Pre-filtering off the Evaporator

[TomorrowRiverMapler]

Looking for suggestions...
I want to do some pre-filtering right off the evaporator this year using a sock filter supported above the collection bucket. The big question is what size micron sock to buy? Last year I tried to use a cone pre-filter and it plugged up almost instantly. I even sewed up the large end and cut a hole in the cone end and tie wrapped it to the draw off valve. Obviously the larger size I go the less I’ll catch but there ought to be a good trade off point to at least keep some of the niter out to help speed up the final filtering process which is a flat filter. I found one place that listed their cone pre-filters at 30 to 50 micron so anything finer than that will not be any different than my experience last year. I’m thinking of trying a 75 or 100 micron sock filter this year but was wondering if anyone is doing this and what size filter they are using? Or is this just a waste of my time?
Thanks
Brent

[Haynes Forest Products]

TRM I have 2 producers in my area that gave up on prefiltering and just run it thru their filter presses into the finisher. I noticed you have doubled you tap count over the last year so sooner or later you wont be able to keep up pre filtering. I have tried it and just when the big draw comes your filter is running slow and you have to yank it out of the bucket making a royal mess and then you burn your fingers making you walk away from your evap going to 3 points over or the valve open and your in the other room when it overfills the bucket.....................well thats what I heard some guy did.

Once you draw off what do you do with the finished syrup.

[RileySugarbush]

We have always filtered at draw off using pre filters, but just as Chuck stated, it is a royal pain. With increased production this year ( bigger evaporator), we are forgoing that step and will let the syrup settle in buckets before we decant off and rewarm and filter later.

[pobryan]

Brent,
Check out the thread "How we use All the cone filter". The way we are using the cone filters makes them much more effective
Pat


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[Sugarmaker]

Brent,
Not sure whats going on here? I have never asked the micron level of cone filters? Just used the ones from the major suppliers. Along with a couple pre filters inside the cone. That had been my set up for about 40 years. Filtered several thousand gallons of syrup. couple years ago I did buy a filter press when we did 250 gallons of syrup that year.
I have never seen 'instant" plugging of a cone filter? Instant, as in less than several seconds?? I have seen the filtering slow after several gallons of syrup being filtered.
Looking at your information with 80 taps, my guess is that you don't have a filter press.
Not sure why your syrup wont strain hot off the evaporator?
Need some additional information please. Maybe we can help?
regards,
Chris

[RileySugarbush]

While not instant, we have very slow flow through pre filters right off the evaporator. Granted, we are usually a tad heavy, but hot syrup through a wet pre filter. It runs well for a little while, but certainly clogs after a gallons or two during a typical year, with the resulting pouring out the old filter and hanging a new one. It was often messy and slow. We had been hanging the pre filter off the draw valve, just trying to get rid of some of the niter and improve our filter press experience.

So this year we are planning on skipping the pre filter and settling the niter before bottling. The new pre filter holder idea in the "using all a cone filter" thread, has me thinking it might be ok

[Bucket Head]

Like Chris, I have used cone filters/pre-filters for years and did alright with them. Yes, not the fastest way to do it but they worked.
We tried lappierre pre-filters one year and the syrup would not flow through those good at all. I'm not sure what material was used or what process made them either, but they looked like Tyvek house wrap- half woven, half "spun" stringy-looking material that just wouldn't let the syrup go through. And this was hot- directly out of the syrup pan. I guess it was pretty close to the instant plugging condition mentioned above.
We have used leader pre-filters all the other years. No experience with the other brands out there.

[Haynes Forest Products]

TRM I guess after rereading your first post I can say that I experienced the same thing. My first draw off would not filter. The syrup just coated the Orlon filter so I decided that a prefilter would be my next option BUT I think they clogged quicker. I have niter and sugar sand build up that would clog up a screen door withing a few gallons. My sugar bush is in shallow ground over solid limestone and there isn't anything that would work. I wonder if your suffering the same fate as me.

[MartinP]

I use greese/oil filters for draw from evaporator. Cheap and do the job.15165

[johnallin]

Holy smokes, for a minute I thought that was a Napa oil filter box. Whew!

