or less add a little less than a tablespoon of the yeast, stir.
   (Adding more enzymes or yeast than is required will not negatively affect the batch.)
   
7. Use the hydrometer to monitor the percentage of alcohol in the liquid. When the percentage of alcohol reaches 18% the yeast will die and the fermentation will be over.
   
8. Strain the corn from the liquid. Leave the liquid in the pot, and if you have livestock you can feed the corn to them. They will love you for it.
   
9. You will now need a container of water, the size of a large kitchen trash can or larger. Plug one of the smaller clear tubes onto the pump and then onto the top pipe on the side of the condenser. Plug the other small clear tube onto the lower pipe on the side of the condenser and run it into the water container. Plug the remaining larger clear tube onto the bottom pipe of the condenser and run it into a container to collect the ethanol.
   Put the pump into the water without getting the plug wet. Plug in the pump and check the connections to verify that the water is pumping into the condenser and out again into the water tank. Leave it on.
   
10. Turn the burner back on and heat the water/alcohol mixture until the thermometer at the top of the column reads between 170º and 180º degrees. This will allow the ethanol to evaporate quickly and enter the condenser, which will turn it back into a liquid. The water/alcohol mixture will want stay around 170º to 180º because of the ethanol. As the ethanol evaporates from the water the temperature will easily rise too high.
    
11. When the liquid first comes out of the condenser it will contain a high concentration of ethanol. As time passes the mixture will become more diluted. It will be up to you to decide when to stop distillation.
    (Do not discard the liquid left in the pot. You can use it for your next batch.)
    
12. Put your molecular sieve into the pot with the ethanol and let it absorb the excess water. Remove the sieve and heat it to remove the water. If the sieve is cared for, it can be reused thousands of times.
    

That’s it, good luck.