Pressure for Charging Filter Press

[WestfordSugarworks]

We have a 7 plate, 1.5 inch D&G press that's new to us this season. It's run with a regular diaphram pump. My dad is highly concerned with our filtering at the beginning of a boil when we first charge the press. He's always reminding me to not run the syrup through the press too fast. He cites that the papers have no material backing them and thus are easily broken by syrup moving through early on in the boil. As we filter more syrup he is more comfortable inreasing the rate of flow. The thing is, we ran a 7" press with a gear pump last year and we couldn't control the rate of flow at all. It was either on or off, so charging the press we really cranked syrup through those papers, and we never broke a paper this way or had issues. I'm just trying to get peoples opinion. I don't like that we are so hesistant to quickly filter syrup early on in the boil, because sometimes we get slammed with a big first draw and start to run low on syrup storage cause we aren't letting the pump run fast enough. Just so you all know, we don't start to build any pressure on the press until we've done 2 or so barrels, so high pressure doesn't seem to be any issue early on.

[Aa2tn]

I would think that if you can keep the pressure below 40 to 50 psi then you should not blow any papers, the flow should not matter. With an air pump, if you set the inlet pressure to 50 psi, then the pump will not go over that pressure, it will just slow down and stop. I don't understand his thinking as if there was nothing supporting the papers at the beginning of the filtering then there will be nothing backing them at the end! The papers are supported by the plate with the grid cut into it. The syrup goes into the chambers then through the DE and filter paper then into the grid and out the holes. The only thing that changes is the DE keeps building up on the filter paper to give it more capacity to filter but it does not support the paper......hope that helps.

[nymapleguy607]

When you first start filtering just recirculate back to your tank until the press is coated then open it up and go. If your using an air pump the max pressure it will put on the papers is what the regulator is set at. Until the papers start to plug the pressure wont build enough to blow a paper

[doocat]

We have leader 7 inch press that I put a diaphragm pump on two years ago. The diaphragm pump is from h2o. We never control the pressure. Recirculation with 4 cups or so of de at first and then add a little with each time it gets turned on. We have never blown a paper it just slows to the point we have to change papers eventually.
o.

[Ryan Mahar]

Are you guys going to diaphragm pumps because the gear pumps just could not keep up with your production demands??

[wiam]

Are you guys going to diaphragm pumps because the gear pumps just could not keep up with your production demands??

I went to air because I had rebuild my gear once and it needed it again. Price of the small plastic pump I got was not much more than a new brass gear pump. Also packers started pushing toward getting away from brass. My pump is rated close to flow of a 3/4 gear pump if I need it to go that fast. I usually don't. I like to be able to control speed. Working on year 5 for this pump and pumps as fast as new.

[WestfordSugarworks]

Thanks for the replies. This is what I was hoping to here. Diaphram pump = no brass or lead