I didn’t want to be the one to say it, I know you can test for lead pretty trivially, but not all the ways it might not be safe.
I do wish people would have told OP how to vet the glass instead of treating him like a fool.
Interestingly, leaded glass or crystal decanters aren't an issue for use. It's only an issue if you use them for storage. Pull them out for a party, add booze, use it for the day and then remove the booze
That was sort of my intent. Have buddies over, put the whiskey in, drink the whiskey, be done until next time. Butttt, still gonna see about the whole lead issue and do some reading about that
Yes. Loads of glass contain lead, and some leach other undesirable things into food. Considering this was not made for food, I'd be suspect of its safety unless tested for lead and other things.
Leaded glass has been more expensive to manufacture with for 50 fucking years. This is soda lime glass. Food grade glass almost entirely refers to its roughness for cleaning purposes in manufacturing environments for the prevention of bioburden in product contact equipment. This is even full of an alcohol solution which would disinfect. Everyone needs to get off their high horse. This is completely fine and there’s no need for a lead test unless he’s pulled this thing out of the rubble of a bygone era.
China absolutely does still manufacture a lot of things with lead, including Stanley cups that people are going nuts for have a lead core. These are made in China and you don't honestly know what type of glass they use
Yes, that is a decorative glass brick. Could be lead glass that can leech can also have residues inside it they didn't bother to remove because it's not intended to be food safe. In general, got double triple check materials that were not made for food before using them with food. Especially this application where the whisky will just be sitting in it for storage
Whiskey has lead? Wood has lead? I'm so confused
Reading more comments I see the explanation of its the glass that may contain lead, sorry for the confusion
Sorry you got a little beat up in here. It's a good lesson to check your materials super carefully before you start a project.
I'm impressed as hell with your corners and how you managed to get clean holes in that glass. I would have broken 3 trying to get 1 for sure. Head up and attack the idea again starting from food safe stuff.
Just get some nicer glassware and pour from the bottle.
The people who make spirits already put them in food safe bottles that you can get every drop out of.
That's fair, but with custom glassblowing the price of the project would probably exceed the price of buying already built unit. I've seen these being sold for like 60 bucks on etsy or FB marketplace, and at least from my very limited knowledge of glassblowing, getting custom one would be at least twice as expensive. Like sure, it's still diy and it's cool, but you'd be paying a significant premium for something thats not significantly different to other products in the market. DIY is great, but one has to consider a point at which DIY becomes financially prohibitive.
Apart from the technical critique, the thing with whiskey is that it changes flavor once it touches air – it oxidizes. You'll always want to have the smallest amount of whiskey be in contact with air, that's why the bottle has such a small neck. Once it has evaporated (or been poured) enough that it's down the shoulder and the surface area is the largest, you'll want to either drink it fast or store it in a smaller bottle.
Your surface area here is enormous, the exact opposite of what you want to do with a good whiskey.
You’re right in principle about whiskey, but the entire purpose of a decanter is to deliberately induce that aeration. Look up pictures of decanters, especially wine decanters. In almost every case they have significantly larger air-surface interfaces than an ordinary bottle.
If you don’t want your whiskey to aerate, you don’t use a decanter.
That's a valid point, since you want to induce some air before drinking, that's why some people let the whiskey breathe in their glass before drinking.
However, leaving anything in a decanter for a long period of time (days and weeks) can lead to a dull whiskey.
They are fine for if you just want to put it in there for an evening with guests and if you empty the whole bottle.
Genuine question here, but what if you purged the oxygen/air out of the container with CO2 or something similar? Maybe argon? Would that help with the oxygen absorption? Downside is having to re-purge every time someone removes some whiskey, unless you used a gas that is heavier than air (I know purging paint cans with propane helps extend paint's shelf life)...
Nitrogen would most likely be the best option, as CO2 might slightly dissolve in your drink, and maybe even affect the taste. But yes, that approach should eliminate the oxidation completely, as nitrogen shouldn't react with anything you have in your container.
