not using filters

[McClintick Maple]

We haven't figured out the filter part yet. We are not selling any product yet so I'm not worried there. At time of first bottleing syrup goes into 1 gallon glass jars. When the niter has settled to the bottom, I pour off as much of the syrup as I can, reheat and rebottle into 1/2 gallon jars, combining leftovers from the gallon jars to settle again and get a bit more syurp off the top of that. If the 1/2 gallon jars end up with some niter on the bottom, oh well, I repeat the process into quart jars when we are ready to actually use it. Other than being somewhat wasteful of liquid gold, we are happy with our efforts not having to deal with filtering. Anything major wrong with our newbie approach that I should know about?

Samantha

[Bucket Head]

No, nothing wrong with that. Allowing it to settle out is the only way left to do it without a filter. Settling tanks were used for decades before synthetic filters and filter presses came into existance. We use synthetic filters but that does'nt get all the nitre out. So when it comes to filling glass bottles, we only use syrup that has "set" for quite a while. Thanks to gravity, whatever leftover nitre is at the bottom of the container and the bottles have clear syrup in them.

Steve

[DanE.]

This got me thinking, a few years back I played with a centrifuge to clean diesel oil inline and also for cleaning waste vegetable oil. It work real well. it would take black diesel oil and clean it to a medium brown color.

Does anyone know if someone has tried using a centrifuge to remove niter from syrup?

Dane.
(don't get wrapped up on the whole food grade aspect of this, because there are food grade centrifuges out there)

[happy thoughts]

Dane, that sounds like a seriously great idea. You should give it a whirl;)

[Ausable]

We haven't figured out the filter part yet. We are not selling any product yet so I'm not worried there. At time of first bottleing syrup goes into 1 gallon glass jars. When the niter has settled to the bottom, I pour off as much of the syrup as I can, reheat and rebottle into 1/2 gallon jars, combining leftovers from the gallon jars to settle again and get a bit more syurp off the top of that. If the 1/2 gallon jars end up with some niter on the bottom, oh well, I repeat the process into quart jars when we are ready to actually use it. Other than being somewhat wasteful of liquid gold, we are happy with our efforts not having to deal with filtering. Anything major wrong with our newbie approach that I should know about?

Samantha

Samantha - Lots of ways to filter and most very easy for a small producer. Almost Syrup in a container - Take a square of felt - rinse in warm water and ring out good - attach with cloths pins over a clean pot and have a dimple in the filter and pour almost syrup through - you will be amazed with the amount of nitre you filter out in this simple way. You still might have to decante once (like You are doing now) but - not as often. Put your dirty filter in hot water and let sit awhile - then hand rub a little - wring out and dry or if still filtering more syrup - use again. Many of us on this Site are Backyarders or Hobby Producers - so don't hesitate to ask questions. No question is dumb - what is dumb is to have a question and not ask. Don't let the Big Producers scare or intimidate you - they are just boiling sap to make syrup like we are - they just have bigger - shinny toys to do it with and make lots - But - You can learn a lot from them - I know I have. Hey - Welcome aboard. ----Mike----

[ennismaple]

Samantha - If I need to re-package a few gallons of syrup in glass and its cloudy I'll do exactly what Ausable described. Use 2 pots, bring to 180F, pour into the paper and cloth filter hanging on top of the other pot to clarify the syrup, bring back to 180F and package. This works equally well on 1 gallon at a time as it does on 100 gallons! Try it and you'll find it's less work than what you currently do.

[McClintick Maple]

Thank you for the replies. Felt, like the 8" x 11" pieces of felt I can get at the local fabric store? That seems easy enough.
Last year we did run everything through a couple layers of cheese cloth from the do it yourself brewery supply store, but it didn't catch. It was good for the move from the outside evaporator to the inside finishing off to get out general contaminates so we will still continue that.

Samantha

[Paddymountain]

If your're making more than a gallon or so of syrup. you should invest in a synthetic cone filter and some prefilters for in it . Put them in a 50 cup coffee pot and filter away, you'll be able to bottle right out of the pot too. We bottle about 50 gallon a year in glass and have no niter even after sitting for a couple of months

[Ausable]

Thank you for the replies. Felt, like the 8" x 11" pieces of felt I can get at the local fabric store? That seems easy enough.
Last year we did run everything through a couple layers of cheese cloth from the do it yourself brewery supply store, but it didn't catch. It was good for the move from the outside evaporator to the inside finishing off to get out general contaminates so we will still continue that.

