How To Prevent The Plastering Round Stills From Cracking

This method of making water proof plastering on stills, is done entirely

in making the mortar, and putting it on, in making which, good clay and

lime are absolutely necessary.



When the mortar for the first coat is thoroughly worked, put as much

brock of rye straw into it, as can be worked in, so that when the coat

is put on, it may have a greater appearance of straw than mortar, when

dry, and covered with the second coat composed of lime mortar, well

rubbed and pressed with the trowel until it be dry. A covering put on of

those materials, will be found to continue firm and compact without

cracking, as in the common mode.



The best method of boiling two, three or more Stills or Kettles with

one fire or furnace.



This method has been found to answer in some instances, and may perhaps

do generally if properly managed. I will here give the result of my own

experiments.



I set a singling still holding 180 gallons on a furnace of 18 by 14

inches, and 4 feet six inches long, with the bottom to the fire, she had

a common head and worm with scrapers and chains in her. I extended the

flue, (or after passing it round her), to the doubling still which it

likewise went round--but to prevent too much heat from passing to the

doubling still, I fixed a shutter in the flue of the singling still,

immediately above the intersection of the flue of the doubling still, to

turn all the heat round her, and another shutter in the flue of the

doubling still at the intersection of the flue of the singling still, to

shut the heat off from the doubling still if necessary.



With this fixture I run six hogsheads off in every twenty four hours and

doubled the same, with the same heat and fire. I likewise had a boiler

under which I kept another fire, which two fires consumed about three

cords and an half of wood per week, distilling at the rate of sixty-five

bushels of grain per week, and making about one hundred and ninety

gallons in the same time.



Before I adopted this method I kept four fires agoing, and made about

the same quantity of whiskey, consuming about four and an half cords of

wood per week, and was obliged to have the assistance of an additional

distiller per week.



I have since heard of the adoption of this plan with more success than I

experienced.