How to steam distill essential oil at home and how to fail at that distillation. Beginners guide!
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- čas přidán 11. 04. 2020
- For the first science experiment in my new she shed laboratory, I am attempting to distill essential oil out of roses and basil plants.
This video shows how I set up the still, a few precautions to take and some I didnt take and ultimately shows my catastrophic failure.
This was my first attempt at distilling; I bought the cheap kit from ebay that comes with an electric burner but I swapped that out for a turkey frier, which I think was the beginning of my downfall..
This video was shot on my Sony Alpha a6600 sitting atop a DJI Ronin SC gimbal.
This link shows all of my kit for making youtube, and links you to where you may want to buy any of it: kit.co/randombilly/photograph... - Jak na to + styl
Your problem is caused by the type of condensor they sold you with this set. This is a Graham type which is not very suitable for water and easily clogged building up pressure. Replace it by a Dimroth or better Friedrich type and you will have no pressure problems and a lot of fun with this hobby. This has nothing to do with propane vs electric just wrong condensor type for application.
Oh wow! Thank you! I’ll order one of those right away.. I tried just distilling water and strangely the steam just wouldn’t make it past the bridge.
@@SPACEDESIGNWAREHOUSE You could cover the bridge and flasks with aluminium foil to keep the heat in the system before reaching the condensor. It saves a lot of time as it doesn't condense too early.
I also think the problem is "bumping". Put some boiling chips or pumice chips in the bottom flask. When you have a smooth glass surface heated to high temperature the water can actually be in a kind of super critical state and suddenly burst into a high pressure explosion. Boiling chips will prevent this.
Can you point me in a better direction for how to set up and use ??? @dubsnip
Do you have a good company suggestion? All I can find amis vevor or ebay set ups
It was way toooooo HOT! This is a slow process my friend. 6-8 hours slow for some plants (slower for others and faster for some). I have this system myself and it works great.
You cant speed up the process because 1) stuff will explode
2) the essential oil will burn and turn very bad (hint: thats why your basil smelled bad)
3) electric heat is softer than fire heat and thats why they send the electric bunsen burner.
Try again and just be patient with it. You will have amazing oils come out.
Oh next time you extract rose again, save the water its great for skin and hair care.
You just put it on the skin or hair like a rinse.
Better luck next time.
This guy wants to sleep with his girlfriend and next morning to have kid in his bedroom :)
Rushing will lead you to failure
I was going to say the same thing the reason I gave you the hot plate that doesn't heat up very fast is because you don't want the water boiling that's why your basil smell like crap because you get it too hot then you burn it and that's what it smells like burnt basil nobody will even dare to put that in a diffuser 😂
Not sure about plants to make oils but, you are correct. That's way to hot. Even for a stripping run.
Man i'm about to start steam distilling and I just want to say thank you for this video lmfaoooo. I learned from your mistakes, a mistake which i could have easily made so thank you!
And I learned what I'm missing.. again.. thank you!
Haha, happy to help!! I’m going to say yeah, propane is maybe not the smartest choice!!
I believe this is greatest video where host has frankly shown how he failed !! This is very useful and will prevent many accidents. Definitely a great help to safety of To-Be chemist (psst! Alchemist)...🙂. In industrial setup, condenser when condenses gas also produce vacuum and which in turn help evacuating the vapor. One of the reason for the blast at last could be noncondensing vapour due to insufficient cooling. So even if your condenser tube is clean but cooling is inadequate you will not have any vacuum at condenser end and hence vapour will not evacuate hence your flask will pressurise and hence ka booooom !!
Just bought this system and I am glad I came here to watch the video! You educated more by showing pitfalls. Thanks!
Running at lower temperature and placing a piece of cotton just underneath your plant material will help with the distillation and hopefully prevent some explosions
Well that was utterly ENTERTAINING!!! I'm a science grad, but the last thing I came here to do was to give you annoying internet advice. Love the video. Came here for distillation, stayed for the excitement and your calm voice.
Yay for quality content!
