0:00: Explanation of my setup 10:50: Washing apples 11:30: Grinder in action 14:50: Building a rack and cloth stack in the press 17:38: Pressing 20:31: After pressing 21:48: Closeup of pressed pulp 22:39: Cost explanation
VERY IMPRESSED with your ingenuity. Being a tinkerer myself I am genuinely tickled to see others solving challenges with available resources...., WELL DONE!
I live beside an apple orchard and can have as many apples as I want. I never made cider because I didn't have the equipment but now am rethinking it. Great video!!
Just use a separate bucket to clean with water. Also, using same HDPE plate under the first layer will help stabilize the juice catching plate. How is that press/grinder working for you after a couple of years?
That's a great idea about adding another cutting board underneath the first layer. The press and grinder are still working great. I've since upgraded to a professional system (hydropress and 240v grinder) for a small commercial project I'm working on, but I still get this setup out every few years for small batches with friends and family. What's nice about this system is it easily fits in most standard sized vehicles, so I can take it with me if I'm planning to press with friends or family somewhere away from my home. It works just as well now as it did six years ago with no changes to the system.
So... Unicoi Apple Festival is today/tomorrow. As I am getting ready for my 5am work day, I walk by the same 12ton HF press I got to change a wheel bearing last month, and thought.... there's gotta be a way to press apples cheaply and efficiently with this 😂😂😂 I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks these things lol 😅 awesome set up! I already ordered a $70 Hamilton Beach juicer that comes in tomorrow, but if I ever need to upgrade that disposal idea is genius. Planning on doing a few gallons of apple cider vinegar, so gotta make some cider first! Cheers man, this really made my morning!!
brilliant ... when i had a house with a major garden, had a similar disposer setup ouside in a work shed for pre-processing kitchen compost before it went into the worm composter or the rotating composter
Building this was fun also. Cleaning the disposal...use a hose, then a gal of vinegar. Certainly more sanitary than a wooden press. Easier to clean. Great video work. Congrats. JoeB
Love your awsome setup. I just did 20gal cider press run. I would comment on your economics evaluation. I get fresh cider at $5. A gal fresh. I got a deal going where when there stock starts to turn I cut a deal for less depending on his mood and how many gal I am buying. Usual in 5 gal increments. I think the real benefit of doing your own is the blend of apples varieties and the resulting flavors in finnished hard cider. I experimented with grind fineness by putting it through a course chipper, pressing the juice out and then putting the same chips through a food processor and pressing again. I got another 2.5 gallons worth of juice however it was lighter, and less sweet. I would compare your first juice coming out with the very last to learn if there is a difference. You may need to blend your juice if your getting more then 5 gallons in a pressing. I now know that nothing less then a 1 hp disposal will do. Thanks for a great vid.
Nice! One suggestion for your consideration: instead of the screen cloth, we use the polypro gunny sacks that malt grain comes in, obtained for free from my local brew pub. Put the bag in the bucket, grind right into it and away you go. It works really well! Love your creativity.
I started making this Skimack Press as I found it to be the best one amongst the dozen I looked at on RUclips. Not familiar with polypro gunny sacks that malt grain come in. Initially thought that sounded great alternative plan but rethinking it. How do close the sack or fold up the sack to keep it from opening? Guess I would have to have a sack to visualize it. ET2020, did you or anyone actually try this suggestion?
This was really awesome and helpful. We had used the Westin cider press set up, very labor intensive. So we followed your setup and just put it to work. I guess we over did it, I think we overheated the waste king after pressing about 19 gallons of cider. We will let it sit overnight but not sure it will come back to life. I would guess you need to keep this set up to short runs and small batches. But the yield was amazing! We finished the last bit with our old crusher, and only about half the yield. Now looking for a larger, maybe small industrial grinder.
Where i live we buy apple cider for 5 to 6 dollar a gal but I attach my garbage disposal to a plastic fish cleaning table good height 5gal bucket fit under the spout of the disposal. like your set up.
That set up would be great for making apple moonshine, too! People struggle with cutting and smashing apples and trying to run them through other types of grinders. My one concern is not just overheating (good idea with the foot pedal) but "lubrication" of the mechanism as well as the cooling that the water of the sink usually provides so, it'll be interesting to see how long it lasts before it eventually burns up (they all do). Good luck 👍 Oh, and use cold water to rinse your grinder, it's already fighting heat. 😀
Yeah, overheating the grinder is the main weakness of this system. The juice in the apples seems to provide some degree of cooling and I have had pretty good luck with the foot pedal system. In the four years I have been using this system, I've only overheated the grinder once and it kicked back on after a 15 minute cool down to reset the heat switch.