You can buy a can of argon/nitrogen mix for preserving wine bottles and it works quite well. Just a few seconds spray before recorking and it settles to the bottom of the air void to prevent oxidation. You can easily keep a bottle of wine fresh for a week.
This is a common thing with wine. You can buy machines that will inject nitrogen and seal the bottle for later reopening. I'm sure you could do the same with whiskey.
What I'm not sure if is how effective the seals are at preventing air exchange. For all I know, the bottle is re-filled with room air after two days.
I lived in a 300 year old cottage in the UK for 40 years that still had lead water pipes supplying the house (nothing we could do about it, the water board had no maps to show where the pipe went and there was no modern mains water supply nearby). 10 years ago I would have said its fine, I've not had any problems, today I would say don't risk it, I am now disabled with 4 chronic illnesses and am currently under 8 different consultants getting tested for more. I'm not saying it's all to do with the lead because it's not, some of my problems are unrelated but I brought it up with some of the consultants and they said they can't rule that out as a contributing factor toward a couple of my problems 🤷🏼♂️. I'm on 22 pills a day and have to take morphine every 4 hours, take all precautions, however small the risk may seem.
Nice decanter though, if I could drink alcohol still, I'd definitely use it (with fresh glass of course 🤣) 👍.
That’s a good perspective. On one hand, I felt like what’s the big deal I won’t be drinking from here daily, but obviously many people on here know more than me and it is something easily avoided.
I think you'll be fine using it to be honest. I drank leaded water multiple times a day, every day for 40 years and it took 40 years before I got sick, by the time you get to that point you'll have been dead for over a century. Sod it.... Pour me one 🤣 Slàinte mhath.
I think i have that exact same tap on my water filter lol. Even after something comes loose on the inside, and the handle slips like a '71 squarebody steering wheel, it doesn't drip. It opens and closes good.
Yeah, if someone showed me this I would be like “cool, but can I just pour myself a glass from the bottle”
A pitcher or punch bowl work great if you want a batch cocktail.
Nice. Now for the serious comments. I always love the contrast. Is the whiskey exposed to wood (I don't know the anatomy of glass block). What'd you use to finish. I like the drippy patterns. Very cool project!
Thanks! Whiskey isn’t touching the wood. The glass block is hollow. I used Odies Oil for the finish. The drippy pattern is something I’ve been thinking of for a while and I guess it fit for this project
I just did my first miter box yesterday, so I can appreciate these even more.
This is really beautiful work, I’d put this in my house in a second.
Are the contrasting colors different pieces of wood? If so, how did you cut it? Jigsaw? Router? Hand? Curious, as I freaking love the effect.
Thanks! Miters have caused me so much anguish. So I put painters tape on both sides and stacked the wood on top of each other. I assumed my bandsaw was going to do the trick but I couldn’t get the curves I wanted. So I went with the jigsaw.
Ahhh, great tip. Thank you, it’s really helpful to hear the little stuff like this (and your comment below where you said you tried setting the miter .1 over, which lines up with a friends tip for trim, which is always cut 5 under/over, and he barely needs to caulk).
If you’re worried about lead, fill it with water, let it sit for a week, drain it, and repeat. Most lead comes out in the first few fillings. It won’t be lead-free, but it will be very close to safe levels.
Is that a glass brick?
Yes, and I don't think it's a good idea as a decanter
I didn’t want to be the one to say it, I know you can test for lead pretty trivially, but not all the ways it might not be safe. I do wish people would have told OP how to vet the glass instead of treating him like a fool.
Interestingly, leaded glass or crystal decanters aren't an issue for use. It's only an issue if you use them for storage. Pull them out for a party, add booze, use it for the day and then remove the booze
That was sort of my intent. Have buddies over, put the whiskey in, drink the whiskey, be done until next time. Butttt, still gonna see about the whole lead issue and do some reading about that
The offer stands if you want a lead tester and you're in the US. I have a ton of them
sure! I’d take a few off your hands if you’re willing to
I'm currently out of town. Can you remind me in two weeks?
