A Step by Step Guide
![]() Elcor Refinery Construction |
Construction Tools and Techniques |
This section discusses the tools and procedures that are required for the construction of the stills described in this guide. Experienced handymen and craftsmen can skip this part by clicking here. One of the primary goals of designing the stills discussed in this manual was to ensure that they could be built by a typical person using only common hand tools. Here's the list:
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Construction Overview Overall, the construction of either still is quite straightforward. First the top end tubing components should be cut to length. Then, if you're building the Internal Reflux model, the condenser shell caps should be drilled. All the top end parts should then be assembled with their fittings to check the fit. Finally, the column should be drilled to match and fit the upper and lower cooling tubes that supply coolant to the condenser shell. The Valved Reflux model is simpler to build in that the condenser shell end caps and the column does not require drilling and solder fitting. When all the dry fitting is complete, the parts should be dis-assembled and prepared for soldering. Soldering the Fittings Making a good sweated joint with copper tubing and fittings is the only real skill that is needed to build either of these stills. It is an easy skill to acquire, but it does take a little practice to get it right if you've never done it before.
The secret to sweat soldering is to make sure the entire joint is evenly heated to the point where it will melt the solder when you apply the solder to the joint. Sometimes this can be difficult with large diameter tubing (2-3") because the tubing draws a lot of heat away from the joint. Make sure your torch has enough capacity.
Whenever possible during the soldering of the assembly, clean out the inside of the joint, after soldering, with a brush and solvent to remove any flux or oxidation debris before going on to the next joint. It will make your first batches taste a lot better. Silver Soldering There are really two kinds of soldering. The first, discussed above, is done at relatively low temperatures (below 800º F. and usually about 450º F.) and is widely used in the plumbing and electrical trades. The solder commonly used was a 50/50 mixture of lead and tin. The second type, long referred to as silver soldering, or silver brazing is done with a silver alloy that melts in the 1100º to 1600º F. range, depending on the amount of silver in the alloy. This commonly varies between 45% to 70%. Unfortunately, the advent of lead free soldering requirements for the low temperature applications, has resulted in some solder being marketed as "Silver Bearing" or "Silver Solder". These lead free solders contain only a fraction of a percent of silver and they melt at temperatures in the 430º F. range. They should not be confused with the solder used in the silver soldering or silver brazing process. This distinction is made at this point because, with one exception, all the fittings in the stills presented in this guide are all soldered with a low temperature lead free solder.
Now that we've got all the generalities out of the way, it's now time to begin the actual construction of your still. The next button below will take you to the Internal Reflux still section.. If you prefer to build the Valved Reflux model, please click here.
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Page last updated 12 August 2001