Filter Tank
The plan for this came out of necessity. The problem was how to suspend the 8 quart felt filter along with 3 or 4 paper filters? Buying a stainless steel tank for several hundred dollars was not an option. We tried using 2 wooden dowels and drilling holes in buckets. We also tried clothes pins to the side of buckets. Neither worked very well and when it did the bottom of the filters were touching the syrup before it all went through. We needed to come up with something that was taller and allowed for a more secure way to attached / hold the filters in place. After several attempts this is what we came up with and have been using it successfully for the past 8 years. It will hold 3 gallons of syrup before coming close to the bottom of the filters.
Materials:
1 - 6 or 7 gallon plastic pail with lid (a good place to find these is from anyone who makes wine from concentrate)
1 - 1 gallon plastic pail (see your local bakery - buttercream and fondant come in these or if you buy large pails of peanut butter)
4 - small 2" spring clamps (can be found at your local building supply store or hardware store)
Step One:
Cut 1" off the bottom of the 1 gallon pail. To do this I drew a line with a fine marker around the pail, drilled a 1/2" hole just below it and then used a fine toothed blade in a jigsaw to make the cut. You could also cut it off using a table saw just watch out for it binding.
Step two:
Place the cover on the 6 gallon pail. Now put the 1 gallon pail on top of it with the bottom side down (where you just cut it). Trace the outside edge with a fine marker. Again using your drill and jigsaw cutout the circle you just drew. Try and stay on the line and keep it as even as possible.
Step Three:
Take the one gallon pail and push it into the hole you just cut in the cover of the 6 gallon pail. Push down firmly but not so much as to bend or deform either the pail or cover. You will have anywhere from an inch and half to two inches sticking through the cover.
Step Four:
Take an 8 quart felt or synthetic cone type filter and place it down inside the 1 gallon pail. Leaving about 2 inches sticking out the top fold it down around the top of the pail. Put your 3 or 4 paper filters inside. Clamp the filters to the pail using the spring clamps. When the paper filters are new you will be able to get 3 on, and after they are broken in you will be able to attach 4.
I usually poor hot water/sap through all the filters after attaching and let the hot water sit in the pail until it is time to filter. This will keep everything warm and all I do is toss out the water/sap in the bottom. I bring the finished syrup a little beyond the correct density since the filters hold a lot of water and this balances it out.
If you have heavy niter/sugar sand like we do you can easily pick up the top paper filter and pour everything into the next one and so fourth until it goes through. However, if you want syrup to package in glass be patient and let it sit even it take a a long time.