new ancient filter press

[Brent]

well tonight I'm the proud owner of what might be museum piece.
Just picked up an old cast iron Grimm 7" filter press.
It's so old the motor on it is "split phase" and the motor has plain bearings.
One end still has the original rubber plug on the lube hole for the bearings, and the other has what looks like a gob of putty stuck in.
The pump looks like a relatively new Oberdorfer ( spell check)

The plates are pretty gungy. I was planning to clean them up waffle plates with a wire brush, put it together without papers and give the assembled unit a light sand blast and repaint.

I'm guessing 1945 to 1950 vintage. Doesn't look like they've changed the design much.

Anyone come up with a clever way of pre-heating all that iron ???

[jemsklein]

well i just found this article today on an old filter presshere it goas

Filter Presses And High Quality Maple Syrup
With the use of filter presses, we can realize contamination from a few sources. The greatest threat over the years has been the leaching of lead from the all brass gear pump. While the body of the pump is brass, so are the gears that come in direct and constant contact with the maple syrup. It is believed this is contributing a considerable amount of lead to the maple syrup. In addition, many filter presses have brass fittings while some still have steel and galvanized fittings. Just as bad, a number of filter presses in the field are made with cast iron plates and frames that release iron oxide into the maple syrup. Some brands of filter presses are supplied with hydraulic type hoses that are definitely not made with food grade materials, they are made for industrial applications.
Gear pumps have been the pump of choice for filter presses over the years. Most models have one or two grease fittings on them to allow the operator to inject grease from a cartridge to lubricate the shaft contact points in the housing. Care must be taken to ensure the grease used is a food safe type certified for use in such applications. Automotive grease definitely cannot be used or the maple syrup will be contaminated and ruined. Many types of automotive grease contain high concentrations of lead to make it slippery and enhance the lubrication qualities. Care must also be taken to ensure a new and dedicated grease gun is used with the foodgrade grease for this task.
All traditional plate and frame type filter presses that use a disposable filter paper require diatomaceous earth or filter aid to make them work properly. Too much filter aid, improper “caking” or charging the papers, or a burst paper can all allow filter aid into the maple syrup. A grayish white sediment laying on the bottom of a container is often a sign of one of these problems. While filter aid is a safe and necessary product used to clarify a wide variety of beverages, maple syrup should not be contaminated with traces of it. Another sign of overuse of filter aid is excessive foaming when filling containers.

[gmcooper]

There are still a number of the old cast plate presses in use. To preheat those cast plates one of the guys we know soaks them in a bucket of hot water until they are ready to filter syrup. they then assemble the plates and filter away. They also used to drape a steaming hot towel over the plates between batches once press is running and they are still boiling. They would have been getting hot water from the steam hood drain.

I would not be that concerned with lead from the bronze as the syrup is only in contact for a very short time and it is a finished product so there would not be any more concentration of any lead residue. I would be more concerned with any issue from rusty plates and plumbing. Getting the pump and plumbing clean inside could be quite a project.
Good Luck
Mark

[Brent]

thanks for the comments. The filter came with a sparkling clean grease gun full of food grade grease. The new appearance of the pump gives me some confidence that if I flush hot water through it prior to the first slurry of syrup and DE, the risk of lead is minimal.

All the pipe fittings on it are stainless and I will be the one to pick the hoses so
it should give us clean safe syrup.

[royalmaple]

Enjoy your filter press. You will love it. If you start looking for things to replace for dangers of exposure to this or that you might as well start needle point or something.

I've got an old press same as yours and can't wait to use it. And I know pleanty of producers useing them.

[325abn]

Hey Matt
Lets see some pics of that old press!! :) Have you got it cleaned up yet?

[royalmaple]

Not yet, I'll get her all spiffy then take some bring her down to Glamor Shots for the big reveal.

[Brent]

Here's the picture sent to me before I got it.
Very light rusting on the plates. You can easily see all the stainless fittings and that the pump is newer.
The nameplate is a raised bronze or brass with the Grimm name. It's got a serial number too if memory serves.

