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Beginner’s Guide to Distilling: Understanding Heat, Elements, and Energy
By American Copper Works
Welcome to American Copper Works — your home for handcrafted copper stills and all things distilling. If you’re just starting your journey into the art and science of distilling, you’ve come to the right place.
In this post, we’ll walk through one of the most important parts of distilling: heating. Understanding how heat works, how to calculate it, and how to choose the right heating element can make all the difference in your setup.
The Three Pillars of Distilling
To start, let’s recap the basics of what you need to distill:
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Water
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Sugar
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Yeast
Once fermentation is complete, it’s time to bring everything together with heat. Heating is what makes distillation possible — it allows the alcohol to vaporize and separate from the water through thermal action.
Understanding Heat Energy: BTUs and Watts
When we heat a still, we’re using energy — and that energy can be measured in BTUs (British Thermal Units) or watts, depending on your heat source.
Let’s say you want to heat 5 gallons of water by 95°F.
Each gallon weighs about 8.33 pounds, and it takes 1 BTU to raise 1 pound of water by 1°F.
So, the math looks like this:
5 gallons × 95°F × 8.33 = 3,956 BTUs
That’s the total energy needed for this heating job.
When we use electricity instead of propane, we switch to watts.
1 watt = 3.413 BTUs, and 1 kilowatt = 1,000 watts = 3,413 BTUs.
Types of Heating Elements
Heating elements come in a few varieties:
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Low Density
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Medium Density (the most common)
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High Density
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Ultra High Density
The difference between them is the surface area and heat concentration.
High-density elements are more compact and can heat faster but also build up lime or mineral deposits more easily. Medium-density elements offer a good balance between efficiency and lifespan — for example, a 5500-watt medium-density element is a popular choice.
All standard heating elements have two connections and are available in 120V or 240V versions. It doesn’t matter which wire connects to which — they work the same either way. The only important part is grounding properly to your still or kettle.
Straight Threads vs. Pipe Threads
Most elements use a 1-inch straight thread. It looks similar to National Pipe Thread (NPT), but NPT threads are tapered, which allows them to seal as they tighten.
Straight threads, on the other hand, need a gasket to create a proper seal.
How Much Can One Element Heat?
Let’s put some numbers together.
We’ll use this formula:
Gallons per Hour = (Kilowatts × 3413) ÷ (Temperature Rise × 8.33)
For a 5500-watt element (which is 5.5 kW) and a desired temperature rise of 95°F, the math works out like this:
(5.5 × 3413) ÷ (95 × 8.33) = 23.7 gallons
That means one 5500-watt element can heat 23.7 gallons of water by 95°F in one hour, assuming perfect efficiency.
Reverse the Formula: How Many Watts Do You Need?
If you already know your still size and desired temperature increase, you can rearrange the formula to find the required wattage:
Kilowatts = (Gallons × Temp Rise) ÷ 410
Example:
For a 10-gallon still, heating from 75°F to 180°F (a 95°F increase):
(10 × 95) ÷ 410 = 2.317 kW, or about 2,317 watts
So, to heat 10 gallons in one hour, you’d need roughly a 2,300-watt element.
If you use a 3500-watt element, you’ll reach temperature in about 30 minutes instead of an hour.
Voltage and Efficiency
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120V systems can safely handle up to about 2000 watts, limited by standard 15–20 amp household circuits.
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240V systems are far more efficient and can handle 5500 watts or higher, typical of large appliances.
If you try to run a 5500-watt element on 120V, you’ll only get about 25% of its power — roughly 1375 watts — so it’s not worth it.
Likewise, if you plug a 120V element into a 240V outlet, you’ll burn it out immediately.
Matching Element Size to Still Volume
Always size your element properly for your still.
Too little power, and you’ll never reach boiling.
Too much power, and you risk scorching or excessive energy loss.
As a rule of thumb, it’s better to have more wattage and control it down, than not have enough. A 3500-watt element with a power controller is ideal for many home setups. You can easily adjust it to run at 50%, 75%, or full power as needed.
We’ll go over controllers and temperature management in a future article.
Final Thoughts
Heating is the heart of distillation.
Whether you’re using propane or electricity, understanding how to calculate heat, choose the right element, and match it to your still’s volume will make your distilling experience smoother and more efficient.
Remember — steady, controlled heat equals cleaner separation and better-tasting results.
Thanks for reading, and as we like to say here at American Copper Works:
We enjoy sharing — and yes, you’re powerful!
Happy Distilling!
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