All the best,
Nick
Hahah, thanks Nick! I’ve since tried that thing with just water to distill water, and it still builds up pressure, even without the nutso propane burner overkill. I think the real lesson is not to buy the cheap Chinese version of a science object!:)
This is very helpful and I appreciate the natural explosions :D
Never heat a closed system, the 2nd neck should NOT have a keck clip. There is nothing wrong with your glassware set, and it does in fact contain the correct and appropriate condenser. Never let flame make direct contact with your glass, and since your reservoir has a round bottom, suspend it in an oil bath..over an electric heat source
Oil bath! Smart solution!! Thank you.
Thanks for the video, been meaning to level up my booze skills and wanted to see oil extraction for infusions and other fun stuff. I agree with other watchers, you were over boiling it. Cant rush perfection. Brewing and any type of chemistry is about patience. Making “fun” stuff can be dangerous also. Glass rigs aren’t as strong as metal distills but u can make many “mischief-ull” concoction’s at a lower budget.
Hi Nicholas! Thank you for your useful video. I think you can do better for the next time if you would be just a little bit more careful. And, in the sense that you showed us hidden danger which can be happened, I think your video helped other people already. I don't have a distiller yet, but when I buy one sometime, I really want to make my own lavender essential oil, too.
Thank you for your beautiful video again and have a nice day! :D
Love the edutainment! …warts and all.
🙌 Thank you!
Using the hot plate insures that your temp stays at a constant heat, steaming at high temps is dangerous and being impatient isn’t going to give you the maximum yield of the plant. It’s a slow process and needs to be done delicately. It can take up to 9 hours to extract just a small bit, that is why pure essential oils are so expensive. With pure oils you only need 1 to 4 drops vs 15 to 22 drops of diluted oils.
I initially had it on the hot plate but after about 35 minutes I figured it wasn’t ever going to simmer. I must have to simply be more patient. Or I had a pressure buildup somehow
@@SPACEDESIGNWAREHOUSE the flat-electric heat-plate is all wrong. You do get a hemispherical version that cradles the round bottom of the flask
This is an excellent "what not to do" video, thanks.
Isn't the boiling too high temp? Did u try with the original heating that came with the kit? Do you have to have the cooling condenser? I have seen it done with a different set up.
turns out boiling is MUCH too high a temp, I later tried this again with the provided heater with much better results. I sort of got carried away flying by the seat of my pants.
You should rename the video to "How NOT to Steam Distill." That was pretty dangerous and you didn't explain how to avoid this from happening.
Actually, you’re right! I had no idea what I was doing at all!! It didn’t not go well and I don’t think I learned from the experience.
He blatantly said that, have you got no discernment.
Anyone know what kind of propane cooker he used ?
this was fun now i know what not to do (also why didn't he add boiling chips?)
great vid thank you
GREAT VIDEO............Man people say i am unsafe in the lab but this guy is crazy.......lol
So does the oil stick to water steam in gas form then? Only separates in liquid? " Oil and water don't mix" could imply the steam would just bubble through leaving oil untouched.
It does. It’s like extremely small oil droplets that get carried up with the water and then combine on the other side.
I bought one of these and have yet to use it but thank goodness I'm learning from your mistakes
There is a reason why you should use the hot plate that comes with the kit. It may take longer to heat, but shortcuts like the one you took sacrifices safety and creates waste- wasted time, wasted materials. You simply should not idiotcut the process.
Look up The Organic Chem Lab Survival Manual on amazon. There's a 2020 version of the book now.
Is the heat to powerful? My guess would be a set high temperature over a longer period of time! But it's actually great to see under what circumstances things can go wrong too. Either way any information is good in this case! Thanks for the video! I just bought a new 500ml set. Then realized my round bottom flask will not heat sufficiently at 6hrs. I am waiting for a heating Mantle that fits the round glass to heat it more evenly. My guess would be to get a higher temp flat plate for a flat flask, and a heating Mantle to fit the round Flask into a curved apparatus for even heat distribution.
Yeah this heat was WAY too powerful. A flat bottom flask would be the way to go!
I want this kit.
