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What's the problem with home-distilling?

by sejje 12y ago

tribaal 12y ago
Methanol.
- scarecrowbob 12y ago
  Having done a bit, honestly, you really can't drink anything that you wouldn't get if you were making beer or wine, and most folks don't like drinking formaldehyde or acetone by themselves, so the foreshots get pulled off... so there really is no risk in going blind or something. The idea that you can go blind off this stuff has more to do with propaganda and poisoning folks: http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/medical_examiner/2010/02/the_chemists_war.html http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/medical_exa...
  - TheCoelacanth 12y ago
    Yes, the methanol that people were poisoned by wasn't an accidental byproduct of distillation; it was intentionally added to industrial alcohol to keep people from drinking it.
- Zigurd 12y ago
  You don't get methanol from distilling. Methanol is found in denatured alcohol. Methanol poisoning comes from drinking denatured alcohol. Kind of like how they put acetaminophen in some narcotic painkillers. Really, the people who designed such ghoulish "deterrents" should be held accountable for the deaths they contributed to.
gallerytungsten 12y ago
Among other reasons, it's relatively easily to have a catastrophic fire. Unlike winemaking and brewing, where your end product will be in the range of 4% to 13% ABV, which generally won't burn, you can easily distill to 150 proof (75% ABV) with a simple pot still (or 190 proof with a column still). 150 proof is a highly flammable liquid. The vapor is flammable. If you have a vapor leak it can ignite. The flame is invisible. In other words, it's not something to take lightly. In the micro distilling industry, I personally know of a half dozen fires over the past couple years. It's easy for something to go wrong very, very quickly. Here is an article on the most recent fire: http://newsok.com/blast-rocks-moore-distillery/article/4907972 http://newsok.com/blast-rocks-moore-distillery/article/49079...
- wtbob 12y ago
  Yeah, catastrophic fires are an issue. And yet we've no problem with home storage of gasoline for lawn mowers (and yes, we don't typically collect gasoline in gaseous form over heat sources). Catastrophic fires are also an issue with deep-frying turkeys, and in fact with deep-frying anything. And we do already have a well-formed body of law dealing with responsibility for fires, damage to neighbour's homes &c. 'Someone might maybe do something wrong' isn't really a good reason for there to be a federal ban on most behaviours. I'd be much less incensed were it at the city or even neighbourhood level.
  - gallerytungsten 12y ago
    I mentioned fires as a point I would be concerned about. While distilling is heavily regulated at the Federal, state, and local levels, the Feds did not ban it due to concerns over fire safety. Rather, a chief reason is "to protect the revenue," which, in the case of Federal excise taxes, is substantial. ($13.50 per proof gallon; a proof gallon is 1 gallon at 50% ABV.) The Feds don't really concern themselves with fire safety. Rather, just as you desire, that's regulated at the state and local level. The TTB outlook is that you have to satisfy the local and state levels as far as fire safety is concerned.
    - refurb 12y ago
      Sort of off-topic, but back when I worked in a lab, we often needed 200 proof ethanol that wasn't denatured with methanol or some other noxious substance. The company I worked for had an ATF license to purchase ethanol without the associated tax. The cost of 1 gallon (3.79 L) of 200 proof ethanol was $8. You could dilute this with 1 part water and end up with the equivalent of vodka for $4 per gallon. It goes to show how much alcohol taxes are. That being said, the 200 proof alcohol was pretty vile. It smelled like the cheapest vodka you could buy. I remember a few gallons going missing over the years, so somebody didn't mind the taste.
  - lmm 12y ago
    > And yet we've no problem with home storage of gasoline for lawn mowers (and yes, we don't typically collect gasoline in gaseous form over heat sources). I'd have a problem if someone was doing that in my building (and they'd be violating the terms of the lease if they were). > Catastrophic fires are also an issue with deep-frying turkeys, and in fact with deep-frying anything. Which is why chip-pans were the biggest cause of home fires when I was growing up, and nowadays no-one has them. > 'Someone might maybe do something wrong' isn't really a good reason for there to be a federal ban Sure, I don't think it should be illegal. But it's bad advice.