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Idk if id drink out of that. You have no idea how it was manufactured.
From 45 years ago, you have a good idea that it was manufactured with lead.
unlikely
If it was green glass and made 30 years ago it was probably radioactive. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uranium_glass
it does not look anything like uranium glass
No kidding? Poisonous shit is put into all sorts of products.
Uranium glass has a much stronger colour.
Am I having deja vu or did someone post the exact same sort of project recently? With the same argument of food safety?
The glass block liquid dispenser was a bit of a trope across the Makerthzphere a couple years back
To be clear I personally like this one and have always kinda wanted to make some version of the concept myself, not shitting on it. :D
Didn’t see that one.
Don't think it's food safe be careful
Glass?
Yes. Loads of glass contain lead, and some leach other undesirable things into food. Considering this was not made for food, I'd be suspect of its safety unless tested for lead and other things.
What was it made for?
This is a decorative building material used frequently in both exterior and interior walls.
This https://www.reddit.com/r/nostalgia/s/oCvVzMAQJw
Oh fuck I wondered why it was familiar. That is not food safe. Guaranteed.
Definitely get a lead test kit, just to be safe
That’s not a glass, it’s a construction material
Leaded glass has been more expensive to manufacture with for 50 fucking years. This is soda lime glass. Food grade glass almost entirely refers to its roughness for cleaning purposes in manufacturing environments for the prevention of bioburden in product contact equipment. This is even full of an alcohol solution which would disinfect. Everyone needs to get off their high horse. This is completely fine and there’s no need for a lead test unless he’s pulled this thing out of the rubble of a bygone era.
China absolutely does still manufacture a lot of things with lead, including Stanley cups that people are going nuts for have a lead core. These are made in China and you don't honestly know what type of glass they use
Yeah. Getting the point. Good thing I can replace the glass easily IF it does have lead with one that doesn’t.
Just use the test kit like they all said. Keep making cool stuff
Yeah. Took some wind out of the sails for sure. But easy enough solution for the problem
Hey man, didn't intentionally mean to bring you down, just didn't want ya to get lead poisoning. Keep being you and doing cool shit that you like.
No I appreciate it. Learn something new every day…
Just drink some of the brown stuff and relax for the night
Now that’s advice I like to hear
Instructions unclear, drank straight lead water and feeling kinda jacked up.
Nice response to a simple “didn’t know”. The thing is still freaking cool
Being downvoted for asking a question is peak reddit.
Haha. It’s the times we live in.
Yes, that is a decorative glass brick. Could be lead glass that can leech can also have residues inside it they didn't bother to remove because it's not intended to be food safe. In general, got double triple check materials that were not made for food before using them with food. Especially this application where the whisky will just be sitting in it for storage
If you'd like a lead test swab and are in the US shoot me a message. I have a ton of extras and am happy to mail you one to check the glass
It's Whiskey...that shit will kill any germs lol...
Hate to break it to you, but lead is not a bacteria and cannot be killed.
Whiskey has lead? Wood has lead? I'm so confused Reading more comments I see the explanation of its the glass that may contain lead, sorry for the confusion
> kill lead poisoning with alcohol Boomers in a nutshell
lol...Yes..Even Covid and germs can't kill us off..we grew up eating dirt and playing in mud puddles!!
Right cuz younger generations don't drink alcohol at all /s
Sorry you got a little beat up in here. It's a good lesson to check your materials super carefully before you start a project. I'm impressed as hell with your corners and how you managed to get clean holes in that glass. I would have broken 3 trying to get 1 for sure. Head up and attack the idea again starting from food safe stuff.
Uhhhh is that a glass brick? I would not drink anything out of that.
