Wesfab 7 inch gear pump DE question

[Johnjenner]

Just another question from a newby. So I needed to get another bag of DE and grabbed the bag below from the local supplier. Noticed it was a different consistency (fluffier) than the last bag I had. Filter press worked great all year until I switched to this new DE. When using the new stuff, my filter press plugged up twice. Had to tear the whole thing down and clean out the gear pump since it was locked up with DE. Question is: is there different kinds of DE? If so, what do I use for a 7 inch wesfab with a gear pump?21347

[maple flats]

Did it come from a Maple Dealer? DE in different grades is used for filtering many different products. How much DE did you use in how much syrup and did you mix it well before running it thru the pump?

[Johnjenner]

Yes it came from a maple dealer. Lapierre. I put 7 cups with about 10 gallons of syrup and it was stirred constantly. I did the same way I’ve done all season and did 260 gallons of syrup with no problem. Now with this new DE I’m having this issue.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Doesn’t seem like it should have plugged up but maybe it was just heavy nitered syrup. Is it a short stack 7” press? If so, I would back off and try 4-5 cups next time and see what happens.

[n8hutch]

I use about 5 cups of DE to 10 gallons also. Did you press it all through at the same time, just a thought but maybe your draws are coming slower later in the year and your press is cooling down?