How much syrup do I need to run short bank wes fan press

[devils11217]

I have a short bank wed fab press. How much syrup do I need to run the press and actually make it worth the effort. I am a hobby produce and don't draw 30 gallons a day

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

We have the same setup and the press itself holds somewhere around 3/4 of a gallon based on our estimation. We store finished syrup in the 5 gallon plastic jugs and try and do a minimum 5 gallons of syrup at a time. Like you, we only make a little bit at a time so unless you can keep the plates hot, you will have to change papers between every batch. To cut down on syrup waste we run concentrate in the evaporator through the press next time we boil to push the syrup out of the press and back in to the evaporator then pull the press apart and change papers so it is ready to go again. We just got a 10 gallon finisher this summer so we will probably do 10 gallon batches through the press now if we have that much of the same grade. We only make around 30 gallons total per year but the press it well worth it.

[madmapler]

How much do you make typically? Is it 7" or 5"? You want to run it through hot so you need enough to be able to do that. I suppose you could reheat the days batch if theres not enough for a good charge when you draw.

[devils11217]

Thanks for the information. Love the idea about running concentrate off the evaporator through it. This probably keeps your evaporator cleaning longer too I'd imagine. Do you run all the sweet in the pans to clean the eveeporate concentrate or just enough to clean the press of syrup? I am going to approach this season doing the same with 5 gallon containers. I was just going to make syrup all season and have filter and bottle day.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

I don't think it helps with cleaning whats in the evaporator. Niter builds up and sticks to the pan, you won't get it off there. I start by looping the boiling concentrate from the pan to the press then back to the pan. The syrup gets pushed out and mixed with the concentrate. This gets the press hot and up to full temp, usually takes around 10 minutes. When the last plate is hot, you're good. Then I run sap from our preheater through the press and in to the pan until it runs clear which only takes a couple of minutes. It floods the pan with a few gallons of sap but doesn't hurt anything, works for us. Keep an eye on your pressures, if the press sits too long or the syrup was very dirty, you may have to stop.
If I do get into a situation where I have to break down the press with syrup in there, I have a jug with syrup/DE mixed from each break down that I mix throughout the season and do one batch of that at seasons end. Thats usually syrup we use for ourselves, nothing wrong with it though and always crystal clear.