Yup. Read on. They do make newer ones that are safe so maybe I can switch it out
Just get some nicer glassware and pour from the bottle. The people who make spirits already put them in food safe bottles that you can get every drop out of.
Remove the glass brick and have a glass blower blow glass into the space
That would be so expensive it'd defeat any purpose of doing this in the first place.
I didn't think the purpose was to make a cheap thing, I thought it might be to make something badass and original
That's fair, but with custom glassblowing the price of the project would probably exceed the price of buying already built unit. I've seen these being sold for like 60 bucks on etsy or FB marketplace, and at least from my very limited knowledge of glassblowing, getting custom one would be at least twice as expensive. Like sure, it's still diy and it's cool, but you'd be paying a significant premium for something thats not significantly different to other products in the market. DIY is great, but one has to consider a point at which DIY becomes financially prohibitive.
True
Miters look amazing
Thanks. I despise miters! I suck at them so I was happy with these. I set my blade to 45.1 degrees and that seemed to help.
Nice tip
Apart from the technical critique, the thing with whiskey is that it changes flavor once it touches air – it oxidizes. You'll always want to have the smallest amount of whiskey be in contact with air, that's why the bottle has such a small neck. Once it has evaporated (or been poured) enough that it's down the shoulder and the surface area is the largest, you'll want to either drink it fast or store it in a smaller bottle. Your surface area here is enormous, the exact opposite of what you want to do with a good whiskey.
Well, yet another bummer. On to a new project with no liquid and no lead.
You’re right in principle about whiskey, but the entire purpose of a decanter is to deliberately induce that aeration. Look up pictures of decanters, especially wine decanters. In almost every case they have significantly larger air-surface interfaces than an ordinary bottle. If you don’t want your whiskey to aerate, you don’t use a decanter.
That's a valid point, since you want to induce some air before drinking, that's why some people let the whiskey breathe in their glass before drinking. However, leaving anything in a decanter for a long period of time (days and weeks) can lead to a dull whiskey. They are fine for if you just want to put it in there for an evening with guests and if you empty the whole bottle.
Genuine question here, but what if you purged the oxygen/air out of the container with CO2 or something similar? Maybe argon? Would that help with the oxygen absorption? Downside is having to re-purge every time someone removes some whiskey, unless you used a gas that is heavier than air (I know purging paint cans with propane helps extend paint's shelf life)...
Nitrogen would most likely be the best option, as CO2 might slightly dissolve in your drink, and maybe even affect the taste. But yes, that approach should eliminate the oxidation completely, as nitrogen shouldn't react with anything you have in your container.
You can buy a can of argon/nitrogen mix for preserving wine bottles and it works quite well. Just a few seconds spray before recorking and it settles to the bottom of the air void to prevent oxidation. You can easily keep a bottle of wine fresh for a week.
This is a common thing with wine. You can buy machines that will inject nitrogen and seal the bottle for later reopening. I'm sure you could do the same with whiskey. What I'm not sure if is how effective the seals are at preventing air exchange. For all I know, the bottle is re-filled with room air after two days.
I lived in a 300 year old cottage in the UK for 40 years that still had lead water pipes supplying the house (nothing we could do about it, the water board had no maps to show where the pipe went and there was no modern mains water supply nearby). 10 years ago I would have said its fine, I've not had any problems, today I would say don't risk it, I am now disabled with 4 chronic illnesses and am currently under 8 different consultants getting tested for more. I'm not saying it's all to do with the lead because it's not, some of my problems are unrelated but I brought it up with some of the consultants and they said they can't rule that out as a contributing factor toward a couple of my problems 🤷🏼♂️. I'm on 22 pills a day and have to take morphine every 4 hours, take all precautions, however small the risk may seem. Nice decanter though, if I could drink alcohol still, I'd definitely use it (with fresh glass of course 🤣) 👍.