@@skimack I had a minute to think about it and I know you can't run water through it at the same time you're pulling (that's more accurate, pulping) but, if you had an appropriately large air fan directed at the base of the disposal and determin a duty cycle (like 40min /hr, total run time,, etc.) it may keep you from tripping the breaker and prolong the life of the machine. Every time the breaker trips in those things, there are thermistor and other do-dads that start to break down and stop protecting the motor. But, depending upon the quality of the unit and how much you try to shove through it at a time, it should last you a long time. (if you've done those things, I'm not trying to "tell you your job," just throw a suggestion your way). Good luck...
@@MtnBadger That's a good point. I've heard of people pulling all of the plastic off of the outside of the motor and either installing a fan to cool it or even setting it up with copper pipes with cold water or coolant to cool it. You can get as technical as you want depending on how hard you want to push the system and how handy you are.
@@skimack I actually thought about telling you that but it seems like you'd have gone that route if you'd really wanted. That's why I suggested simple... Air flow and establishing a duty cycle is effective and easy for the type of usage you seem to have. Sometimes, simpler is better. Me, too many years as an ASE mechanic/pneumatic repair tech/blacksmith and general cobbler of all things pieces-parts. I'm a techno-geek and the king of over kill. I'd have a circulatory cooler, robotic press... lol. But there's a time and placeforeverything. Keepit serviced, keep it cool and don'texceed the duty cycleand it shoulddo everything you need. Packing it with ice packs in a small cooler if you really need to push it and flush the system out fairly often just to give it room to "breath" and you could run it pretty consistently. It's the curse of the moonshine, were always coming up with solutions to problems that haven't even happened yet because, by the time an issue happens, it's too late. 😆
Outstanding video man!! Just getting into this and apparently I bought the wrong kind of fruit crusher.. going to garberator route. Thanks for taking the time and sharing. Would love your standard recipe you follow too! 👍🏻
fantastic setup and great if you can get the apples for cheaper than retail, otherwise a gallon of martinelli's NOT from concentrate is about $8 and i can't get 10# apples that cheap. granted the juice is filtered and pasteurized, but it's not stabilized and therefore not a problem. basically proceed with it as you would fresh-pressed. still beats $10 for a 6-pack of hard cider.
Great process, I have a few questions. 1. Its been 5 years, Are you still using this technique or have you made any changes? 2. The lunch trays, did you alter them in anyway? they look like they are just placed upside down. 3. How long do you leave the apple pulp under pressure?? 4. How long did the disposal last? 5. How many layers do you get before the disposal gets to hot? 6. How do you sanitize the press cloth?
Thanks for the questions. 1. I have since moved on to commercial scale processing equipment for a small cider business, but I still use this press when I'm traveling and for small batches with friends. It continues to work great exactly as shown in this video. 2. The lunch trays are unaltered. You are correct that I just place them upside down. I use the cut up bread trays for the first two trays to give the lunch trays a bit more space to squeeze together before contacting the bottom of the press. 3. The pressing itself doesn't take very long. Most of the time is spent in the set-up. Once the stack has been completely compressed and the juice flow slows down noticeably, it's time to start the next run. 4. I'm still using the same disposal shown in this video. It overheated once while grinding some particularly dense and dry crabapples, but it turned on by re-setting the heat switch after letting it cool for about 15 minutes. I find that it doesn't overheat when I'm working by myself, but when I have help, I have to make sure not to run it too hard since all of the processes move faster with extra hands. 5. I generally stop adding layers to the stack when they fill the vertical space and the stack begins to become unwieldy. The disposal isn't the limiting factor there. 6. I wash the press cloth before I start with a pressure washer and then sanitize the press cloth with Starsan sanitizer. After I'm finished pressing, I pressure wash the cloth and hang it to dry.
Is that what you use on your press? What weight of linen cloth do you use? At what point do you get diminishing returns on the thickness of the levels?
Great video. Makes sense. Why not core the apple? Should one be worried about the amygdalin content within the apple seeds? What is the hydrometer reading on your freshly squeezed apple juice, before adding any extra anything?
