Juicers... any advice or opinions

[Chalkyt]

After spending the best part of a day grinding and pressing the first cider of the year, I wondered if (cheap) technology has advanced to the point where domestic juicers are worthwhile for small batches of cider. Has anyone used a modern juicer, what are your thoughts, etc, etc? I have an old centrifugal juicer but find that it produces too much foam, mess, and needs to be cleared of pulp quite often. I haven't used it for years.

My normal setup is fairly conventional... a diy grater mill along the lines of Jolicoeur's design, and a second-hand grape press (a present from Santa a long time ago) which is showing its age with the screw mechanism wearing out and binding. All mounted on a portable stand that lives in the shed when not being used.

However, it takes about an hour to set-up and sanitise, another hour to clean and put-away, about an hour to slice, grate, and press enough apples for a gallon of juice, and lots of time fighting swarms of European Wasps (yellow jackets). O.K. if you are doing several gallons but yesterday I only wanted to do a gallon (5 litres... about 70 apples and 30 pears) and it would have been good to do it inside instead of with the (not so) friendly wasps.

You see, I have a good crop of Beurre Bosc pears and wante to do a Fameuse (Pomme de Neige) and Beurre Bosc Apple/Pear cider. But, the pears ripen earlier than apples and go mushy if they aren't dealt with at the right time so the state of the pears dictated that yesterday was the day even though most of th apples are still a few weeks away from being ready.

Anyhow, I thought I would research juicers. There are centrifugal, cold press, masticating, etc, all claiming to be the best. So do I go down this path or spend the money making a better hydraulic press set-up.

 

[Maylar]

From what I've read they are all horribly inefficient. OK if you're looking for a glass of juice but not much beyond that.

 

[ehall]

I tried a couple years ago to use a masticating juicer for my apples... no dice. I've had a centrifugal one too... just stick with your press.

 

[Chalkyt]

Thanks for the feedback. I was afraid that was the case.

Blan B is to improve the press by trying to rig up a hydraulic jack (cheap on eBay). A 3T unit which seems to be the smallest available, will just fit in the space available, and make it into a sort of combo basket/rack & cloth press. The stainless steel basket is only 8" in dia and 10" high so a gallon of pulp will fill it about 50% which should yield 1/2 gallon. The 3 Ton unit will exert more pressure than I need (like 120psi), so two presses should give me a over a gallon of juice, which is fine for what I want. No need to fluff around with a juicer!

 

[zadamxtr]

I recently purchased a small apple press online, but it broke after one use. I ended up having a look at a few simple designs for building your own press, and was able to make my own, much stronger press with mainly just spare bits of wood and other bits and pieces that I had in my garage, and it uses a car jack to do the pressing. Works great, if you are at all handy with tools I recomend considering that path.

 

[Chalkyt]

Thanks for the feedback, that is certainly Plan C. The hydraulic jack turned up yesterday so Plan B is underway. I called in at the local workshop where they will cut a 3/4" x 1"rectangular solid steel bar and fit it it across the top for extra strength. I am hoping that the hydraulic jack will result in more pressure than I can get with the screw mechanism which is quite worn out and not very effective. The current yield is only around 50% so I am hoping that the jack will result in 60% or more. (if the increased pressure doesn't bust the press which is really only designed for grapes, is second hand, and was a present from Santa several years ago).

 

[Kees]

I have used a slow juicer in the past. Takes quite a while to get 1 gallon of juice. During fermentation it turns into something like apple sauce.

 

[madscientist451]

I have a Breville juicer and like you experienced, I get way too much foam.
I used it once or twice and that's all.
One way to upgrade your rig is to make the grinding easier.
I re-purposed an old electric yard waste grinder and it works ok for the volume I do. I had to alter the opening somewhat.
My machine is old and no longer made but one of the newer versions might work:

https://www.amazon.com/Sun-Joe-CJ601E-Electric-Shredder/dp/B007VX11O8/ref=asc_df_B007VX11O8/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=167151490548&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=4197723077988353581&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9006064&hvtargid=pla-307810493479&psc=1

My press is a small basket type with the screw down the middle with wooden slats. I don't think its very efficient
and have been looking to replace it with a bigger version for several years. I'm thinking of getting this one:

https://www.amazon.com/MacIntosh-Gallon-Fruit-Stainless-Basket/dp/B01GSON2X8/ref=sr_1_31?keywords=apple%2Bpress&qid=1684056694&sr=8-31&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.ac2169a1-b668-44b9-8bd0-5ec63b24bcb5&th=1

I'm wondering if the screw down the middle of my current press has any effect on the pressing. It seems like there still is a lot of juice left in the pulp.
I still make cider and wine every year, but not as much as I used to, but upgrading my press will likely make the process more enjoyable.
Yeah, I'd like to get a hydro press, but I really don't think I can justify the expense.

