Lifespan of an Orlon Filter?

[SeanD]

I suppose these should last forever, but it seems like my Orlon cone filter has become less resilient over the last few years. I've been using it for about ten years and I use 4-5 pre-filters on top of it. I've always given it a hot rinse between uses and a boil in clean water at the end of the season. I used to be able to get a whole boil with the last of the syrup usually passing through by morning.

Now, I've frequently got about a quart or more stuck even when it's hot and wet. The pre-filters are clear. It's all jammed up at the Orlon. I will say I'm asking more of it this year now that I have an RO and I've got 2+ gallons coming off per hour compared to the .75 to 1 gal per hour before the RO. I'm also using the optimizer rack which is probably saving my arse this season. I can't imagine how bad it would have been if I was using the cone the traditional way.

I've tried to give it extra long rinses and soaks in hot water and even a couple of mid-season boils in clean water. I have a brand new wool filter that I just used and it did not have any clogs.

Do Orlon filters have a life span? Is it time to say good-bye to it?

[psparr]

Seems like you too have gotten a little too close. I think it's time to let her go. She's been good to you, but there's younger ones out there. And besides she won't get half the house if you leave.

[buckeye gold]

Maybe I'm doing something wrong, but I have never saved one from year to year. I start new each year and will usually use at least two through the season and most years three. Being a hobby guy and filtering small amounts it hard to keep the syrup hot and they are pathetically slow after a few uses. I rinse mine with hot water after every use, but I have never boiled them. I mean really it's a small expense to get new, why fight it. I can't imagine waiting over night for syrup to run through. I'm aggravated if it's not through in 30 minutes.

[MapleMark753]

I wear work jeans when I'm working. I work long hours in em sometimes, sweat em up, get em dirty, ripped sometimes. I wash them and dry them pretty regular too. Sometimes the chainsaw chain (when its not running) catches just a bit and they tear some. They get faded. They stretch, or sometimes they shrink. I love em, but they wear out. And when they wear out, boy I know it. I buy a couple extra pair of work jeans, and then start wearing them. And the process starts over again.
In my opinion, THAT is how long an orlon filter should last. The above is meant in good humor, but is still a decent analogy. Others may disagree!

[SeanD]

Ok, ok, I got the message. I'll spend some quiet time with it tonight - talk about the good times, the spills, the clogs, the 1 a.m. cleanings. Then I'll set it free.

[Big Daddy's Sugar Shack]

Ok, ok, I got the message. I'll spend some quiet time with it tonight - talk about the good times, the spills, the clogs, the 1 a.m. cleanings. Then I'll set it free.

This sounds like me at 1 am last Saturday. I have never used a paper filter with it and it seems all gummed up at this point. Had to wait all night for the last quart to drip through and the previous two gallons took over an hour to filter. I think it's time for a new one.