You could of course core the apples that you press, but it would be a monumental task if you were pressing anything more than a bushel or two of apples. The seeds are mostly not crushed by the garbage disposal ( The hundreds of seedling apple trees in my back yard growing from my composted pomace are proof of that). Furthermore, the seeds are left behind while pressing due to the filtering effect of the press cloths. I have never heard of a commercial cider facility coring their apples, so I think the amygdalin that passes into the juice from broken seeds is so minimal as to not be considered. The apples I use come from un-irrigated wild apple trees growing at 6,000 feet of elevation, so they are much more concentrated in both sugars and flavor than standard store-bought apples. I generally end up with a SG of approximately 1.065. The apples I use average 15 Brix with the resulting cider coming out around 8% ABV. Store-bought apples usually come in around 1.045 SG in my experience.
I collect apples from wild trees that grow in the forest around the town I live in. I'm in the process of starting a small orchard, but until that develops, I've had good luck foraging fruit from wild trees and abandoned orchards in my area. If you don't have wild trees in your area, ask around to see if anyone you know has apple trees growing in their yard. A full size tree will produce over one hundred pounds of fruit on a good year, and people may be happy to share the bounty.
Some seeds get ground up, but most seem to pass through the grinder without getting damaged. I do not think that the few seeds that get damaged by the grinder contribute to the cider's taste at all.
I'm discovering your video late but I hope you'll answer my question anyway. Fantastic setup! I'm converting from. A basket press to this approach. Q: how long did you make the 3/4" plywood board you use as a base? Q: would you do anything differently if you were doing it again? Thank you for sharing your creativity with us!
Hi Greg - thanks for the comment! I sized the base plywood board to match my juice collection tray keeping in mind that I would need a two inch overhang at the end to allow the spout to fit at the end. My juice tray is 26" long, and I think my base board is about 24" long. I would not do anything differently if I was rebuilding the press again today. The press and grinder are still working great, and I have not needed to replace any parts or items from the originals.
I'm curious how much pressure was needed to compress the mash. Can you estimate the force needed and at what distance on the handle? I'm considering a reciprocating mechanism instead of using the handle. Thanks for providing this video!
Hello, if I recall, this press generates approximately 100psi over the pressing area. I've come across some research that shows that 100psi results in maximum juice output from the apple pulp. You can still get high yields, up to 60% with only 50psi, but the returns diminish as you generate more pressure beyond that. The handle on the pump is about 12 inches long. Each pump of the jack when the stack is fully compressed probably requires about 20lbs of force at the end of the handle. Hope that helps.
Sure Thing: Garbage disposal: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000DZGN7Q/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Aluminum funnel: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0030OVB6A/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Foot pedal: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000LJNJOE/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Shade cloth: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000P7JL0S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Juice collection tray: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0041P2B7A/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 "rack" trays to separate the layers in the press: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002XYGJBU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Watch out for off flavours from the petrol or diesel in the car . In. The water industry we are warned not to have plastic pipe near petrol or diesel cans because the pipe absorbs odours and can give off flavour for ages into the water.
This particular garbage disposal has all stainless steel grinding components. I definitely recommend that. I also ran a batch of apples and soapy water through the machine when I first purchased it to remove any residues or grime from the manufacturing process. I feel comfortable with that level of safety for myself and my family, but only you can determine what you consider safe.
@@skimack Thanks for the reply. I'm looking for an efficient way to grind and juice prickly pears. This whole process seems brilliant and definitely worth giving a shot.
The disposal is installed in the little structure I made exactly as it would be on a sink, so all gaskets and fastening parts are installed per the instructions however, I did not include the baffle in order to make it easier to drop apples in. Stems are fine for the disposal and they are filtered out by the press cloths when pressing.
Here are some problems I had grinding apples with a 1/2 hp Insinkerator Badger disposal unit. First was overheating the motor during sustained use. This motor doesn't have an internal fan. I guess it keeps from overheating by being used intermittently plus having water flushing through it. My setup had a kitchen sink with the disposal mounted conventionally. This would have worked great if it wasn't for the internal thermal switch tripping off. Another issue that popped up was the apples ground with the disposal came out as mush. This would have been fine if my pressing was done like skimack's but I was using the vertical, slatted wood style fruit press and the apple mush when under pressure would suddenly shoot out from between the slats, sometimes as much as five feet from the press.
Thanks for the comment Robert. I have not had any overheating issues with my garbage disposal unit. That may be because of the foot pedal switch that lets me only run in when I need to, or because the 1 HP motor doesn't have to work as hard to crush the apples. You're correct that the very fine pulp generated by the garbage disposal grinder requires a fine mesh cloth bag to keep the pulp contained during pressing. The 90% shade cloth I use has worked great for that. I've also heard that people have good luck with strong curtain fabric from fabric stores.