Foi demais, acho que vou comprar um desses
Can you tell me which set up you purchased for the main distiller? I've now watched probably 100 videos and read very few reviews. This, although an epic fail in the end, was something I think, like you, could modify with your tips and troubleshoot as I go!
Melanie Esguerra well the exact one I bought is apparently no longer for sale, but this one seems to have all the same parts. www.ebay.com/itm/372885079862 I hope it works, and by all means let me know how it goes!!! I was able to make some in subsequent tries with less heat
SPACE DESIGN WAREHOUSE Oh thank you! I was looking at this same one on Amazon. Ebay is cheaper. Yay! I was wondering if, now that you’ve realized the first run through was boiling too hot, do you think the hot plate that comes with the kit was designed to maybe only get that hot for a reason? I want to get all the parts I know this far from your modifications at one time. I’m wondering if I need to buy the propane burner... 🤔 What do you think?
Melanie Esguerra I’m pretty sure the propane burner was overkill, and because I didn’t have enough airflow it only seemed like it wasn’t getting hot. Turns out you just have to have way more patience; the whole process takes sever hours and I was trying to force it to happen in several minutes. You’d want a propane burner if you we’re making one of those big copper ones that can process through buckets of material at once
SPACE DESIGN WAREHOUSE Perfect. 😑 Now I have to go find a place that sells patience! 😩😅 Okay, I’m going to try it as is and find a way to distract myself while it’s doing it’s thing. I was thinking I could even go between and try just a little bit stronger hot plate...like 1800 watts or something. 🤔
Your issue is that you used a direct flame.
You need to buffer the flame, either a fine sand in metal bowl (often used with hotplates) or a ceramic disc to dissipate the fierce heat and also some "anti-bump boiling beads" wouldn't hurt.
You also put together as dry joints, you use a silicone grease that is specially formulated for hot work and won't contaminate the oil or hydrosol that you apply to the glass joints to prevent them sticking together because of different thermal expansion rates, glassware can become stuck, almost as if it is welded.
You would be better off using an electric hotplate as that propane burner, you risk melting the flask, this cheap chinesium glass is not the 3.3 borosilicate that it claims to be. I have a set like this and I have kit I bought and built up in the UK and can tell instantly that the chinese glass is thinner.
I appreciate the good info! I clearly have a lot to learn and am enjoying doing so!
@@SPACEDESIGNWAREHOUSE we all start somewhere.
@@thepvporg Could you please tell me the name of this silicon grease? I am working to put one of these together bit-by-bit. I have already purchased a hot plate with a magnetic stirrer and rods, and am still collecting the glassware and stands. Will a magnetic stirring rod work in place of the boiling beads?
@@heatheruebel1262 Look up Silicone Grease for lab glass, thats how I found a supplier here in the UK
The tub is a 200 Gram tub.
It says the following.
C.Bennis Supplies & Services
Silicone Grease
Silicone Grease NLGI 2, produced from pure Polydimethylsiloxane fluid and inert silicate fillers.
And the usual safety blurb.
Be careful as the silicone grease needs to be for lab type use to assure that it will not react with or contains fillers that will react with the chemicals in the item you are removing oil from or (incidentally, you can fraction alcohol) alcohol, however when dealing with fractioning of alcohol, you must have some copper present in the reflux head or in the vapour column as the copper neutralises a potentially nasty build up of a type of cyanide in the alcohol that is fraction'd over.
You have a close system, I knew that was going to happen. You can just include a vacuum adapter in between the funnel and the condenser. It’s straight and has ground joint on both ends but has a vacuum hose adapter sticking out in the middle which will relieve pressure. No need to attach a hose just leave as is. It’s cheap and you won’t have to change condensers.
"You can just include a vacuum adapter in between the funnel and the condenser" umm no you can't. Firstly there is no funnel so I assume you mean the "bridge" and the condenser. And if you have observed one of these sets you will discover that they have a type of "rose" joint there which cannot accept a "vacuum adapter." The answer is in fact to prevent condensation from occuring too soon - that clogs up the narrow passage in the Graham Condenser. Also it is not in fact truly "closed" because the water/oil separator will allow excess pressure to escape from the system. Another option is to use a straight-through "Liebig" condenser that will not block the system. Oh and his heat is way to high creating a rapid vigorous environment that is too volatile for the apparatus to deal with.
