VEVOR Alcohol Still 18.5Gal/70L Alcohol Distiller with Ceramic Balls for Purer Wine Distillery Kit for Alcohol with Brewing Kit for DIY Whisky Wine Brandy

The item is decent quality for the price point. However the hydrometer included broke during shipping and I don’t want to return the entire item but would like a replacement hydrometer. I have been unsuccessful with getting Amazon system to direct me to get the help I need. Hydrometers are very fragile so no blame on anyone for this as it just happens.

The shipping was fast. When the package arrived, the box was undamaged. However, the box was a medium duty cardboard box. The items inside were loosely wrapped in thin foam bags with very little rigidity. The item seemed undamaged but I’m concerned it would be easily damaged if the delivery company mishandled the package. The unit came with a lot of accessories, kudos for that but I am missing the bottom scorch plate for inside the pot. The unit had no instructions for assembly, (an assembly video is provided on the page) but was easy to put together without tools. I set it up easily and noticed the bottom was not flat but convex and more like a bowl. The pot can double as a fermenter as it has a blind flange and airlock provided. The tower is unique and provides a space for copper mesh or rectifying ceramic balls provided. Since the bottom was convex the unit was top heavy. When the unit was heated it rocked so violently it would not stay on the glass stovetop and that is where this first review ended. I did hook up the condenser, but I was not impressed, the condenser exchange was a bundle of flex pipe placed haphazardly in the condenser. You can not open the unit, and the unit holds several pints of water or product that does not drain and stays in the unit. I worry this could cause mold and off flavor as you can not clean it easily.Update: contacted seller about issues, within the first day seller asked for photo. After photos were posted within 3 days I was provided a troubleshooting video link. The video was useless, and was just the assembly video already watched. I updated my review at 4 days hours and was asked if I reviewed the video provided. Going on 7 days and was contacted by seller who arranged shipping my missing items and a pot that was more flat that sat on a glass top stove. The replacement scorch plate was slightly damaged when it arrived as the loosely packed items impacted each other when the delivery driver dropped it on my porch. around during shipping. The unit was then set up cleaned and ran. The unit functioned well and I am pleased with the product. And the seller did finally make it right.

Even though it's not made from stainless steel, it serves its purpose.I give 4 stars because the bottom is not even, it's warped and during warming up it's moving from side to side.

This thing works wonderfully. Extremely efficient. My one piece of advice is to run the unit fully assembled with a mixture of 50% distilled water, 50% white vinegar for several hours in order to clean out the vapor collection chamber and condenser or else your distillate will taste like rubber. Be sure to rinse your unit thoroughly with water after and then you are ready.The thermometer is in Celsius but it's very accurate. I had to get the conversions to Fahrenheit but that's not a problem. You can always run to your local home store and grab a Fahrenheit if you want but it's not necessary.The rationing balls are useless for me. They have this powdery substance on them that remains even after you run them under a spigot. I don't feel safe using those. As a matter of fact, the entire unit had that powder on it so please was it thoroughly once you receive it.The proof and tralle hydrometer does exactly what it is supposed to do. It's wonderful. The test tube is plastic and it's not so great. You may want to simply set the hydrometer into your collection container and forgo using the test tube.The post holds up very well to direct flame. It also works with my Nuwave Precision Induction Cooktop. That is not to say it will work with every induction stove top but it seems to reason that it should. I use a couple layers of parchment paper under the pot on my induction cooktop and it works fine.Does not come with a drain hole. It's only gallons. Easy to pour out.You'll want to get some extra hours for the condenser. The tube they provide you with is thick walled 1/2 inch inner diameter silicone. It is perfect to connect your water pump to the condenser. There just isn't enough of it to connect the out spout to a recirculation reservoir to keep the condenser cool. Grab some extra and a 1/2 inch clamp.All in all, it's a great unit once it is cleaned thoroughly. Extremely efficient and very precise once you run it a couple times and get the feel of it. It couldn't get any simpler. Hope this review helps.