ET2020 what sort of chipper shredder have you gotten? Seems like it might handle more than the waste king did for us. Is it hard to collect the shredded apples as they come out?
That would probably work great. I built the wooden frame because I didn't have a sink, but if you have a sink and space to store a larger unit, that would be a good way to do it.
I have not, but it would work just as well for pressing grapes. You could even fashion a basket to hold the grape pulp like a traditional wine press if you wanted.
Interesting.. I bought an old antique press that needed a basket (123.00) press was 75.00.. Need a grinding mechanism and a pusher plate.. How much do you have in your setup ? I believe you will beat me lol.. Note - I even already have that 12 ton press.. I'm terrible at being cost efficient.. Nice Video and looking to see if you have any content on your brewing process as that interests me as well..
I have used the disposal and press for several years now. I have had no contamination/infection issues with the cider I make using this equipment, and I do not pasteurize or sulfite my juice before fermentation. The 2017 batch I pressed in this video is drinking great after 5 years, and I'm looking forward to aging it even further to continue to enjoy the evolution of the cider in the bottle. I have found that cider is quire resistant to infection as long as the acid and tannin content of your apples is adequate.
I have since upgraded to a commercial setup with multiple hydro-presses and a purpose-built apple grinder made by Speidel. I still use this exact setup from time to time for small batches or for pressing in remote areas. The entire system fits in the back of my subaru with space to spare which has been great for press parties with friends who live far away. I don't yet have my own orchard, but I intend to purchase land and plant my orchard in the next few years.
All of the collection tray and the rack trays on my press are food grade. The press cloths themselves are not "food grade" but polyethylene is non-reactive and safe for contact with food based on my research. Do your own research and make decisions that you're comfortable with for you and your family. It's the same situation for the garbage disposal components. The nice thing about setting up your own system like this is that you can source the materials you prefer based on your budget and your comfort level while you're setting it up.
Any issues with codling moth larvae? Is your disposer all stainless or does this matter? I apologize if you’ve stated this but your racks are what? Thank you.
I use all foraged apples that are not pruned or sprayed, so codling moth is present in many of the trees. I will cut out any obvious damage I see to the apples, but you can't get them all. Since I ferment the juice, I don't worry about the odd bug hole that slips through - it doesn't seem to make a difference in the final product. The disposal has a stainless steel grinding components and a polymer housing. Stainless or polymer are fine, but the acid in the apples would react with any non-stainless steel or iron and could produce metallic flavors in the finished product. The racks are just lunch trays. You can find the ones I used here: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002XYGJBU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Things only "pay for themselves" if you would've spent that money on the alternative. Most people aren't gonna spend $500 a year on commercial hard cider. But if you can make it DIY on the cheap, you'll happily drink it.
0:00: Explanation of my setup
10:50: Washing apples
11:30: Grinder in action
14:50: Building a rack and cloth stack in the press
17:38: Pressing
20:31: After pressing
21:48: Closeup of pressed pulp
22:39: Cost explanation
Instablaster...
Great video and details
VERY IMPRESSED with your ingenuity. Being a tinkerer myself I am genuinely tickled to see others solving challenges with available resources...., WELL DONE!
This has to be the most clever and genius setup I have seen yet!
I live beside an apple orchard and can have as many apples as I want. I never made cider because I didn't have the equipment but now am rethinking it. Great video!!
Thanks! I highly recommend you experiment with making your own cider. It's a spectacular drink, and it is exceedingly easy to make. Cheers.
Just use a separate bucket to clean with water. Also, using same HDPE plate under the first layer will help stabilize the juice catching plate. How is that press/grinder working for you after a couple of years?
That's a great idea about adding another cutting board underneath the first layer.
The press and grinder are still working great. I've since upgraded to a professional system (hydropress and 240v grinder) for a small commercial project I'm working on, but I still get this setup out every few years for small batches with friends and family. What's nice about this system is it easily fits in most standard sized vehicles, so I can take it with me if I'm planning to press with friends or family somewhere away from my home. It works just as well now as it did six years ago with no changes to the system.
So... Unicoi Apple Festival is today/tomorrow. As I am getting ready for my 5am work day, I walk by the same 12ton HF press I got to change a wheel bearing last month, and thought.... there's gotta be a way to press apples cheaply and efficiently with this 😂😂😂 I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks these things lol 😅 awesome set up! I already ordered a $70 Hamilton Beach juicer that comes in tomorrow, but if I ever need to upgrade that disposal idea is genius. Planning on doing a few gallons of apple cider vinegar, so gotta make some cider first! Cheers man, this really made my morning!!