@@TheDesertsweeper I’m talking about straight tube vacuum take-off adapter with gas inlet adapter placed bellow the condenser. And yes you can use it, it will work and it will be the most cost affective option. Of course a Liebig condenser would be preferable but I said you can use the adapter “without having to change condenser” to save money.
So yes the adapter will work.
@@TheDesertsweeper and there is a funnel, a separatory funnel and as it fills up it creates pressure
@@JoeyVX the seperatory funnel allows the pressure to escape by design.
@@JoeyVX yes you can put one down there but it would not help in this case. The pressure is created ABOVE the condenser due to a blockage in the narrow condensing tube above the separator. I guess if you put a vacuum into play it would work by clearing the condenser, but increases complexity. You can buy a liebig for under 20 dollars on amazon.
Lower your temps and run your system longer, prehaps you could work under vacum and harvest volatil compound that would have been lost otherwise. Cheer !
I think I was fooled because of how the resistance in my condenser was making it SEEM like my temps weren't high enough, when really they were too high and water just doesn't boil the same way when its under pressure.. Im going to try again with lower temps and yeah let it go way longer.
About how long should this process take with lower heat?
@@melanieesguerra6748 it depends on the plant you are working with. Between 3 and 8 hours I would say
I work in a chemistry lab and distilling always makes me uneasy. especially distilling flammable liquids
Maybe the hotplate you were sold was needed for this reason! Nevertheless, I found you thoroughly entertaining. Keep trying!
Is it possible to use steam distillation to distill thc?
i believe so.. but you need it under vacuum to lower the temp so it don't degrade.
Man, this dude needs more subs for his work! The narration and videography are way above par!
I thought he had a closed system but after watching it again i see there is a little outlet on the equalizing funnel. Never seen a funnel like that before with the little side outlet thing........wild
That "thing" is not a funnel - it is a water-oil extractor and it is designed so that the excess water (and pressure) comes out of that "little outlet" on the side. In fact when doing this kind of steam-extraction you would normally put a catch-bottle under that as it will fill up and flow out there. And for example with rose-bud extraction you will get pleasant-smelling "rose-water" or hydro-sol from there.
@@TheDesertsweeper .......Thanks buddy i learned something new.
Not strictly necessary, but I wouldn't recommend ever filling the boiling flask beyond 50% full.
The reason why they include a hot plate is because condensing steam back to water is a very energy intensive process, so you using a burner was boiling the water faster than it could condense (shown by the steam passing out the arm of the separator and the arm is too thin for all that steam so it popped off another joint. If you were unlucky, you would have ended up with something like a pipe bomb but with 300 F water and glass shrapnel. I suggest you start with something a little safer and maybe do some reading and watching videos first
While I agree with what you’re saying, I can’t start with something safer, without a time machine. I already started with this, it was relatively unsafe. But I will continue with things that are safer! (Don’t watch the 1000 degree steel ball vids)
Put the pump water inlet at the top and it will gravity feed back to the bucket out the bottom .
this is really cool! thanks for explaining what each component does in a simple concise way. i hate overtechnical jargon. cheers! :D
OMG, I almost fell back in my chair!
Too much pressure for the sealed joints to hold.
Yep, definitely got too impatient, DEFINITELY shouldn't be using propane with this little thing!
Pleb Graham condenser, should've got the baller fredrich condenser
You're so funny 😂
You should put your water flask into a hot oil bath on your hot plate so you can regulate your boiling temp
Oh shoot that’s a super good idea to capture all the heat
Please use double surface condenser
Hotplate not a burner since it gets way too hot. You need a steady control of heat and that not possible with propane.
That has become clear.. I couldn't figure out how this is pressurized, though, theres a 1/4 hole with no plug at all times!