[RileySugarbush]

So is this a more open filter than a maple pre filter?

[Haynes Forest Products]

John Im thinking from the picture its like a paint filter the cone shape ones that sit on a paint can to strain paint.

[RileySugarbush]

Yeah, just wondering it is free flowing for a rough cleanup of niter at draw off without clogging.

[MartinP]

They are like a big coffee filter, but are out of similar material as pre filters.
pic of filter rack 15168 and filter 15169

[johnallin]

I used to get those from a restaurant supply store for filtering sap. As I remember they were about 15 cents each in a box of 100. They should work great for syrup off the rig.

[barnbc76]

I was just thinking, back years ago i worked in a kitchen and had to clean the deep friers, we used large cone filters to filter out the oil then reuse it, not sure if that would work, maybe thats the same thing as some others mentioned.

[TomorrowRiverMapler]

Thank you all for the responses so far. It looks like I shouldn’t give up so quickly. I was cone filtering 2 gallon batches and it was taking about 4 hours to drain (which seems like a lifetime when you're just waiting around) and it's going in hot. Last year I learned about multiple pre-filters (thanks to this site) and that cut the time in half but still too long for me. I’m switching to a flat filter this year after reading how much faster they are but I still was trying to see what could be done to help even further.

I think Haynes hit the nail on the head with the calcium concentration in the ground water. My trees are all located within feet of the water table and located in very sandy soil which is high in water hardness. I bet there is a strong correlation there.

I’m thinking of trying a 7”x14” filter sock (picture below) this year in either 100 or 150 micron size and see what I catch.

Brent15173

[Sugarmaker]

Hold on a minute. you title said filtering off the evaporator. Then i read that last year you were filtering 2 gallons at a time. That doesn't sound like it was off the evaporator? So what was the temp of two gallons of syrup? we used to filter 4 gallons of hot syrup through a cone filter with no pre-filters and would get several 4 gal batches through the filter before it needed cleaning. Filtering time may have been 10 - 15 minutes for most of the syrup to go through.
So is it 210 degree syrup your filtering?
Also the should not be a need for final filtering. one pass through good prefilters and sock should result in syrup clear enough you can win the county fair with it!
regards,
Chris

[TomorrowRiverMapler]

Hi Chris,
Thanks for your thoughts. I only tried pre-filtering off the evaporator once last year and it did not go well. I took a pre-filter and stitched the wide open end closed and then cut a small slit in the cone end and tie wrapped that to the end of my drain valve on the evaporator and had that suspended over a 5 gallon bucket. I had about 4 gallons of syrup to drain/draw off (it's a batch evaporator) and the filter completely filled up and stopped flowing after about 2 gallons being poured into it. So I cut it off the valve, dumped it out into the bucket and finished draining. I then took it all inside and cone filter finished like I normally would. I even try to keep the syrup hot while cone filtering with a make shift water jacket by using two different diameter turkey fryer buckets and heat with a propane burner. My cooks average from 2 to 4 gallons of syrup and the cone filtering experience has been the same every time (very slow). I have been doing a literature search on niter and found one paper that said high calcium or magnesium ion concentration in the sap can lead to high niter amounts which makes sense since niter is mostly calcium malate from forming with the malic acid in the sap. Knowing I have very hard water where my trees are and most of their roots are in the water table can only lead to the possibility of high niter content hence my desire to remove as much and as soon as possible before final filtering.
Brent

[Andrew Franklin]

What an eye opening thread! I pull my near syrup off my evaporator at the property where my trees are and run through prefilter sheets, then let it settle and finish at home (1 and 1/2 hours away. I am constantly rinsing out multiple sheets even when drawing off only one to 4 gallons over the course of a boil. And final filtering is pretty much the same - I can usually only get though two gallons or so with 6 prefilter sheets and my filter before having to rinse and reheat. My trees sit on a 300' slope with sandstone and limestone literally protruding from the side of the hill. I always wondered if just boiling on weekends (more frequently when weather threatened to spoil the sap) caused that, but maybe this is the reason...we have some of the hardest water I've ever seen - maybe this is the culprit!