Thanks James! Enjoy the festival, and good luck with your vinegar this year.
brilliant ... when i had a house with a major garden, had a similar disposer setup ouside in a work shed for pre-processing kitchen compost before it went into the worm composter or the rotating composter
Building this was fun also. Cleaning the disposal...use a hose, then a gal of vinegar. Certainly more sanitary than a wooden press. Easier to clean. Great video work. Congrats.
JoeB
Love your awsome setup. I just did 20gal cider press run. I would comment on your economics evaluation. I get fresh cider at $5. A gal fresh. I got a deal going where when there stock starts to turn I cut a deal for less depending on his mood and how many gal I am buying. Usual in 5 gal increments. I think the real benefit of doing your own is the blend of apples varieties and the resulting flavors in finnished hard cider. I experimented with grind fineness by putting it through a course chipper, pressing the juice out and then putting the same chips through a food processor and pressing again. I got another 2.5 gallons worth of juice however it was lighter, and less sweet. I would compare your first juice coming out with the very last to learn if there is a difference. You may need to blend your juice if your getting more then 5 gallons in a pressing. I now know that nothing less then a 1 hp disposal will do. Thanks for a great vid.
Nice! One suggestion for your consideration: instead of the screen cloth, we use the polypro gunny sacks that malt grain comes in, obtained for free from my local brew pub. Put the bag in the bucket, grind right into it and away you go. It works really well! Love your creativity.
Great idea! Thanks for the comment.
I started making this Skimack Press as I found it to be the best one amongst the dozen I looked at on RUclips. Not familiar with polypro gunny sacks that malt grain come in. Initially thought that sounded great alternative plan but rethinking it. How do close the sack or fold up the sack to keep it from opening? Guess I would have to have a sack to visualize it. ET2020, did you or anyone actually try this suggestion?
great job!! loved the idea of using a garbage disposal to grind the apples. Thanks for the walk through
That was very informative I'm going to have to try that we have so many apple trees around here that just go to waste thank you
That's quite an operation you have there. Very thorough explanations. Thanks for sharing.
I built one off his
This was really awesome and helpful. We had used the Westin cider press set up, very labor intensive. So we followed your setup and just put it to work. I guess we over did it, I think we overheated the waste king after pressing about 19 gallons of cider. We will let it sit overnight but not sure it will come back to life. I would guess you need to keep this set up to short runs and small batches. But the yield was amazing! We finished the last bit with our old crusher, and only about half the yield. Now looking for a larger, maybe small industrial grinder.
Get 1 hp
Awesome job. Very clever ideas.
Using a bearing press...Brilliant!
Where i live we buy apple cider for 5 to 6 dollar a gal but I attach my garbage disposal to a plastic fish cleaning table good height 5gal bucket fit under the spout of the disposal. like your set up.
Very very nice. Thanks for posting!
Try using some of the pulp for waffles/panckes.
That set up would be great for making apple moonshine, too! People struggle with cutting and smashing apples and trying to run them through other types of grinders.
My one concern is not just overheating (good idea with the foot pedal) but "lubrication" of the mechanism as well as the cooling that the water of the sink usually provides so, it'll be interesting to see how long it lasts before it eventually burns up (they all do). Good luck 👍
Oh, and use cold water to rinse your grinder, it's already fighting heat. 😀
Yeah, overheating the grinder is the main weakness of this system. The juice in the apples seems to provide some degree of cooling and I have had pretty good luck with the foot pedal system. In the four years I have been using this system, I've only overheated the grinder once and it kicked back on after a 15 minute cool down to reset the heat switch.
@@skimack
I had a minute to think about it and I know you can't run water through it at the same time you're pulling (that's more accurate, pulping) but, if you had an appropriately large air fan directed at the base of the disposal and determin a duty cycle (like 40min /hr, total run time,, etc.) it may keep you from tripping the breaker and prolong the life of the machine. Every time the breaker trips in those things, there are thermistor and other do-dads that start to break down and stop protecting the motor. But, depending upon the quality of the unit and how much you try to shove through it at a time, it should last you a long time. (if you've done those things, I'm not trying to "tell you your job," just throw a suggestion your way). Good luck...
@@MtnBadger That's a good point. I've heard of people pulling all of the plastic off of the outside of the motor and either installing a fan to cool it or even setting it up with copper pipes with cold water or coolant to cool it. You can get as technical as you want depending on how hard you want to push the system and how handy you are.