What's the problem with home-distilling?

by sejje 12y ago

What's the problem with home-distilling?

tribaal 12y ago

Methanol.

scarecrowbob 12y ago
Having done a bit, honestly, you really can't drink anything that you wouldn't get if you were making beer or wine, and most folks don't like drinking formaldehyde or acetone by themselves, so the foreshots get pulled off... so there really is no risk in going blind or something. The idea that you can go blind off this stuff has more to do with propaganda and poisoning folks: http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/medical_examiner/2010/02/the_chemists_war.html http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/medical_exa...
- TheCoelacanth 12y ago
  Yes, the methanol that people were poisoned by wasn't an accidental byproduct of distillation; it was intentionally added to industrial alcohol to keep people from drinking it.
Zigurd 12y ago
You don't get methanol from distilling. Methanol is found in denatured alcohol. Methanol poisoning comes from drinking denatured alcohol. Kind of like how they put acetaminophen in some narcotic painkillers. Really, the people who designed such ghoulish "deterrents" should be held accountable for the deaths they contributed to.

gallerytungsten 12y ago

Among other reasons, it's relatively easily to have a catastrophic fire. Unlike winemaking and brewing, where your end product will be in the range of 4% to 13% ABV, which generally won't burn, you can easily distill to 150 proof (75% ABV) with a simple pot still (or 190 proof with a column still). 150 proof is a highly flammable liquid. The vapor is flammable. If you have a vapor leak it can ignite. The flame is invisible. In other words, it's not something to take lightly. In the micro distilling industry, I personally know of a half dozen fires over the past couple years. It's easy for something to go wrong very, very quickly. Here is an article on the most recent fire: http://newsok.com/blast-rocks-moore-distillery/article/4907972 http://newsok.com/blast-rocks-moore-distillery/article/49079...

wtbob 12y ago
Yeah, catastrophic fires are an issue. And yet we've no problem with home storage of gasoline for lawn mowers (and yes, we don't typically collect gasoline in gaseous form over heat sources). Catastrophic fires are also an issue with deep-frying turkeys, and in fact with deep-frying anything. And we do already have a well-formed body of law dealing with responsibility for fires, damage to neighbour's homes &c. 'Someone might maybe do something wrong' isn't really a good reason for there to be a federal ban on most behaviours. I'd be much less incensed were it at the city or even neighbourhood level.
- gallerytungsten 12y ago
  I mentioned fires as a point I would be concerned about. While distilling is heavily regulated at the Federal, state, and local levels, the Feds did not ban it due to concerns over fire safety. Rather, a chief reason is "to protect the revenue," which, in the case of Federal excise taxes, is substantial. ($13.50 per proof gallon; a proof gallon is 1 gallon at 50% ABV.) The Feds don't really concern themselves with fire safety. Rather, just as you desire, that's regulated at the state and local level. The TTB outlook is that you have to satisfy the local and state levels as far as fire safety is concerned.
  - refurb 12y ago
    Sort of off-topic, but back when I worked in a lab, we often needed 200 proof ethanol that wasn't denatured with methanol or some other noxious substance. The company I worked for had an ATF license to purchase ethanol without the associated tax. The cost of 1 gallon (3.79 L) of 200 proof ethanol was $8. You could dilute this with 1 part water and end up with the equivalent of vodka for $4 per gallon. It goes to show how much alcohol taxes are. That being said, the 200 proof alcohol was pretty vile. It smelled like the cheapest vodka you could buy. I remember a few gallons going missing over the years, so somebody didn't mind the taste.
- lmm 12y ago
  > And yet we've no problem with home storage of gasoline for lawn mowers (and yes, we don't typically collect gasoline in gaseous form over heat sources). I'd have a problem if someone was doing that in my building (and they'd be violating the terms of the lease if they were). > Catastrophic fires are also an issue with deep-frying turkeys, and in fact with deep-frying anything. Which is why chip-pans were the biggest cause of home fires when I was growing up, and nowadays no-one has them. > 'Someone might maybe do something wrong' isn't really a good reason for there to be a federal ban Sure, I don't think it should be illegal. But it's bad advice.