Me setting up my distiller for a first run of peppermint and watching this video: O.O
Me, noticing my water isn't boiling like normal: Is.... there pressure in the system?
I want one
I support you having one. In fact, I dont think Ill use this one any more - if you live in Florida, come and get it!
Use an oil bath(soy bean) or sand in a pot.
It's ok, that's how we can learn from making mistakes. I appreciate your video. Now if I could only convince you to wear safety goggles. It's quite unnerving that you're doing this kind of work without eye protection. Good luck and will look for your other videos.
Wow as a professional chemist.... Brrrr I got shivers from all the things that were wrong, unsafe, and deadly!!!!
Boy could I ever have used a consult with a professional chemist before setting up this thing!! I still dont think I understand what was happening and how that much pressure was building up in the system, its not closed! Theres a pencil sized tube running through and coming out of the condenser, and it seemed to just be simmering, not shooting out.
SPACE DESIGN WAREHOUSE Steam distillation is tricky,
The propane burner too much too fast, try the electric again this time get a big stainless bowl full of play sand and get the vessel you want heated. It will take time . Slow gentle heat is needed. You have to produce enough steam to heat the entire system to break down the plant material and get steam and essential oils over to the condenser. Essential oils are fragile molecules and very sensitive to heat degradation.
Any more questions just ask
@@potascoone5297 How high would you turn up the heat? Thank you for the sand tip.
You drop into a beaker, not into the separator. You added pressure into the system
Use a Pyrex bowl filled with peanut oil
Why on earth did I drop out of chemistry?
Hahaha, well I DID take two college level chemistry classes. But we didn't cover cheap chinese equipment and how to prevent them with their shortcomings, from building up unnecessary pressure. Also, college was a decade ago and Im a photographer now, so.... Whoops.
A little disappointed I didn't see any ads while watching the video but I'll live.
Evidently I’ll have to lure 1,000 people into watching these things before they’ll play an ad on it.. Stay vigilant, Peter!!
@@SPACEDESIGNWAREHOUSE I will personally watch this 980 more times because I believe in you
Why did you call it a she-shed? What ever happened to man-cave or Lab, or garage , just plain shed. Other than that... I liked the video:)
Haha, well initially I built the shed in the back yard as an office for my wife. Then she took over the ‘Florida room’ which is a screened in porch that we finished and air conditioned. But the name SheShed stuck.
why steam and not just boil please?
How can you boil without steam?
@@SPACEDESIGNWAREHOUSE you could have the material in the lower flask for example, to refer to this experiment. Is there a reason not to? I am asking because I have a water distiller
Thare She Blows due to the pressure needed to overcome the column of water in your collection tube, It would not have happened if you did not have an air tight connection between the output of the condenser and your collection tube and so the steam can flow but not build up pressure. It looks like there must be a defect in the manufacture or the design of the collection tube, the vent tube at the top of the collection tube should be open to atmosphere but it must be solid glass not a tube causing a the pressure to build up and blow. Aside from that i liked your video for entertainment purposes.
Ohhhhh, because the ‘blow off’ tube is part of the collection flats, you’re saying the pressure built up in the condenser coil and had no where to go?
I was wondering why there wasn’t just steam shooting out of that blowoff tube. Should there be one of those above the condenser instead?
@@SPACEDESIGNWAREHOUSE After watching again I saw steam escaping out that upper vent tube in the collection tube so that is not the problem. What I believe is the problem is that your plant clippings in the upper chamber got saturated with water, sank down and clogged the opening between the vessel containing the water and vessel with the plant material. This allowed pressure to build up in the lower chamber until it was powerful enough to suddenly clear the plant material out of the way causing a sudden surge of pressure to surge upwards causing the blow out. Perhaps a screen of some sort in the the upper chamber would prevent the plant material from clogging the opening between the chambers. This problem is not unknown in the distilling community and has been described as burping and is caused by a clog in the system that is overcome by a buildup of pressure. Give it another shot and use a screen, copper or stainless scrub pad underneath the plant material so that the path is open between chambers throughout the run.
