Garden shredders for Apple Grinding

[clengman]

I just finished grinding and pressing my first batch of apples from trees I have growing in my backyard. I used a kitchenaid food grinder/sausage stuffer attachment to grind the apples and pressed them with a homemade press. I got through about a bushel of apples and got a yield of about 3.5 gallons of juice. I'm happy with that for this year, but the kitchenaid is just not going to cut it if I want to scale up in the future.

I'm a little bit handy and have thought about a building a handcrank scatter, but after factoring in the cost of some of the parts (a flywheel, stainless axle and bearings) and the time involved building it I decided I would be better off buying something.

Then I see mention of using garden shredder/chippers for apple grinding and I've seen some small shredders that sell for similar prices as a hand-powered grinder, and it looks like that's definitely the way to go.

I'm wondering which brands/models anyone here has tried. I actually have an electric chipper/shredder that I use at home and I'm sure anything similar would do a fine job of pulping apples. I thought one like this would probably be fine if I fit a hopper to it and you can't really beat the price.

What I'm most concerned about though, are things like seals around the axle to prevent juice getting into the motor, use of mild-steel parts that might corrode in the presence of the acidic juice or impart a metallic taste to the juice, ease of cleaning and sanitization, etc. If anyone has used something like this and has any information to share I'd certainly appreciate it. Thanks!

Carl

 

[gregbathurst]

I use a garden shredder, it works well but larger apples jam and have to be pushed down into the blades. Smaller apples go through like a charm, even the large apples don't take very long. I paint the internals with polyurethane paint to stop metal contact, every season, you can't avoid a small amount of contact with the blades but that doesn't seem to be detrimental. You want a shredder that can be opened up easily for cleaning. I haven't had problems with seals etc, but you would want a decent shredder not something cheap and crappy so have a look at it and see if it is suitable.
Some apple mills are just SS garden shredders, in terms of design shredders are great because they are designed to chop plant matter into little bits.

 

[UpstateMike]

... Perhaps a new garbage disposal and sink. I've seen this type of setup before.

 

[roadymi]

Sounds like you enjoy DIY........check out this site. http://www.whizbangcider.com/

 

[UpstateMike]

Sounds like you enjoy DIY........check out this site. http://www.whizbangcider.com/

Yep, that's what I was thinking of!

 

[gregbathurst]

... Perhaps a new garbage disposal and sink. I've seen this type of setup before.

Can you put whole apples through a disposal system? I can put pretty much any size through my shredder, only the very largest cooking-type apples stick, and I push them through with a piece of wood. Having to chop apples before processing is a pain.

 

[roadymi]

depends on if your making 5 gallons or a hundred. Having an all stainless disposal has it's advantages. You can 1/4 a lot of apples in a short time.

 

[sashurlow]

Re: Greg... I almost gave up on my garbage disposal this year but then figured out the trick... You have to cut the apples up. Crabs and small cider apples whole will kill your disposal. Its not a huge deal though. In my experience this year, its about timing. Cut up apples (half the small ones, quarter the large ones), put them in a 3gal bag and let the disposal cool off. Grind the bag and restart to allow the disposal to cool off again. Towards the end of the day I also needed to scoop us some ground apples and re-run them through to cool off the disposal. Not ideal but it worked well enough that I can't justify the costs of a DIY scatter. I did three bushels and turned them into 8-10 gallons of cider. It took me a solid day to do it (grind and press). IF I was going to do it more than once a year, I might have to look at a new system.
What brand of shredder do you use? Is it a 100 dollar shredder or a 500 dollar shredder? Do you still shred yard waste with it or is it a dedicated apple grinder?

 

[clengman]

Thanks for the input so far.

Re: DIY - I can do some light machining and a little carpentry, but just don't have a lot of time for that kind of thing theses days. Home repairs are keeping me busy enough.

Re: garbage disposals - I've read about it and was inclined against it because of what some have mentioned; cooling issues and need to chop the apples. Seems like it would be only moderately faster than my kitchenaid grinder.

I think if I was going to build something it would probably be a rotary/drum-type scratter. I'd just start with the basic handcrank box and hopper, but from there it would be easy enough to add a bicycle or electric motor drive.

I second sashurlow's question. What make/model of shredder do you use?

 

[UpstateMike]

Re: garbage disposals - I've read about it and was inclined against it because of what some have mentioned; cooling issues and need to chop the apples. Seems like it would be only moderately faster than my kitchenaid grinder.

An advantage with quartering the apples is that you can better check them for rotten spots and parasites. it only takes 3 seconds to quarter an apple. The puree that comes out is much easier to press than chunks. And there are several types of garbage disposals that have no cooling problems.

 

[clengman]

An advantage with quartering the apples is that you can better check them for rotten spots and parasites. it only takes 3 seconds to quarter an apple.

Sure, but handling each apple individually adds far more time than that to the whole process. It's exactly what I did when I ground my apples using my kitchenaid grinder. I was cutting up apples as my wife fed them to the grinder and the cutting was definitely the rate limiting step. It's much different than just dumping a bucket of apples in a hopper.

The puree that comes out is much easier to press than chunks.

