filtering tips please!!!

[RI syrup]

What is the procedure once you have drawn off if you are using orlon felt and paper pre filter? Does anyone boil the orlon filter before using? And what is the trick to getting the syrup to filter through as it is cooling? How long should a gallon take? Thanks a bunch, rob

[Sugarmaker]

Good question.
We filter the syrup hot 200-180 deg F into two paper filters inside the thick felt (Orlon) sock
depending on the sugar sand it can move through in minutes as the filter gets plugged it will slow down considerable. Then its time to pule one of the paper filters dump the syrup into the remaining filter and get the first paper filter washed and ready to be used again. We run two filters next to one another to avoid delays and keep the syrup moving through.

Regards,
Chris

[mfchef54]

I just pour hot water through the orlon filter. i line it with three paper filters. as long as the syrup is abouve 180 it should move quite quickly. make you secure the paper filters to the orlon, either clothes pins or roll the filter over the orlon to keep from being pulled down by the syrup as you pour it through the filter.

[Uncle Tucker]

The way I filter my syrup is I boil it heavy (over 219) on the evaporator. I draw off into the finisher (turkey deep fryer) all night. Once the evaporator is cooling off for the night, I test the simmering syrup. It is too heavy so I draw off the sweet from the evaporator and add it to the finisher to it is the right density. At this point, I put it through a felt filter and let it set until morning. The syrup is always crystal clear and the filter and pre filter are always empty the next morning. Then I heat the syrup to 185’ and can it. Never had a problem with sugar sand or cloudiness. The trick is once you filter the right density syrup don’t heat it past 190’.

[dhbiker1]

I tap all swamp trees that grace me with very low sugar content and very high amounts of sugar sand. I struggled last year with the paper pre filters and the orlon main filter. I couldn't even get a half gallon through before it was all plugged. I experimented with running thinner syrup through and different temperatures with not much luck. That was for canning the syrup as I made it. Then later on in the season I was putting the syrup into 5-gallon bulk containers. I bottled those in August and all the sand and cloudiness was settled on the bottom by that point and I could pour 99% of the container before the sand started coming out. Might not be the best or work for everyone, but it sure was nice not having to worry about those filters that were causing me to waste so much syrup.

[mfchef54]

dhbiker1,
Just a question, do you prefilter your sap before putting in the evaporator?

[dhbiker1]

Yes, I have the cone-shaped sap filters that sap goes through on it's way into the holding tank that feeds the evaporator.

[mapleman3]

The filtering sap only takes out the bugs, wood peices and dirt, it will not reduce niter or sugarsand before boiling... thats only precipitated out of the sap as the sap is boiled.

[Haynes Forest Products]

We use a whole house filter from H D and use the spun cotton filter dont use the charcole it will clog in about 100 gallons of sap. Just make sure that you empty at the end of the season. You will think its a dead body in the sap shack come summer time.

[markct]

ok so what have i done wrong, i made my first drawoff and poured it into my flat filter setup ontop of my bottler. the first half gallon just sat there and barely went thru, ok no problem they say ya gota be patient, so i drew off some more a while later, poured it in, did this till the filter was almost full luckly that was the end of the sap for that evening, well the next day there is about a quart that went thru and thats it. i had a few papers ontop of the thick filter, picked up the top one and let it drain thru that one, no prob, did the same with the next ones and it was finaly just sitting in the bottom thick filter, ok so drained the syrup back into my drawoff pail, wash the filters and reheated the syrup. now tried again, same thing goes thru the top filters easy and wont go thru the bottom one. what is wrong here? i checked the density and its not too heavy as i suspected it might have been, infact i fiddled with it while reheating and got it exactly right for the temp and all but still wont go thru, i finaly just filtered thru the papers and left the thick filter out. it went thru well and the syrup doesnt appear to have any sediment in it. should i just do that or is there something im missing here?

[JohnM]

I make less that 20 gallons a year so usually not in hurry to bottle. I let gravity settle out most of the solids for a few days to a week, then hot filter it to jars.

To minimize waste I sometimes hot pack the dregs in mason jars, let it settle on the shelf 3-6 months, then pour off the clear.

[maplwrks]

You've got to boil the felt filter. Put it into a pot of boiling water and boil for about 15 minutes, hang to dry. Before you use it again, wet with hot sap and squeeze out as much water as you can, and set up just like you have been doing. Let us know if this works!!!

[mapleteen54]

I use a cone felt when i draw off the evaporator and then put it through a flat felt filter into the bottler. That takes all of the sugar sand out for me. then i wash the filter in the washing machine with NO SOAP just warm water they come out like new this is how alot of people around here filter there syrup.

[markct]

so what does boiling the filter do? i know it is to get out any tastes from manufacturing, but does it somehow open the pores too or something? i gota admit i cheated and just washed it in a pan of hot water before i used it the first time cause of some poor planning and forgetfullness during the first run!

[maplwrks]

Mark---I don't know what it does, but, did you notice how water tries to bead up on them? It may open the fibers, or removes some naturally occurring oils in the fabric....I don't know....I do know that much of your trouble may go away if you do this. 802 Maple will be able to chime in on this also......

[Haynes Forest Products]

Its called wicking and you need the moisture in the fabric to get the process going. A dry filter has to much surface tension to let liquids thru.

[markct]

ok well i will boil them and see how it works, they were damp but like i said they were just with warm water not boiled. i was surprised how very clear the syrup was just from filtering thru the prefilters tho