@@mesavage999 smart! Thank you for that analysis; I’m going to set up another go this week..
You should of stuck with the hotplate
Seems now Wow Elon Musk is looking for essential oil ,
I like that attitude and appreciate that , tried , if not works make some change and come up again,
Better luck next time , but be careful and just have some PPE next time,
if you alive you could do number of experiments
Why not just do a basic distillation?
You don't have to be a genius to realize that such an agressive boiling in a 90% closed system will end with an explosion. That was very dangerous man. Next time, go with a fully open system and heat it slowly!!!
I am not a genius, and now I know that FOR SURE :)
Dude - do not have that glass sat directly on the metal unless you want an explosion of boiling water all over your body. Read why you can not touch glass to metal - it has to do with the rate at which they heat and cool
Why aren't you wearing safety glasses ... and perhaps a heavy-duty apron? NOT a good example!
Completely agree!
This was painful to watch. I'm sorry to say it, but it's the truth. Thankfully it looks like someone already came to the rescue with a helpful comment at the top. Be safe (or safer)! 😊👍
I think I was lucky to get away with the filming without it being physically painful to DO! Thankfully everything jettisoned up and away, rather than at me! Its fun to learn through failure, though!
@@SPACEDESIGNWAREHOUSE Absolutely. That's why they put rubber on the end of pencils! 😆 Seriously though, you've got to start somewhere! I was just genuinely worried you were gonna get hurt or burn your shed down.
Lab 101: Never heat a closed system.
Learning at home: The hard way :)
this is why you dont buy ebay glassware kits
And that's why you heat it slowly with the heat plate. Plus, heating too fast causes plant matter back-flow into the 1st flask.
very cool, but please for the love of All That is Holy-Basil, wear some eye protection :)
Hahaha - good point. Im heating up giant ball bearings to yellow hot this weekend and dropping them in different substances to see what I can learn from that; I promise to wear eye protection moving forward.
If you do a video for the public to watch you should probably take some safety precautions. For one safety glasses. For two to do a correct distillation you need internal temperature of your external heat gun doesn't tell you what you need to know.
Lmao why is bro running a high btu burner? You ain’t making pad Thai or menudo here buddy
Hahaha well because I had never used one of these things and I was being wildly impatient! Learned the hard way. This video was over two years ago and I haven’t fired it up since…
Wear safety glasses
Dude has a essentially zero Organic Chemistry background!
Its terrible when people have no Fn clue what theyre doing make a how-to video just to make a video to put on youtube to get views and likes.. This video can easily be mistaken for a video made by an expert by gullible viewers. Please dont make anymore videos unless youre experienced in what you are doing. Thanks.
Agreed. Although by the fact that everything popped and fell apart, I sure wouldn’t expect to be seen as an expert.
That said, I will be sticking to Photography based stuff going forward. Something I am expert in, thank you. And I’m sorry.
The problem is not the kit… you extract into an open top container, not the separator flask. This system should not build pressure.
How NOT TO distill. Waste of time. Why do noobs feel the ned to teach?!
@SPACE DESIGN WAREHOUSE heating the closed system has given me a hell of alot anexity and I'm grateful that worse did not happen.
I'm sure your aware now of heating a closed system can be bad, but you lucked out.
Yes the system technically has a small opening but the amount of boiling means your were overloading your condensor. It would ideally be no added pressure as the water re forms and condenses but thas not always the way it works.
Always leave one clip off in a place where its safe to blow open, that way if pressure builds you may get that second chance to correct.
I don't know much about the oils, but I do know safety is our choice. And if we chose to get hurt we will, but we also can learn and do better next time.
Like the channel and seems like I am late for my comment. I'm just hoping positivity and success is going your way.
Oh no I appreciate any further input! Clearly I’m not an expert on distillation. I’m not really sure how the flow is expected to work with this particular setup since like you said, it’s a closed system so there’s nothing that can move the oils up out of the first container!
Nevertheless, a good lesson perhaps for someone else who buys this type of set, NOT to put a propane burner under it to attempt to speed things up:)
don't use open flame.