Filter Tanks

[steve J]

I have seen filter tanks in many of the sugaring catalogs but trying to decide if they are worth the investment. Currently I hang the cone wool filter with paper liners from between a couple of saw horses. And the syrup drains into a large pot.

My question is when you pour the syrup into one of these filter tanks and cover it does this filter quicker because you can hold all the steam in? Do you tned to use these tanks in 1 to 2 gallon batches or are you useing these as you do small draw offs from your evaporator?

[Haynes Forest Products]

.................................................. ...Filter press:) ....................................

[Haynes Forest Products]

Sorry about that. Hot filters and syrup filter best and small batches are eaiser to handle and control. Prefilters make the job go better TO A POINT. I feel its best to filter thru a very course filter first so you get the big chunks and then do the final filter with the Orlon.

I also got so fed up with the gravity thing and yes went with the press.:)

[Maplewalnut]

Steve-
I tried everything before I got a filter press. It does filter better when it stays warm but not anything substantial. Plus you will probably be opening it multiple times to pull out prefilters? I use my filter tank for bottling also , so in my mind they are pretty handy. Look at WF Mason for pricing if you decide to go that way

Mike

[TapME]

If you are using cone filters and the syrup is not clear just add a little filter aid to the batch and it comes out very clear.
As was said here the hot syrup will keep the filters going longer, and you could also add a little heat under the filter tank to keep the temp. at 180*.

[Dennis H.]

The 1st year I used cones filters, what a pain! Then I went and got a 6" deep full size steam pan and a 2" deep perferated steam pan. They nest together. I went and got some 36"x36" flat filters and prefilters. I cut them in half. I place the filter and prefilters over the the perferated pan that is sitting ontop the 6" deep pan. Pour in the syrup and cover. I check every few minutes to see how it is doing. Once it slowed to a point where I can't tell if any more is going thru I pull the top prefilter off and put the lid back on.
Works great for me. I can filter about 1 1/2 gals this way at a time.

Before I use the filters each time I will soak them with very hot water and drain as much out as possible. I also will add some filter aid right after I do a final density check and right before pouring into filter. I use maybe 4-5 tablespoons of it and I stir it in real good. Most of the filter aid will be caught in the 1st prefilter, so I have to pull the 1st prefilter off fairly early in the filtering process.
Once I have it all filtered I pour it into my canner and heat it up to 185 and do a final density check and bottle it.

[thenewguy]

has anyone tried filtering out of the evaporator before the finisher, then after the finsiher?

[Thompson's Tree Farm]

We always used to filter out of the evaporator as the "sweet stuff" ran into our finishing pan. Used a flat filter with a prefilter. It seems to me that anything removed along the way will help speed the final filtering. I used cone filters up until 2 years ago. Our filter tank was an old milk can with a faucet on the bottom to fill jugs. The Orlon cone was held in place by 2 half inch dowels slid through the loops on the top and under the lip of the can. prefilters were kept in place with clothes pins. We could usually filter 5 or more gallon batches with little difficulty until late in the season.

[thenewguy]

thats what i would like to do this year, pre filter the "sweet" through a 16x16" filter rack before going into the finishing pan. i use the "pail style" (www.atkinsonmaple.com) orlon filters which has a lot more surface area the traditional style cone filters. but we still end up plugging them. its going to be alot more work to clean all the filters but i think will make a nicer product in the end and speed up the bottling process. anyone else here use pail filters?? the fit nice in a 5gallon stainless bottler

[danno]

I filter right off the evap. into a 4 cone tank. I then filter again on a flat filter between the finsher and bottling. I can run 5 gallons easy through a single orlon/felt filter when bottling. The initial filtering off the evap really takes care of it.

[steve J]

What I have done in the pass is use a large porcilen coffee pot with a paper filter to draw into . And then bring back up to temp in a large batch and filter again. But sounds like I should use one of these tanks with the wool and paper filters and run the small draw offs thru that and later bring back to temp and filter the batch prior to canning it is that right?