@@skimack
I actually thought about telling you that but it seems like you'd have gone that route if you'd really wanted. That's why I suggested simple... Air flow and establishing a duty cycle is effective and easy for the type of usage you seem to have. Sometimes, simpler is better.
Me, too many years as an ASE mechanic/pneumatic repair tech/blacksmith and general cobbler of all things pieces-parts. I'm a techno-geek and the king of over kill. I'd have a circulatory cooler, robotic press... lol. But there's a time and placeforeverything. Keepit serviced, keep it cool and don'texceed the duty cycleand it shoulddo everything you need. Packing it with ice packs in a small cooler if you really need to push it and flush the system out fairly often just to give it room to "breath" and you could run it pretty consistently.
It's the curse of the moonshine, were always coming up with solutions to problems that haven't even happened yet because, by the time an issue happens, it's too late. 😆
Dude great job awesome system
This is friggin genius
Bro, I've been wanting to press olives. I've never used a press. This is a great idea.
I've considered that this setup could work for olive oil with some minor modifications. Very cool idea!
Outstanding video man!! Just getting into this and apparently I bought the wrong kind of fruit crusher.. going to garberator route. Thanks for taking the time and sharing. Would love your standard recipe you follow too! 👍🏻
fantastic setup and great if you can get the apples for cheaper than retail, otherwise a gallon of martinelli's NOT from concentrate is about $8 and i can't get 10# apples that cheap. granted the juice is filtered and pasteurized, but it's not stabilized and therefore not a problem. basically proceed with it as you would fresh-pressed. still beats $10 for a 6-pack of hard cider.
Where did you get the main frame that houses the press? Have a link? Very impressive man.
The press is sold as a single unit. You can find it at Harbor Freight:
www.harborfreight.com/12-ton-shop-press-33497.html
Great process, I have a few questions.
1. Its been 5 years, Are you still using this technique or have you made any changes?
2. The lunch trays, did you alter them in anyway? they look like they are just placed upside down.
3. How long do you leave the apple pulp under pressure??
4. How long did the disposal last?
5. How many layers do you get before the disposal gets to hot?
6. How do you sanitize the press cloth?
Thanks for the questions.
1. I have since moved on to commercial scale processing equipment for a small cider business, but I still use this press when I'm traveling and for small batches with friends. It continues to work great exactly as shown in this video.
2. The lunch trays are unaltered. You are correct that I just place them upside down. I use the cut up bread trays for the first two trays to give the lunch trays a bit more space to squeeze together before contacting the bottom of the press.
3. The pressing itself doesn't take very long. Most of the time is spent in the set-up. Once the stack has been completely compressed and the juice flow slows down noticeably, it's time to start the next run.
4. I'm still using the same disposal shown in this video. It overheated once while grinding some particularly dense and dry crabapples, but it turned on by re-setting the heat switch after letting it cool for about 15 minutes. I find that it doesn't overheat when I'm working by myself, but when I have help, I have to make sure not to run it too hard since all of the processes move faster with extra hands.
5. I generally stop adding layers to the stack when they fill the vertical space and the stack begins to become unwieldy. The disposal isn't the limiting factor there.
6. I wash the press cloth before I start with a pressure washer and then sanitize the press cloth with Starsan sanitizer. After I'm finished pressing, I pressure wash the cloth and hang it to dry.
Excellent tutorial, thank you!
Great video, thanks for putting it together and sharing it.
Need to make a design change and put your mashed pulp in a smaller surface area and you’ll get a more effective press. Your on the right track!
dude, get some linen (real linen cloth) and pack those levels more than 2" thick. The cloths soak up negligable amounts of juice.
Is that what you use on your press? What weight of linen cloth do you use?
At what point do you get diminishing returns on the thickness of the levels?
love the setup
Interested in apple juice making?ruclips.net/video/jZdYpbwntdU/видео.html
Great video. Makes sense. Why not core the apple? Should one be worried about the amygdalin content within the apple seeds? What is the hydrometer reading on your freshly squeezed apple juice, before adding any extra anything?
You could of course core the apples that you press, but it would be a monumental task if you were pressing anything more than a bushel or two of apples. The seeds are mostly not crushed by the garbage disposal ( The hundreds of seedling apple trees in my back yard growing from my composted pomace are proof of that). Furthermore, the seeds are left behind while pressing due to the filtering effect of the press cloths. I have never heard of a commercial cider facility coring their apples, so I think the amygdalin that passes into the juice from broken seeds is so minimal as to not be considered.
