Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Friedrichs Condenser purchase (using vertical condenser)

szuko03 - 6-10-2015 at 07:17

So I am attempting to build a decent sized lab piece by piece in an effort to get name brand stuff and learn all the names and uses. Anyway I ordered a bunch of stuff including a Friedrich condenser. I just realized, after i ordered it, i have never used or attached a vertical condenser as this one is. As of right now i have a "3 way distillation head" and the adapter for the condenser is meant for horizontal ones it looks like. I was hoping to get a basic distillation going soon but my haste to order and get something good made me purchase that condenser at a good price but now i am worried i cant use it right away :(

As I have never used a vertical condenser in my life is there a special piece needed to get it to connect vertically? Like i said it hasnt arrived yet I am just wondering if my excitement to get going is misplaced as the condenser cant be used once it comes in. Like I said its not a big deal i just need to know what it takes to attach a vertical condenser. Just for reference it is this one:

http://catalog2.corning.com/Lifesciences/en-US/Shopping/ProductDetails.aspx?productid=2640-350(Lifesciences)&categoryname=Condensers(Lifesciences) %7CCondensers%2C+Friedrichs+(Lifesciences)%7CFriedrichs+Condensers%2C+Drip+Tip%2C+Standard+Taper+Inner%2FOuter+Joints(Lifesciences)

subsecret - 6-10-2015 at 08:41

Christ! Did you really need Pyrex?

What size distillation flask are you using? What heat source? I've used my Freidrichs with a 3-way distillation head, and I only had to turn the condenser slightly forward to get around the flask/mantle/water bath. It works fine if you have a long enough fractionating column to raise the stillhead. You could also interpose a Leibig condenser between the stillhead and the Freidrichs condenser.

szuko03 - 6-10-2015 at 09:00

For 45 dollars with free shipping I most definitely did :) It is listed as "lightly used no scratches chips or cracks. The size flask is 250mL and the heat source is this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/261878668080?_trksid=p2057872.m2749....

if it needs to be raised i could use a Claisen adapter with a plugged neck i suppose. I was going to purchase a fractionating column with the next round of ordering as well as a leibig condenser, I just couldnt pass up on the price for this one, all about the bargain hunting :)

(i had an old "retirement" account from a minimum wage position i had that got closed due to inactivity and for once in my life i was reckless with my spending on things i want believe me i never have this money to throw around)

[Edited on 6-10-2015 by szuko03]

szuko03 - 7-10-2015 at 09:14

Well if no one can provide any other answers I will have to see what it looks like, its coming in tomorrow. I am sure I can figure it out, I have enough stuff to position it far enough away form the heating source and high enough so its vertical nature isnt the issue, its just in all of my university chemistry labs we didnt use vertical condensers and stupid me did all the price shopping and everything but failed to notice it was vertical and should have been purchased after the liebig, I was just taken by the cost.

So excited because I never get to recklessly spend. For once in my life i can say "I am broke because i blew all my money on a lab" instead of anything else that i should have put it towards, f that!

gdflp - 7-10-2015 at 09:54

If you have a 75° 3-way adapter, then all you need to hook up a Friedrich condenser for a distillation is a straight vacuum take-off adapter as a pressure release point. Just search "straight vacuum take-off adapter" on Google Images to get an idea of what it looks like. Beware, you also need a way of elevating you're heat source, as the recieving flask is going to be a lot lower than your distillation flask in a vertical set up.

szuko03 - 8-10-2015 at 11:18

And after all that the water in tube is smashed off, broken off almost at the base :( I am returning it for a replacement thanks to ebay I was more disappointed it was broken there like the tiniest piece rendered it useless. Let's hope this isn't a common shipping issue with condenser and the alike ;)

szuko03 - 9-10-2015 at 08:01

This is the last bumping of my own thread but I was just wondering if anyone has ever done this. They gave me the item for free as it has a broken water in line so it cant be used as is. I was issued a full refund and now have a perfect condenser except the water in line is broken almost at the base. Because its basically a straight line glass tube with a little bubble on a hollow straight line almost any glass blower should be able to put a new water in line on it at least you would like to believe.

As its a Pyrex brand item and i was given a full refund and told to keep it I want to fix it. Has anyone had repairs done by a glass blower on their scientific glass? I am extremely comfortable doing it because it is seriously just the water inline and it wont be subjected to high pressure or heat. It would just be a shame to keep it as an example of a Friedrich condenser and not a functional one.

Little_Ghost_again - 9-10-2015 at 10:30

Quote: Originally posted by szuko03  
This is the last bumping of my own thread but I was just wondering if anyone has ever done this. They gave me the item for free as it has a broken water in line so it cant be used as is. I was issued a full refund and now have a perfect condenser except the water in line is broken almost at the base. Because its basically a straight line glass tube with a little bubble on a hollow straight line almost any glass blower should be able to put a new water in line on it at least you would like to believe.

As its a Pyrex brand item and i was given a full refund and told to keep it I want to fix it. Has anyone had repairs done by a glass blower on their scientific glass? I am extremely comfortable doing it because it is seriously just the water inline and it wont be subjected to high pressure or heat. It would just be a shame to keep it as an example of a Friedrich condenser and not a functional one.


Proper glassblower all the way, it will need to be annealed. Also in my limited experience you need the same type of glass to fix on,I have some great 3 jacket condensers I got as a joblot from a closed school, the arms are so long and frail looking I dare not connect my rather heavy tubing to them in case they break off :(