Clearing wash before distilling – Sugar wash distillation – Distiller must know!

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ByThe Brew Mechanic
clearing wash before distilling is essential for distilling

The purpose of the clearing agent is to remove the yeast and solids in suspension. If not removed they will cause unwanted flavors and reduce the quality of the wash when heated in the kettle. That is why clearing wash before distilling is very important. 

There are other methods such as cooling the wash solution and adding other clearing agents but the best and cheapest method is using Bentonite. 

Clearing Agents To Clear Your Wash

There are many options to clear your wash for distilling. In this article, our choice is using bentonite as we don’t like using Turbo Yeast due to its aftertaste and costs.

Still Spirits Brew Shop or Online
Distiller Enzymes  Brew Shop or Online
Turbo Clear Agents Brew Shop or Online
Alcotec Turbo ClearerBrew Shop or Online
Pure Distilling  Brew Shop or Online
BentoniteSupermarkets, animal feeds

Making and Adding of the Clearing Agent

There are other clearing agents used in water treatment but I won’t mention this as Bentonite is adequate and safe to use and very cheap. We recommend this is the best for clearing wash before distilling.

You can use a clearing agent bought from the craft shop at a price.

In Bentonite (powder form) the ratio is roughly 1.3 grams per litre of wash and should be used mainly on sugar wash for making neutral spirit. On 25 liters use 32.5 > 40g. Very cheap. Be careful if too much is added it will turn the wash green.

Add 250ml of hot water to the Bentonite, and mix with a handheld mixture till diluted. Leave for 10 minutes then mix again till you are satisfied. You can sieve the mixture to add to the sugar wash. 

Mix the wash thoroughly for 5 minutes. Then add the clearing agent to the wash. Work back the froth created by the mixing using a hand-held egg beater.

Put back the lid once you are satisfied that there are no more bubbles. The Bentonite will start to clear within 10 minutes. Leave the solution till you are satisfied and ready for racking. This can be 1 to 3 days.

Important Steps for Clearing Wash Before Distilling

There are other clearing agents used in water treatment but I won’t mention this as Bentonite is adequate and safe to use and very cheap.

After adding the clearing agent most of the solids or sediment should be at the bottom of the fermenter and seen as sludge.

Trick: Add 50% (20g) of Bentonite to the wash, mix, allow to settle then drain off the visible sludge (bottom valve on fermenter) from the bottom of the fermenter, mix up the fermented solution again and add the balance (20g) of the Bentonite and leave to settle till you are satisfied. Works. 

When racking (plastic tube) the liquid should be clear to very slightly cloudy if the flocculation has done its job correctly. If not can affect the yield of the wash.

If this step is not done you can get unreacted yeast carried over in the racked solution which can cause unwanted flavors and volatiles. 

Why Won’t My Sugar Wash Clear After The Clear Agent Added?

Potential Issues

Treated a sugar wash with a clearing agent that was not fully fermented.

Did not thoroughly de-gas the fermented wash before adding the clear agent. 

Solution

Step one is to add 50% of the Bentonite into a thoroughly mixed fully fermented sugar wash. Allow it to settle. After 2 days drain off all the sludge using the bottom drain valve. 

Thoroughly mix the cleared wash for 5 minutes till you see it frothing at the top. Add the balance of the Bentonite (20g) and mix for a further 5 minutes.

If the above steps are done correctly you should never have a problem with the clearing of the wash.

Knowing that the yield will be less and you might have volatiles in the solution being distilled. Hopefully, the distillate does not smell bad. 

Turbo Clear

I have no experience of using this product but from what I have read it does the job but adds to the cost. Prefer to use products that I can control for clearing wash before distilling.

Temperature Impact on Clearing the Wash

The sugar wash when fully fermented is 20 to 25 Celsius. I have had no problems when adding the clearing agent or racking `the clear liquid to the kettle. 

Timing When Adding the Clearing Agent to Racking

From what I have read when adding the Turbo ranges of clearing agents there is a part A and part B which are added at different intervals. 

Basically, you add the clearing agent to the fermented wash after it has been thoroughly degassed. Within a short period of time the separation starts and within 24 hours it can be racked if you are satisfied that the solution is clear. 

No problems were experienced when leaving the wash once treated with a clear agent for a week. 

Clearing wash before distilling is important

Before distillation clearing a wash is essential to make sure your home brew doesn’t have slurry or solids in your still. We need sugar wash fermentation right before clearing wash before distilling. This will make sure your ethanol has no odd flavors and volatiles. 

Last Updated on Dec 13, 2023 by The Brew Mechanic

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With 35 years of knowledge of being a chemical engineer in alcohol manufacturing plants, my mission is to teach the next generation of home distilling alcohol brewers at a supernatural speed.

My reviews are based on real-life experiences with reflux stills, sugar wash, troubleshooting and mystical chemical reactions.

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