The apples I use come from un-irrigated wild apple trees growing at 6,000 feet of elevation, so they are much more concentrated in both sugars and flavor than standard store-bought apples. I generally end up with a SG of approximately 1.065. The apples I use average 15 Brix with the resulting cider coming out around 8% ABV. Store-bought apples usually come in around 1.045 SG in my experience.
@@skimack good info to know. I haven't ground nor pressed apple juice. I'll look for the equipment. Many apple orchards in Michigan. Thanks again
Where did you that many apples from? Do you grow your own or go to the farm?
I collect apples from wild trees that grow in the forest around the town I live in. I'm in the process of starting a small orchard, but until that develops, I've had good luck foraging fruit from wild trees and abandoned orchards in my area. If you don't have wild trees in your area, ask around to see if anyone you know has apple trees growing in their yard. A full size tree will produce over one hundred pounds of fruit on a good year, and people may be happy to share the bounty.
Great information! Thanks and thumbs up. I do have one question. Do the apple seeds get ground up and would that affect the cider taste?
Some seeds get ground up, but most seem to pass through the grinder without getting damaged. I do not think that the few seeds that get damaged by the grinder contribute to the cider's taste at all.
I'm discovering your video late but I hope you'll answer my question anyway. Fantastic setup! I'm converting from. A basket press to this approach. Q: how long did you make the 3/4" plywood board you use as a base? Q: would you do anything differently if you were doing it again? Thank you for sharing your creativity with us!
Hi Greg - thanks for the comment! I sized the base plywood board to match my juice collection tray keeping in mind that I would need a two inch overhang at the end to allow the spout to fit at the end. My juice tray is 26" long, and I think my base board is about 24" long. I would not do anything differently if I was rebuilding the press again today. The press and grinder are still working great, and I have not needed to replace any parts or items from the originals.
I'm curious how much pressure was needed to compress the mash. Can you estimate the force needed and at what distance on the handle? I'm considering a reciprocating mechanism instead of using the handle. Thanks for providing this video!
Hello, if I recall, this press generates approximately 100psi over the pressing area. I've come across some research that shows that 100psi results in maximum juice output from the apple pulp. You can still get high yields, up to 60% with only 50psi, but the returns diminish as you generate more pressure beyond that. The handle on the pump is about 12 inches long. Each pump of the jack when the stack is fully compressed probably requires about 20lbs of force at the end of the handle. Hope that helps.
So, it seems the 12 ton is actually better than the 20 lb press. If u were to do this again would you still buy the 12 ton press?
100 psi is optimal. I use a 20 ton jack because my press area is larger, but it still works out to 100 psi.
Thank you for the reference! Al Yelvington
Thanks for the inspiration and for sharing so much knowledge Al!
Looks great! Can you provide links to some of the supplies? Food trays, cutting board, garbage disposal, etc. thanks!
Sure Thing:
Garbage disposal: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000DZGN7Q/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Aluminum funnel: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0030OVB6A/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Foot pedal: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000LJNJOE/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Shade cloth: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000P7JL0S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Juice collection tray: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0041P2B7A/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
"rack" trays to separate the layers in the press: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002XYGJBU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Watch out for off flavours from the petrol or diesel in the car . In. The water industry we are warned not to have plastic pipe near petrol or diesel cans because the pipe absorbs odours and can give off flavour for ages into the water.
Doesn't seem like the insides of the disposal would be food safe. Any thoughts on this?
This particular garbage disposal has all stainless steel grinding components. I definitely recommend that. I also ran a batch of apples and soapy water through the machine when I first purchased it to remove any residues or grime from the manufacturing process. I feel comfortable with that level of safety for myself and my family, but only you can determine what you consider safe.
@@skimack Thanks for the reply. I'm looking for an efficient way to grind and juice prickly pears. This whole process seems brilliant and definitely worth giving a shot.
Did you include any part of the rubber sink baffle, or a rubber gasket in your disposal table? Are stems okay to go in the disposal?
The disposal is installed in the little structure I made exactly as it would be on a sink, so all gaskets and fastening parts are installed per the instructions however, I did not include the baffle in order to make it easier to drop apples in.
Stems are fine for the disposal and they are filtered out by the press cloths when pressing.
Here are some problems I had grinding apples with a 1/2 hp Insinkerator Badger disposal unit. First was overheating the motor during sustained use. This motor doesn't have an internal fan. I guess it keeps from overheating by being used intermittently plus having water flushing through it. My setup had a kitchen sink with the disposal mounted conventionally. This would have worked great if it wasn't for the internal thermal switch tripping off. Another issue that popped up was the apples ground with the disposal came out as mush. This would have been fine if my pressing was done like skimack's but I was using the vertical, slatted wood style fruit press and the apple mush when under pressure would suddenly shoot out from between the slats, sometimes as much as five feet from the press.