[danno]

Steve, that's how I do it and it works well.

[Rockwood]

has anyone tried filtering out of the evaporator before the finisher, then after the finsiher?

I too filter after the evaporator, then after the finisher. I just wonder if I should again filter before canning?

Has anyone used an aluminum turkey fryer for finishing?

[TF Maple]

I bought a turkey fryer when they were on sale this summer with the intent of using it for filtering finished syrup. If I check the syrup and it needs some finishing, I will turn up the heat and filter again before canning. I want to maximize my filter surface so I'm going to take the tray with the holes in it for pulling food out of the fryer and suspend it near the top of the fryer and lay my filters it in. That will give me a 12" by 16" inch area for filtering.:) I will use the propane to keep it warm until I transfer to the canner which is a coffee maker.

[Rockwood]

Thanks for the info, but I think I'll go to the stainless steel finisher.

[Brent]

Rockwood
If your finisher has a burner or flame under it, you will need to filter again. Any time syrup gets up to 195 degrees or so it will start to make more sand. Even if you are only trying to raise the temp for canning to 185 degrees, the syrup that is in contact with the bottom of the pan, where the flame is heating it, will be above 195 degrees. So you'll make more sand, and if you don't re-filter .... bin der, dun dat .... you'll be getting sand settling out in your bottles and scratching your head saying "but I filtered it".

That's why the equipment makers produce water jacketed canners. If you don't want to invest in one can get there by using anything like a double boiler, that you never let get to boiling temperature, and you will have clear syrup.

Getting clear syrup in a glass jar was one of the things I, and I think most beginners, most under-estimat(ed).

PS. and I think that's why so much Quebec syrup is sold in cans.

[TF Maple]

Guess I will have to find a pan or pot to put under the turkey fryer to take most of the heat. That should eliminate the hot spot from the burner. Thanks for the advice.

[lastwoodsman]

Ah now there is a tidbit of formation to think on! Quebec and cans. Maybe for us fellas filtering without a filter press using containers that you cannot see into is a plus. no doubt glass shows off the product better but if you cannot get it clear enough for a jar without a filter press it may be a better alternative.
woodsman

[Brent]

Real canning into cans requires another machine ... so you might as well get a filter press.

But canning into plastic jugs ... gets you there without any new equipment.

But as a tease, Sugar Hill had a new twist on their booth at the convention. They have an induction heater for $ 149.95 that works with special caps they sell that have a bit of foil in them ... a few seconds with the heater and the cap is sealed like a ketsup bottle. I hate those seals.

[Big_Eddy]

I've used the filter canner (coffee pot style) with a single cone filter for the last 5 plus years. FAR CRY better than hanging the cone over a pail. The canner keeps the steam in and prevents the outside of the filter from cooling. Once the outside cools it will crust and you are done filtering. Plus - the valve on the bottom is much better than ladelling syrup into the jars with a funnel.

I'm a batch boiler - about 10 litres of syrup per batch. As I am getting close to the final density on my propane finisher, I will hold the filter (with 4 or 5 prefilters in it) over the pot until it is hot and steamy, then hang it in the canner. I pour the complete batch into the filter and put the lid on. Lift the canner onto the counter and start to fill bottles. I fill until the canner is empty, then lift the lid and remove the first prefilter which starts the syrup flowing again. Repeat until the last prefilter is out. Usually less than a litre of syrup remains in the filter when I'm done, which I pour into the next batch being finished.

Some folks like to wet their filters with hot water - I'm concerned that will change the density on the first syrup through so don't do it myself. Others wring the filter out when done to get all the syrup, but I've found that breaks down the filters. I dip mine in the sap pan a few times to rinse out some of the sweet. Wash in the machine with NO SOAP OR FABRIC SOFTNER.

One of the best things I've found for working with hot syrup and filters are the silicon oven mitts. They're not much use for regular cooking (IMO) as they are hard to grasp things with but they work great for syrup as they are waterproof and heat proof and easy to clean.