I believe this and it's something I thought about. My kitchenaid made a very fine pulp. A great deal of juice was liberated prior to pressing. This year, though, my problem was an excess of apples and a minimum of time. I think the faster I can grind and get the pulp into the press the better.

And there are several types of garbage disposals that have no cooling problems.

Which type is the best? I haven't seen any comparisons.

 

[gregbathurst]

Re: Greg...
What brand of shredder do you use? Is it a 100 dollar shredder or a 500 dollar shredder? Do you still shred yard waste with it or is it a dedicated apple grinder?

My shredder is about 15yo. It was used for garden waste but is now used only for apples. It has an 1300w electric motor, and a horizontal spinning disc with 2 blades mounted above slots in the disc. The whole top casing comes off easily so i can hose off the spinning disc, and it easy to remove the disc to clean underneath.
The brand is victa, and australian brand, but it was made in Austria.
Some people worry about hygiene but so long as you clean the whole thing I can't see any issue.

 

[Bigsky406]

I'v got a 3/4 HP grinder and if I'm careful not to overdo it I can easily grind a couple bushels of apples without it over heating. I've adjusted my grinding/pressing routine so that I'm never running the grinder for too long. It depends on whether you're using harder/drier apples or softer, juicier apples too. Drycrab apples from late in the season cause it to heat up more quickly than juicy Macintosh. Halving or quartering the apples helps. Doing fewer apples at a time helps. All in all it's a super easy and cheap way to grind them and WAY better than the kitchenaid, which will not last long under those conditions.

 

[CodyA]

Hell, I figure freezing them so that they're as soft as ripe plums, then blending them in a 5 gallon bucket with a mortar mixer is easy enough. Just cut a hole in the bucket lid so you can slide it over the mixer and lock it down tight on the bucket, attach the drill, and have at it!

 

[clengman]

My shredder is about 15yo. It was used for garden waste but is now used only for apples. It has an 1300w electric motor, and a horizontal spinning disc with 2 blades mounted above slots in the disc. The whole top casing comes off easily so i can hose off the spinning disc, and it easy to remove the disc to clean underneath.
The brand is victa, and australian brand, but it was made in Austria.
Some people worry about hygiene but so long as you clean the whole thing I can't see any issue.

Sounds similar to the one i have for yard waste. Maybe next year I'll just clean it well and give it a shot. Thanks.

 

[clengman]

I'v got a 3/4 HP grinder and if I'm careful not to overdo it I can easily grind a couple bushels of apples without it over heating. I've adjusted my grinding/pressing routine so that I'm never running the grinder for too long. It depends on whether you're using harder/drier apples or softer, juicier apples too. Drycrab apples from late in the season cause it to heat up more quickly than juicy Macintosh. Halving or quartering the apples helps. Doing fewer apples at a time helps. All in all it's a super easy and cheap way to grind them and WAY better than the kitchenaid, which will not last long under those conditions.

Just to be clear I'm not talking about a blender or a food processor. It's a meat grinder. The thing can crunch down bones. I did a bushel of apples this year and it barely got warm.

 

[gregbathurst]

One good thing about the shredder is the texture of the pulp - not too fine but easy to handle and the juice runs out easily without clogging your cloth.

 

[clengman]

I've been looking into food grade coatings that would be suitable to protect the bare metal parts of my shredder before using it for apples, and came across a food grade silicone lubricant (usually used for butchering equipment). Thought this might be a good alternative to paint that wouldn't flake off and contaminate the juice. It's non toxic and tasteless and repels water. So I would clean and dry the machine then spray with silicone immediately before grinding, then clean, dry and spray again when I'm done to prevent rust. Can anyone see any reason not to use this product?

 

[Bigsky406]

Just to be clear I'm not talking about a blender or a food processor. It's a meat grinder. The thing can crunch down bones. I did a bushel of apples this year and it barely got warm.

I should also be clear, I was talking about a under sink garbage disposal. I call it a grinder now because I use it for grinding apples, but it's an insinkerator or something similar. Anyway, it works great. My kitchenaid grinder, food mill and everything else is way too light duty for the amount of apples I do. and it would be WAY too slow.

This setup was easy to build, works fabulously and was relatively inexpensive. Most of the parts are used, but the garbage disposal was new.

 

[clengman]

I should also be clear, I was talking about a under sink garbage disposal. I call it a grinder now because I use it for grinding apples, but it's an insinkerator or something similar. Anyway, it works great. My kitchenaid grinder, food mill and everything else is way too light duty for the amount of apples I do. and it would be WAY too slow.

This setup was easy to build, works fabulously and was relatively inexpensive. Most of the parts are used, but the garbage disposal was new.

It looks really nice. That's definitely something to consider. Do you ever have any issues with the outflow getting stopped up? Do you hook up an airhose to help cool it? Thanks!

 

[Bigsky406]

With juicy apples it's no problem. When the apples are drier I have to remove that white extension or it can clog. I just run a little water or juice down the "drain" and it gets going.

It can overheat if you're not careful, but mine has an automatic shutoff. Once it cools you can run it again. And if you work it in fall when It's cooler it's also less of an issue.