Thanks for the comment Robert.
I have not had any overheating issues with my garbage disposal unit. That may be because of the foot pedal switch that lets me only run in when I need to, or because the 1 HP motor doesn't have to work as hard to crush the apples.
You're correct that the very fine pulp generated by the garbage disposal grinder requires a fine mesh cloth bag to keep the pulp contained during pressing. The 90% shade cloth I use has worked great for that. I've also heard that people have good luck with strong curtain fabric from fabric stores.
I grind with a chipper/shredder that I bought at a garage sale. Works pretty well, but have encourage the apples to drop a lot like skimack does.
ET2020 what sort of chipper shredder have you gotten? Seems like it might handle more than the waste king did for us. Is it hard to collect the shredded apples as they come out?
Really loved the video! What size is the form (steel baking tray you cut the bottom out of)?
I think it's just a standard 12x20 pan.
Wondering if this method would work attached to a small utility sink, instead of building the wooden stand...?
That would probably work great. I built the wooden frame because I didn't have a sink, but if you have a sink and space to store a larger unit, that would be a good way to do it.
Have you ever used this set up for pressing grapes to make wine?
I have not, but it would work just as well for pressing grapes. You could even fashion a basket to hold the grape pulp like a traditional wine press if you wanted.
Interesting.. I bought an old antique press that needed a basket (123.00) press was 75.00.. Need a grinding mechanism and a pusher plate.. How much do you have in your setup ? I believe you will beat me lol.. Note - I even already have that 12 ton press.. I'm terrible at being cost efficient.. Nice Video and looking to see if you have any content on your brewing process as that interests me as well..
I'd estimate less than $300 total to put this setup together.
Good job
great video my only concern is the sanitation of the garbage disposal I myself probably would take it apart and clean it hands on
Swap it out every 2yrs only 100 bucks the press will last to eternity
Have you used the disposal after the first season? Any issues with latent contamination?
I have used the disposal and press for several years now. I have had no contamination/infection issues with the cider I make using this equipment, and I do not pasteurize or sulfite my juice before fermentation. The 2017 batch I pressed in this video is drinking great after 5 years, and I'm looking forward to aging it even further to continue to enjoy the evolution of the cider in the bottle. I have found that cider is quire resistant to infection as long as the acid and tannin content of your apples is adequate.
Do you still use this set up? Do you have your own apple trees?
I have since upgraded to a commercial setup with multiple hydro-presses and a purpose-built apple grinder made by Speidel. I still use this exact setup from time to time for small batches or for pressing in remote areas. The entire system fits in the back of my subaru with space to spare which has been great for press parties with friends who live far away. I don't yet have my own orchard, but I intend to purchase land and plant my orchard in the next few years.
nice forester xt
5mt transmission too! One of the unicorns.
Is all the plastic in the line of flow food grade?
All of the collection tray and the rack trays on my press are food grade. The press cloths themselves are not "food grade" but polyethylene is non-reactive and safe for contact with food based on my research. Do your own research and make decisions that you're comfortable with for you and your family. It's the same situation for the garbage disposal components. The nice thing about setting up your own system like this is that you can source the materials you prefer based on your budget and your comfort level while you're setting it up.
Would this work with mangos?
I'm not sure. I wonder if the softer fruit would clog the press cloth.
Very smart
Uni-strut. Super strut is a brand
Damnnnnnn.....I gotta go spend some $$ now
Any issues with codling moth larvae? Is your disposer all stainless or does this matter? I apologize if you’ve stated this but your racks are what? Thank you.
I use all foraged apples that are not pruned or sprayed, so codling moth is present in many of the trees. I will cut out any obvious damage I see to the apples, but you can't get them all. Since I ferment the juice, I don't worry about the odd bug hole that slips through - it doesn't seem to make a difference in the final product.
The disposal has a stainless steel grinding components and a polymer housing. Stainless or polymer are fine, but the acid in the apples would react with any non-stainless steel or iron and could produce metallic flavors in the finished product.
The racks are just lunch trays. You can find the ones I used here: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002XYGJBU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Things only "pay for themselves" if you would've spent that money on the alternative. Most people aren't gonna spend $500 a year on commercial hard cider. But if you can make it DIY on the cheap, you'll happily drink it.
composte or compost?
Compost always but I'm English so ya know....