As a new user I can attest to just how well these stills run. They are predictable and consistent from run to run. The heads seem to be compressed and the switch to tails is just like a flick of a switch and the taste of cardboard is truly nasty and unmistakable. Play off the cost of the still against the time saved in fussing over cuts and post processing and just how much still time a man spends on making quality spirit then offset that against how long it takes to drink that product. I have not even begun yet to pot still with the optional attachment that should open up another avenue of possibilities and will shorted still time. As you can tell I am a very happy customer that has no regrets. Boka will blow your mind and is a lot of fun. I have spent a lot more time on laying out my work space than I have with considerations for the still, that was the easy part.
Brilliant description of the working of the Boka. Wish I could do it so nicely and precisely. Thank you so much and I wish you just the very best in your distilling adventures! Cheers. Louwrens
Hi Louwrens, just wondering if you would know what voltage I would need to achieve 1500w in the boiler? Im using a power controller with a voltage display & using the 1900w 10amp element in the boiler. There is 220 volts coming into the property.
@@LouwrensvanderMerwe No worries, thanks for the reply, I ordered a digital watt meter to be able to measure it. Out of curiosity, what packing do you prefer these days SPP or stainless scrubbies?
@@deant6627 Hi Dean. I prefer SPP in my own still, but I test a lot of stills with scrubbies (because that is what the customer is going to use) and I am quite satisfied with the results I get from the scrubbies. Since publishing my video about using an extended column (ua-cam.com/video/92ersg6BnlQ/v-deo.html) I have used the extended column several times more and I really think that if you are a home distiller that only distill alcohol once in a while it is better to use the extended column than to buy expensive SPP. Cheers. Louwrens
Hi Roland. Yes, the Boka is slow at 500ml/hr and the only way around it is to fill the column with SPP (Spiral Prismatic Packing) to get to an output of around 1200 - 1500ml/hr. You can also try a Vapour Management column, but the output will be more or less the same. Unfortunately time is the price you have to pay for clean high quality alcohol. I prefer to use the Boka for a few hours than messing around with carbon filtering, which is a REAL mess. The nice thing about the Boka is that, once it is running stable, you do not have to watch it all the time and it will stay stable for hours (or as long as your run takes). Cheers.
Why the reduction of water flow once temperature was stable - does it impact on the reflux/distilation process or just save water to reduce flow? I'm recycling my water from a 150l chilly bin with a fish pond pump (we pay on volume used) - with a bag of party ice in the water. Could I just run at full water flow without any issues?
Reducing the water flow is just to save water. It has no impact on the reflux/distillation process - unless you reduce the water flow below the level that is necessary for full reflux. Your setup is perfect and you can run the still at full water flow without any problems. With a LM still there IS a minimum water flow, but not a maximum water flow. Cheers. Louwrens
Hi Dan. I used to use a Turbo 500 needle valve on the water supply, but these days it is connected straight onto the tap as the liquid management columns are not very sensitive to precise coolant control and will operate very happy over a wide range of flow settings. Cheers.
I think i learned more watching this video than all the others combined.
Thank you very much. Glad it helped you. Cheers
A very simple, well explained method to run your boka still. Very helpful. Thanks
Great to hear! Many thanks.
This is much more elegant than my broken t500 column
Thank you very much. Cheers.
As a new user I can attest to just how well these stills run. They are predictable and consistent from run to run. The heads seem to be compressed and the switch to tails is just like a flick of a switch and the taste of cardboard is truly nasty and unmistakable. Play off the cost of the still against the time saved in fussing over cuts and post processing and just how much still time a man spends on making quality spirit then offset that against how long it takes to drink that product. I have not even begun yet to pot still with the optional attachment that should open up another avenue of possibilities and will shorted still time. As you can tell I am a very happy customer that has no regrets. Boka will blow your mind and is a lot of fun. I have spent a lot more time on laying out my work space than I have with considerations for the still, that was the easy part.
Brilliant description of the working of the Boka. Wish I could do it so nicely and precisely. Thank you so much and I wish you just the very best in your distilling adventures! Cheers. Louwrens
Great, I really liked it
Hi Louwrens, just wondering if you would know what voltage I would need to achieve 1500w in the boiler? Im using a power controller with a voltage display & using the 1900w 10amp element in the boiler. There is 220 volts coming into the property.
Sorry Dean, I have no idea. Cheers. Louwrens
@@LouwrensvanderMerwe
No worries, thanks for the reply, I ordered a digital watt meter to be able to measure it. Out of curiosity, what packing do you prefer these days SPP or stainless scrubbies?
@@deant6627 Hi Dean. I prefer SPP in my own still, but I test a lot of stills with scrubbies (because that is what the customer is going to use) and I am quite satisfied with the results I get from the scrubbies. Since publishing my video about using an extended column (ua-cam.com/video/92ersg6BnlQ/v-deo.html) I have used the extended column several times more and I really think that if you are a home distiller that only distill alcohol once in a while it is better to use the extended column than to buy expensive SPP. Cheers. Louwrens
Great vid.
I was thinking of building a boka but looking at your output, I’m worried it will be too slow....
Hi Roland. Yes, the Boka is slow at 500ml/hr and the only way around it is to fill the column with SPP (Spiral Prismatic Packing) to get to an output of around 1200 - 1500ml/hr. You can also try a Vapour Management column, but the output will be more or less the same. Unfortunately time is the price you have to pay for clean high quality alcohol. I prefer to use the Boka for a few hours than messing around with carbon filtering, which is a REAL mess. The nice thing about the Boka is that, once it is running stable, you do not have to watch it all the time and it will stay stable for hours (or as long as your run takes). Cheers.
Why the reduction of water flow once temperature was stable - does it impact on the reflux/distilation process or just save water to reduce flow? I'm recycling my water from a 150l chilly bin with a fish pond pump (we pay on volume used) - with a bag of party ice in the water. Could I just run at full water flow without any issues?
Reducing the water flow is just to save water. It has no impact on the reflux/distillation process - unless you reduce the water flow below the level that is necessary for full reflux. Your setup is perfect and you can run the still at full water flow without any problems. With a LM still there IS a minimum water flow, but not a maximum water flow. Cheers. Louwrens
@@LouwrensvanderMerwe - thank you. Still learning and greatly appreciate you sharing your knowledge.
You are more than welcome. Happy distilling! Cheers.
Nice song 😊
Thanks! Cheers. Louwrens
It is a great job and i guess you use a needle valve to control the flow of water to the reflux condenser :-)
Hi Dan. I used to use a Turbo 500 needle valve on the water supply, but these days it is connected straight onto the tap as the liquid management columns are not very sensitive to precise coolant control and will operate very happy over a wide range of flow settings. Cheers.
Hi Louwrens, with this Boka still is it better to run the boiler with a higher power like 1500w or more or lower heating power like 700w?
In a 25 litre boiler with a 25 litre wash it is better to run it on 1500W power. Cheers.
@@LouwrensvanderMerwe Thanks for the fast reply, what wattage would you recommend for 15L of low wines in a 25L boiler for a final distillation run?
@@deant6627 I will top up the 15L of low wines to 25L with water and still use 1500W. Cheers