 

[Chalkyt]

Yes, I am in about the same situation. We inherited a few apple trees when we moved here, then after giving away lots of apples every year decided to try making cider "just for fun", and became hooked!

The second-hand grape press came from Santa after a couple of years making lots of mess with a Breville juicer. I now grind the apples with a home-made grinder. This works well and is a reasonably pleasant pastime especially when sustained with a bottle or two of last year's cider. But, the pressing is a pain since the yield isn't great and the clean-up is tedious.

Part of the yield problem is that the screw is a simple 3/4" whitworth machine thread which is worn and now binds as soon as any pressure is applied. From what I have read, an Acme profile thread is much better for these applications but they are quite hard to find. The pic of the one you are considering looks as though it has an Acme profile thread.

So, the press modifications are finished and today is the day to try the hydraulic jack approach. Wish me luck!

 

[shetc]

On a recent episode, they discussed a device called a steam juicer. Maybe it works for apples?

 

[MtnGoatJoe]

You could get a small press, like this one: Tabletop Fruit Press 1.25 Gallon, All Stainless

I have not used it, but I have a Maximizer press from them that I LOVE.

Good luck!

 

[DaveC73]

MtnGoatJoe,

I have the press you linked to. It works great for small batches. I've done several gallons of a variety of fruit juices with it. The only problem I have with it is that I've stripped the thread on the press, which is kind of dangerous (tiny hair-like strands of steel come off the big screw, which are incredibly sharp). I think this has more to do with me abusing the press than the actual design though. That thing is rock solid otherwise...

 

[MtnGoatJoe]

MtnGoatJoe,

I have the press you linked to. It works great for small batches. I've done several gallons of a variety of fruit juices with it. The only problem I have with it is that I've stripped the thread on the press, which is kind of dangerous (tiny hair-like strands of steel come off the big screw, which are incredibly sharp). I think this has more to do with me abusing the press than the actual design though. That thing is rock solid otherwise...

Do you put enough food-grade grease on the screw? That's really important.

If you are, I'd contact the manufacturer (or Pleasant Hill Grain if you bought it from them) and see what they say. Metal shavings are BAD!

 

[MtnGoatJoe]

Do you put enough food-grade grease on the screw? That's really important.

If you are, I'd contact the manufacturer (or Pleasant Hill Grain if you bought it from them) and see what they say. Metal shavings are BAD!

Also, I just checked on the Pleasant Hill Grain website. One other customer reported the metal shavings, and PHG replaced the part. Good luck!

 

[Chalkyt]

Thanks again. The stainless-steel press looks very good. It is somewhat similar to mine and a close up of your press suggest that the screw is a machine thread similar to my old one which also started to shed some metal and bind. As I mentioned in the earlier post, I understand that acme or trapezoidal threads are needed for our type of pressure application. In fact, Claude Jolicoeur goes into thread types in some detail in his book.

So, although you are out of cider season in the USA, down here we are in the middle of it. For everyone's entertainment this is where I have ended up...

I have gone down an interesting path with the hydraulic jack. I am not sure that it results in more pressure than the screw, but it is easier, does work quite well, and seems to be more efficient... but I still had to sort out some teething problems like making a handle that works the jack when the basket gets in the way, making a spanner to reach the pressure release crew on the jack when it is low down in the basket, strengthening the press crossbar so that it doesn't bend (maybe there is more pressure from the jack than I thought). Anyhow it all adds another dimension to the cider adventure.

What was a basket press is now reasonably efficient and sort-of works like rack-and-cloth press. The pommace is put into two cloth bags which are put into the basket. A 3/4" (18mm) thick HDPE disc is below the bottom bag, with another disc on top of the bag, then the second bag with another disc on top of that. The discs have 2mm x 2mm radial grooves across them to help the juice escape. So, the jack presses two racks with about 5 litres of pommace at each load. So, two loads gives up about 5 litres or a bit more than a gallon of AJ.

The current "project" is to motorise the grinder. We simply have too many apples to hand crank. We have had below freezing temperatures the last couple of nights so the trees have dropped all their leaves and most of the apples... time to grind and press!

I have set up a battery drill to drive the grinder. It works well and chews through the apples. The drill has two speeds 440RPM and 1850RPM and with my 100mm (4") rotor I can get a cutting surface speed of 2.3 or 9 metres/second which seem near enough to the commonly recommended speeds of 6 - 12 m/s. Even at the slow speed the rotor goes so fast that the centrifugal force makes a mess by spraying the pommace out (it simply gently fell out when hand grinding). So, an extension to the bottom of the grinder was needed to actually end up with the pommace in a bucket.

Anyhow as I said before, it is all part of the cider adventure. It might help others who are looking to "update" their rig. Some pics are attached FYI.

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