I am thinking about building a simple apple press. Does anyone here happen to know how many psi I need to apply to crushed apples to extract juice efficiently? My plan was to take a five gallon bucket with spout and make a few cheeses of apples and then cover the cheeses with a flat roundal of wood and add decorative concrete slabs to press the apples. will this work or am I off my rocker?
cider press question
- Thread starter bernardsmith
- Start date
-
Love Gotmead and want to see it grow? Then consider supporting the site and becoming a Patron! If you're logged in, click on your username to the right of the menu to see how as little as $30/year can get you access to the patron areas and the patron Facebook group and to support Gotmead!
-
We now have a Patron-exclusive Facebook group! Patrons my join at The Gotmead Patron Group. You MUST answer the questions, providing your Patron membership, when you request to join so I can verify your Patron membership. If the questions aren't answered, the request will be turned down.
I use a little $15 2-ton bottle jack. I've already blown the seals on one (like, a month after the warranty was done) but the same model was on sale and it fits my setup so I didn't upgrade to a heavier one like I'd contemplated...
Really, how much pressure you need really depends on how efficient you want it to be. I'm kind of small-time and hand-grind the little SOB's so I want to wring every last drop I can out of whatever apples I get, if you're not such a tightwad about it, you won't get as much juice per apple, but you'll be less likely to wreck your equipment. I've seen directions for simple presses where you just sit on the top... so concrete oughtta do it, it just might take a while.
You want to make sure your juice has somewhere to go, that's why I didn't do the bucket thing, I wasn't sure what to put in there so that there was flow towards the hole, I've seen other setups where they have holes drilled all around the sides so the juice can go out as well as down. I think if I were going to try with a spigoted bucket setup, I'd try to have slats or pipes or something around the sides to allow for vertical flow between the cheeses.
Right now I do a free-run setup where I press a fruit bag or cheesecloth-wrapped package of mashed apples between two cutting boards (this has its own problems, I've split two of the wooden ones already) in a wooden frame I put together with 2x4 sides, 4x4 top member with a metal plate where the jack hits, and 2x8 bottom member, I added metal corner braces after I pulled the screws right through once, and I have the whole thing on a slant so the juice runs towards one corner, the bottom cutting board has a blood groove and I drilled a hole in the low corner the same as the outer diameter of my racking hose so I shove a little piece in there to direct the juice into a jug, but if I press too fast it just flows right over the sides anyway so I often use a bucket when the fruit flies aren't too prevalent, I'm looking at doing something with a stainless steel tray for next year.
I found the most important thing with my setup was to make sure the apples are well macerated before I start, I either freeze and shred, shred and freeze, or shred and pectinase before pressing.
Really, how much pressure you need really depends on how efficient you want it to be. I'm kind of small-time and hand-grind the little SOB's so I want to wring every last drop I can out of whatever apples I get, if you're not such a tightwad about it, you won't get as much juice per apple, but you'll be less likely to wreck your equipment. I've seen directions for simple presses where you just sit on the top... so concrete oughtta do it, it just might take a while.
You want to make sure your juice has somewhere to go, that's why I didn't do the bucket thing, I wasn't sure what to put in there so that there was flow towards the hole, I've seen other setups where they have holes drilled all around the sides so the juice can go out as well as down. I think if I were going to try with a spigoted bucket setup, I'd try to have slats or pipes or something around the sides to allow for vertical flow between the cheeses.
Right now I do a free-run setup where I press a fruit bag or cheesecloth-wrapped package of mashed apples between two cutting boards (this has its own problems, I've split two of the wooden ones already) in a wooden frame I put together with 2x4 sides, 4x4 top member with a metal plate where the jack hits, and 2x8 bottom member, I added metal corner braces after I pulled the screws right through once, and I have the whole thing on a slant so the juice runs towards one corner, the bottom cutting board has a blood groove and I drilled a hole in the low corner the same as the outer diameter of my racking hose so I shove a little piece in there to direct the juice into a jug, but if I press too fast it just flows right over the sides anyway so I often use a bucket when the fruit flies aren't too prevalent, I'm looking at doing something with a stainless steel tray for next year.
I found the most important thing with my setup was to make sure the apples are well macerated before I start, I either freeze and shred, shred and freeze, or shred and pectinase before pressing.
No reason why not.....in theory
just that I'd be careful as sideways spread could easily cracking the side of the bucket if it's at all brittle i.e. an old bucket......
plus it's not gonna be very efficient - the amount of pressure is usually measured in tonnes.....
just that I'd be careful as sideways spread could easily cracking the side of the bucket if it's at all brittle i.e. an old bucket......
plus it's not gonna be very efficient - the amount of pressure is usually measured in tonnes.....