Samantha

You are on the right track - My wife has done about every hobby ever invented and that's good. Because - She has fixed me up with various things to filter with. Over my sap storage barrels I'll Pull the cover and pin cotton cloth (again with the dimple) over the opening and pour or pump my sap through the cloth into the barrel to clean the debris from the sap. As I've gotten older I use every trick I can to save work - including a submersible sump pump to transfer sap. If You are like most of us - You will get the bug and continus to expand and the only Hobby you will have in March is -LOL- making Maple Syrup. If you need a larger chunk of felt then you mentioned - go for it - the felt filter lasts for years - I usually have some spares on hand - just in case. I don't have a filter press - yet - as I don't sell my syrup - just gift it to family and friends. But - I have tried other methods of filtering. As You grow - You will experiment more - the main thing - as You know from your other Hobbies -- Is - Have FUN. Best of Luck ----Mike----

[Dennis H.]

I started out by doing te same thing you have down, putting the syrup in large containers and letting it settle out.
Then I went to flat felt filters and those steam pans you see at buffets.
The key with the felt filters is to keep the syrup warm so it flows thru the fliter faster.
The way PaddyMtn does it is probably the cheapest way to do it for the small producer. Handy with filling those jugs for family and friends.

Also if you can filter some of the niter out when it comes off the hot evap it will only help when you finish the syrup later.

[morningstarfarm]

buddy of mine came up with this a couple years ago...for the small scale it seems to work the best of everything i had tried...
take a food grade 5 gallon bucket..put 4 sheetrock screws halfway through it just under the lid lip...now cut the bottom out...next take a bucket lid and cut a 10" hole in it...put lid on another food grade bucket and stack the cutout on top..stands about 3'tall and is very stable...loop the tabs on a cone filter over the screws and put half a dozen prefilters in...run your syrup through it..if it all doesnt drain right through just put the lid on the top bucket and let her sit for a bit..the hot syrup in the bottom bucket will stay hot much longer than you would expect...and it will drainrapidly...luck...

[RileySugarbush]

This got me thinking, a few years back I played with a centrifuge to clean diesel oil inline and also for cleaning waste vegetable oil. It work real well. it would take black diesel oil and clean it to a medium brown color.

Does anyone know if someone has tried using a centrifuge to remove niter from syrup?

Dane.
(don't get wrapped up on the whole food grade aspect of this, because there are food grade centrifuges out there)

At the risk of negating any credibility I have, I admit to trying to centrifuge some really fluffy niter-while still in glass bottles! I hung them on some ropes attached to an old ceiling fan motor.

Scared the crap out of me! But it did settle the fluff.

[wiam]

At the risk of negating any credibility I have, I admit to trying to centrifuge some really fluffy niter-while still in glass bottles! I hung them on some ropes attached to an old ceiling fan motor.

Scared the crap out of me! But it did settle the fluff.

I love it. You don't know if you don't try it.:cool:

[ennismaple]

At the risk of negating any credibility I have, I admit to trying to centrifuge some really fluffy niter-while still in glass bottles! I hung them on some ropes attached to an old ceiling fan motor.

Scared the crap out of me! But it did settle the fluff.

Good for you for trying but I don't think I'll do it myself! There must have been a few boiling sodas involved...

[seclark]

I have a question for the people that let the syrup settle with out filtering.How long do you let it stand and do you refrigerate the syrup or just leave at room temperatures.I want to try this method but don't want to ruin any liquid gold.Thanks for any info you can give me.

[maple flats]

I don't do the settling, I have always filtered, but others have said they let it settle for a few weeks, then draw off the clear, reheat and bottle. Be careful not to reheat over about 190 maybe 195 or new niter will form. Likely 180-185 is best and bottle into pre heated bottles. Some oven put them in canning jars, put them in a canner pot, add water, boil for ? and then let cool. This will sterilize and seal the lids when cool.