Cone filter or flat filter?

[ascutneymaple]

Does anyone know how a cone filter compares to a flat filter? Which one works faster/better?

[danno]

Flat is much quicker than cone because there is much more surface area on a flat. And with a cone, the surface at the top of the cone is only used for a minute or so as the syrup works its way down the cone - so you are really only looking at the lower section of the cone - so very little surface area.

Don't forget about your pre filters;)

[thenewguy]

ive said it before, im a big fan of atkinsons pail filters. fit overtop of a 5 gallon pail nicely. best of both filters

[Dennis H.]

Of the 2 that I have tried the flat is by far better.

I bought 2 cone filters and a bunch of prefilters the 1st year I made syrup, what a pain in the a$#! I actually used commercial coffee filters the rest of that season. I think if you had a way of getting the majority of the sugarsand out before putting it thru the cone it work better but then again isn't that what the filter is for to begin with.

Then I got 36"x36" flat filters and prefilters. So much better. You do want to pre wet the filters and make sure the syrup is hot then cover. Come back in 10 minutes or so and pull off a prefilter and cover again. Repeat as needed.

Oh yeah I now do not have to worry about filters, I got me a new filterpress!!

[3% Solution]

We like eveyone else has tried the cones (best at the time and free) filters.
Three years ago we went to the flat filters with a filter / canner.
That is the way to fly right there (for us) and don't forget to add a smigin of filter aid with the first batch of syrup.
You'll be glad you did!!
Hope this helps.

[steam maker]

15 gal stainless barrels on vt craigslist 80 bucks apiece think theres 40 of them

[red maples]

last year I used the cone filters. I man there must be an easier way!!! So for my bottling pan which is a restaurant hotel pan with a SS coupler welded on with a spout. I get the big 36" flat filters and cut them down and then filtered some of my exsisting syrup that entered in the fair and WOW I was totally impressed!!!! So I will set it up for the flat filter this year but I will hold on to my cone filters for draining the back pan and stuff.

[stephen wheeler]

We used the cone filters last year also. We too were not happy with the results. We used the pre-filters and the wool cone filter. It seemed that the syrup would cool or just clog the filter and we felt that we wasted a lot syrup that got trapped in the wool. After all that -we also ended up letting the syrup settle and then pouring off the clear syrup. I hope to use a method that will work much easier this year. Are the flat filters paper or wool. And can they be washed and reused.

[Dennis H.]

If you are worried about lost syrup in the felt filter rinse it out with sap in your sap tank.

Since I used prefilters the only thing in the felt filter was syrup, so I would take it out and rinse it out in a bucket or sap and then dump the sap into my feed tank.

I would then clean the filter better in the sink so it would be ready to go for the next batch.

[red maples]

yes I do somethign similiar to that.

[SeanD]

I second Dennis. The first time I lifted out the paper prefilter, I had a spill, but then I got the hang of it enough that I felt comfortable doing it in my kitchen. The trick is to lift it about half-way out, grab it by the middle and bend or fold it in on itself so that the opening stays above the filters below. Then you can just pull the whole thing up and pour into the next one.

I can definitely see advantages to the flat filter, too. I tried to filter right off the evap. and you need 2-3' of height for the cones so they are under the draw off, but not sitting in the syrup you just filtered. That's where I'd like to have flat filters. I might just take one of my paper prefilters and lay it sideways over the top of a bucket and see how that goes.

To avoid lost syrup in the cone filter, just rinse it in the back pan or some sap and you'll collect that sugar eventually. I saw a video (from the Maine extension I think) where the guy put it in the freezer between boils. I don't have the room for that, but it sounds like a good idea.

In the end, I think both filters do the job well, but it just depends on what you have for a set up. I don't have a real canner, so I went with cones first.

Sean

[Dennis H.]

Freeze them??
I am not sure if that is a good idea. The cooler the syrup the harder it is to go thru the filter. You put hot syrup in a frozen filter I think it would cool the syrup to much and hinder filtering.

I can see how freezing it would keep the syrup in the filter from going bad but I think rinsing in sap is a better option.

[Quabbin Hill Farms]

I use the flat filters over the orlon filter works good gets most of the sand and they can be washed and re-used. I then put the syrup in a 5 gal carboy I used to make beer in, it has drop legs on the bottom and a draw off valve just above the level of the legs, any remaining sand settle in the drop legs and you can draw out the syrup re-heat and bottles I get very little sediment in my bottles

[3% Solution]

Our filter / canner is my design and works well.
Water jacket all around.
There is a rack with sides that sits on the top, inside, it will take a gallon of syrup to fill the rack area.
We use a flat orlon filter and put in 3 or 4 paper filters. Sowed the sides up on the papers so the syrup gets filtered all the way to the top.
As said before we use filter aid.
Tried the washing the orlon in the hot sap. filter aid makes a mess in there.
What we are losing isn't enough to worry about.
Not worth the filter aid mess in the pans.

[SeanD]

Freeze them??
I am not sure if that is a good idea. The cooler the syrup the harder it is to go thru the filter. You put hot syrup in a frozen filter I think it would cool the syrup to much and hinder filtering.

I can see how freezing it would keep the syrup in the filter from going bad but I think rinsing in sap is a better option.

Not freeze them during boils, but between boils. I'm a weekend warrior, so I have days and days between boils sometimes. Once boiling day comes around again, I would take the filter out of the freezer and warm it up in the back pan or something like that. It won't help filter any better, but it would just be a time saver on clean up. I agree, a frozen filter could make for a rough day. :o

Sean

[Dennis H.]

Now I get it, you are freezing it to keep the syrup that is in the filter from going bad.

[Beweller]

For those who remove sugar sand by settling and pouring off the clarified syrup:

Why not use the geometry of the separatory funnel. Use a container with a conical bottom ending in a small teat and a valve. The settled sand is drawn off with a very small quantity of syrup without chancing mixing the sand back into the clarified syrup.