75lb/inch for about 60% efficiency, you are going to press them with rocks? In a plastic bucket? Youtube has loads of people who built their own presses. I like the ones where they are pressing and so happy and then you hear that creaking noise from their 2x4 press and it splits apart sending shrapnel everywhere 
Much better to use poly cutting boards, this place has round ones different thicknesses
http://freckleface.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/cuttingboards.html
We got some thick round ones to fit in our press to make 3 different cheeses, much more effective than trying to press one big bunch of apples at a time. As far are your stones, putting pourous materials around cider not such a good idea, as soon as any gets in your concrete it will harbor all kinds of anti cider critters and you will not get enough pressure, you would be better off just wringing it out with your hands, apples are hard. WVMJ
Much better to use poly cutting boards, this place has round ones different thicknesseshttp://freckleface.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/cuttingboards.html
We got some thick round ones to fit in our press to make 3 different cheeses, much more effective than trying to press one big bunch of apples at a time. As far are your stones, putting pourous materials around cider not such a good idea, as soon as any gets in your concrete it will harbor all kinds of anti cider critters and you will not get enough pressure, you would be better off just wringing it out with your hands, apples are hard. WVMJ
The Cayuga Nature Center near Ithaca, NY will rent a simple apple press with hopper/grinder for a modest fee. Maybe there's a farm or nature center in your area that would do the same?
Unless, of course, the point is just to make one.
75lb/inch for about 60% efficiency, you are going to press them with rocks? In a plastic bucket? Youtube has loads of people who built their own presses. I like the ones where they are pressing and so happy and then you hear that creaking noise from their 2x4 press and it splits apart sending shrapnel everywhere
http://freckleface.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/cuttingboards.html
We got some thick round ones to fit in our press to make 3 different cheeses, much more effective than trying to press one big bunch of apples at a time. As far are your stones, putting pourous materials around cider not such a good idea, as soon as any gets in your concrete it will harbor all kinds of anti cider critters and you will not get enough pressure, you would be better off just wringing it out with your hands, apples are hard. WVMJ
This is useful. A poly board is a great idea. But I was thinking of using a pile of concrete edging blocks I have in my garage that I used to use to mark of vegetable gardens we have. I can't draw the design here but there would be no possibility of the juice touching the concrete blocks because there would be a smaller plastic bucket on the board above the cheeses.. but if I need 75 lbs/ in of pressure I am not sure I can safely build a pile of blocks high enough to exert that kind of pressure... Oh well, back to the drawing board.
If you do want to go the concrete block way, you may have todecrease the number of cheeses you use, I find the thinner my packages the higher the efficiency (the drier the packages are at the end). Oh, and maybe use a clean garbage bag to keep concrete dust out of the apples?
I'm sure it can be done, you'll just be trading off things like time and efficiency, that's all.
I'm sure it can be done, you'll just be trading off things like time and efficiency, that's all.
The press is nowhere near as important as the scratter, pulper,crusher, or whatever you choose to call it.
It's important to break the cells if you want to juice an apple. They're very strong cell walls. I've not yet seen a press that can do it.
You can chop the apple up, this is the least effective.
You can grind the apples, effective, but laborious.
You can freeze the fruit, but at a tonne at a time, that's a bit laborious.
You can 'scrat' the apples, small blunt blades spinning really fast. Seismic shock ruptures cell walls as well as tearing it into little pieces.
An engineering press is good enough. (that's a bottle jack in a frame) we use a 20 tonne over 400mm (15") square
it's best to use cheeses rather than a bucket.
Fold up pulp in a cheese cloth, then make a tower, interspersing it with hardwood or plastic sheets with drains cut in them to help the juice out.
After pressing, let the cheeses rest. The juice will then wick from the heavily saturated dead pockets into the dry easily pressible fibres. Then press it again, and more juice will come. This can be repeated, but the 4th pressing is not worth it imho.
Good luck.
Apples are about 85% water. Good luck getting over 70% yield.
It's important to break the cells if you want to juice an apple. They're very strong cell walls. I've not yet seen a press that can do it.
You can chop the apple up, this is the least effective.
You can grind the apples, effective, but laborious.
You can freeze the fruit, but at a tonne at a time, that's a bit laborious.
You can 'scrat' the apples, small blunt blades spinning really fast. Seismic shock ruptures cell walls as well as tearing it into little pieces.
An engineering press is good enough. (that's a bottle jack in a frame) we use a 20 tonne over 400mm (15") square
it's best to use cheeses rather than a bucket.
Fold up pulp in a cheese cloth, then make a tower, interspersing it with hardwood or plastic sheets with drains cut in them to help the juice out.
After pressing, let the cheeses rest. The juice will then wick from the heavily saturated dead pockets into the dry easily pressible fibres. Then press it again, and more juice will come. This can be repeated, but the 4th pressing is not worth it imho.
Good luck.
Apples are about 85% water. Good luck getting over 70% yield.