It is down at our machine shop now to be cleaned up. I'm wondering if I shouldn't just put the waffle plates through the dishwasher one with detergent then a couple times with plain water. Maybe I don't shouldn't remove the finish
and expose fresh iron. Sort of like a seasoned cast iron frying pan ... clean it but don't scrub it ??

I'll be adding a pressure relief valve after the pressure gauge to dump back into the unfiltered pail when the pressure reaches about 40 lbs. As GKCooper pointed out, it will still be filtering at that point
and may let me finish a run without stopping mid way to put in new papers and DE.

[jemsklein]

it doas not look to old how much did you get it for

[Brent]

$400 including a full box of papers worth about $50 on the local market.

The nameplate is ancient and the motor could be as old as me.
They stopped making split phase motors about 1968-70.

I'm in the machine tool business and you get to see the details and a good gut feeling for age of machinery. This is no spring chicken.
The motor runs fine. The plain (as in not ball) bearings are not loose. The plates are not cracked or warped.
I think I'm a happy camper with it.

Actually, got it very near to you from Dave Brackenridge just SE of Millbrook, on Brackenridge Drive no less.
Now if you want a big evap at a good price go see him. He's got a 30" x 7" for $2,200.
The arch looks like it is made from 1/4" plate. Has hoods, preheater, a fancy little draw off and some pretty clever
home made features. It must weigh about 3.000 lbs. Says he'll deliver it. I just couldn't fit it in my little pump house
that we're turning into a shack.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Good deal on the press with what they cost now. I got my Lappierre SHORT BANK press 18 months ago and now the price is $ 300+ what it was then. I can't believe how much tubing and equipment has gone up north of the border. It is starting to all cost more than US produced stuff.

[Brent]

I've been pricing small pool DE filters for sap today. On the net less than $500.
US.

Local pool stores quoting from Haywards list over $ 1400 Cdn.

They haven't adjusted their prices for the change in the dollar.

Don't know where the tubing is really made.

[jemsklein]

bent he is about 5 min away from me that is were i go to get all my supplies

[lmathews]

Not to cut in but I know a guy who has a 7" filter press that has been sitting in the same spot for app 6 years.I do not know the actual age but he was asking $1200.00.I think he was nuts,question is beeing that it is that old lucky if he paid 1000.00 for it,what would it be worth?

[jemsklein]

well you can get a brand new one for $1300 so and it a couple years old so i would say $900 - $1000

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Depends on what kind it is and size. Doubt you are going to pick up very many new 7 bank 7" filter presses for $ 1300. Lappierre wants almost $ 1200 for a short(3) bank that was just over $ 850 eighteen months ago. I bought another set of plates for mine this spring with a 10% discount from the maple guys who I bought my press from to increase it to 4 banks and Chris told me they were getting ready to increase the price significantly which means a set of plates were $ 160, I can't imagine what they are now. I have room for another set, but I can't see paying $ 200+ for a set of plates.

[Brent]

New ones are up to $ 1700 or so. The big advantage for some people is that the new ones are aluminum and will come in with 1/2 the weight. If you've got a single purpose sugar shack and never move it, it won't matter. To move the cast iron one, I stripped off all the plates except the end and I think it still weighed about 80 lbs. Fully assembled I think it would be double that.

From what I've read a modern unit should come with an automatic relief valve. I didn't get one and that will likely set me back another $100 or so. We use some on our machinery, but not food grade.

A modern unit at 50% of new price or maybe a bit more wouldn't seem out of line. Other than the pump there is nothing that should wear or have a limited lifespan. And I think the pump would outlast most of us if you
lube it and don't run it dry.

[Mike]

Leader makes there 5/16 line right there in swanton.....Cant see how the prices are up. I hear CDL has a $70 price on there rolls......Looks like they want to shut down the little guys..........Lapierre has raised there prices 23% since Jan of last year....................