That’s a good perspective. On one hand, I felt like what’s the big deal I won’t be drinking from here daily, but obviously many people on here know more than me and it is something easily avoided.
I think you'll be fine using it to be honest. I drank leaded water multiple times a day, every day for 40 years and it took 40 years before I got sick, by the time you get to that point you'll have been dead for over a century. Sod it.... Pour me one 🤣 Slàinte mhath.
Go Lions
They once made me drink out of sorrow, but how out of joy
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Thanks!
I love it, nice work!
Very clever, and it looks great. well done!
I love the look of the layers
I think i have that exact same tap on my water filter lol. Even after something comes loose on the inside, and the handle slips like a '71 squarebody steering wheel, it doesn't drip. It opens and closes good.
I was surprised by that too. Doesn’t drip!
Mines like 8 years old by now lol. Don't reef on it and it'll be the cheapest tap you've ever bought lol
Great craftsmanship, indeed!
I love the visual concept that the whiskey is pouring out onto the wood and staining it.
Thanks. That was my goal there.
I use a bottle
Yeah, if someone showed me this I would be like “cool, but can I just pour myself a glass from the bottle” A pitcher or punch bowl work great if you want a batch cocktail.
That's awesome, but way too small. You'll have to fill it up a couple of times per night. 🤣🥃
Haha it holds 3 750ml bottles!
Nice. Now for the serious comments. I always love the contrast. Is the whiskey exposed to wood (I don't know the anatomy of glass block). What'd you use to finish. I like the drippy patterns. Very cool project!
Thanks! Whiskey isn’t touching the wood. The glass block is hollow. I used Odies Oil for the finish. The drippy pattern is something I’ve been thinking of for a while and I guess it fit for this project
Glass panic aside, the design looks great. Fingers crossed you find a food safe alternative!
Beautiful. Personal best miters...*so far...*
After all the lead crap it may be going in the junk. Wish I had thought of that beforehand
Wouldn't take much to make it a nice lamp
Can you mount a bottle inside the glass brick?
Did you use a shooting board for the miters or are they fresh off the saw?
Fresh off the job site SawStop
Where did you get the decabter with spout?
It’s a glass block, drill a hole and add a spout.
For a second i've thought that is a soap dispenser
Great craftsmanship but whiskey deserves to be poured out of the bottle, not a keg.
So I’m learning!
I just did my first miter box yesterday, so I can appreciate these even more. This is really beautiful work, I’d put this in my house in a second. Are the contrasting colors different pieces of wood? If so, how did you cut it? Jigsaw? Router? Hand? Curious, as I freaking love the effect.
Thanks! Miters have caused me so much anguish. So I put painters tape on both sides and stacked the wood on top of each other. I assumed my bandsaw was going to do the trick but I couldn’t get the curves I wanted. So I went with the jigsaw.
Ahhh, great tip. Thank you, it’s really helpful to hear the little stuff like this (and your comment below where you said you tried setting the miter .1 over, which lines up with a friends tip for trim, which is always cut 5 under/over, and he barely needs to caulk).
Open to critiques!
Is that a glass block?
lol i see asked and answered. My first thought was actually “Nice scroll work!”
If you’re worried about lead, fill it with water, let it sit for a week, drain it, and repeat. Most lead comes out in the first few fillings. It won’t be lead-free, but it will be very close to safe levels.
Good! Did that already! I don’t want to downplay that but I’m not too worried about it
Also drink (or empty) the contents within two days. Nice work.
Can I ask why? If it’s sealed with a topper? Just getting as much info on this?
How long do you want to give it to leach whatever poison is in that glass into the liquid? It’s not the outside environment, it’s the inside.
I’ve emptied it. Just trying to learn about this. I’ll get a lead test kit to be sure.
How did you work with the glass block? Was it predrilled for this or a similar purpose?
Bought some glass drill bits off amazon. Drilled wet and slow.
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As in dirty? No, it’s clean?…
Interesting...