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Apple Press Kit Step-by-step Instructions

Before you start Juicing

    • Prepare your fruit, ensuring it is clean, free from rot or excessive bruising. You do not need to pre-cut the apples
    • Set up your pasteurisers so they can be heating up while you are doing your first pressing:
      • Fill with water to approximately one third full  (using hot water can be helpful) and put the lids on.
      • Plug in and switch on, ensuring that:
      • The thermostat is set to 75 degrees
      • The timer is set to “continuous”

Stage One: Milling

SAFETY PRECAUTIONS:

    • The machine is deemed not suitable for use by children under 16 years of age. Small children must be kept away from the machine when the blades are exposed for cleaning.

Note: The machine is fitted with an interlocking safety switch so the motor will not operate unless the hopper is correctly clamped in place.

    • Do not carry the mill base without using the provided, marked, occasionally split, flexi-bucket to cover the blades to reduce the risk of serious injury
    • Do not spray water into the motor housing.
    • Never attempt to start the motor with fruit in the mill.
    • Never reach into the filler opening.
    • Never introduce foreign objects into the appliance
    • The mill is designed for use with apples and pears. It is not suitable for use with fruit containing stones.

OPERATION:

    • Place the mill on a clean, level surface. Connect the power cable to a standard 13 amp socket.
    • Check the three hopper retaining catches are engaged and securely holding the yellow part in place.
    • Place a green bucket under the pulp discharge chute.
    • Switch on the mill motor by pressing the green ON button. Wait until the motor is running at full speed before introducing any fruit
    • Pour fruit into the hopper a little at a time, taking care not to overload the motor.
    • If juice or pulp escapes around the edge of the housing the catches must be tightened to give a tighter fit.

IMPORTANT: Start the mill before filling it, and only switch off after complete processing of the load, otherwise difficulties may be experienced when restarting

CLEANING:

Check the end of the Press instructions for a video about cleaning both the mill and press.

    • Wash the mill immediately after the final use in any pressing session, before the pulp has dried.
    • With the mill running, use a normal garden hose to run water down the inside of the hopper. This will flush the bulk of the residual pulp.
    • Turn off the mill and disconnect from the power supply. Undo the three hopper retaining catches and lift off the hopper. WARNING! This will expose the very sharp mill blades.
    • Using a normal garden hose with water running at a trickle and a nylon kitchen dish brush, carefully clean the blade assembly and the inside of the milling chamber.
    • You can use an old thin cloth under the blades to ensure no pulp is left to dry underneath as this can cause the mill to fail.
    • Do not let water run into the small hole in the motor housing that gives access to the cut-off safety switch.
    • Protect this locating hole with a strip of duct tape or similar waterproof tape, a blob of blu-tac can also be used.
    • Do not spray water onto the switch and power socket.

Note: You will need roughly one and a half flexi buckets of pulp to fill a 40 litre press.

Stage two: Juicing

SAFETY PRECAUTIONS.
Important: For safety reasons, press the air release plunger until water runs out (see below).

    • The rubber membrane should be protected from sharp objects.
      • NOTE: The Press must only be transported fully assembled to prevent damage to both the bladder and the cylinder

OPERATION:

    • If you have been supplied with a set of “legs” place these on each of the press fitted legs to raise the height of the press – this is particularly beneficial if you wish to press directly into a barrel.
    • Place a green flexi bucket, or other suitable container under the juice outlet. Keep a spare container to hand to replace the full one. 
    • You will find in your kit a large funnel with a plastic insert (2 pieces either red, white or black) with a mesh bag that your press liner will have been supplied in, sandwich this between the 2 sections of plastic insert and place in the funnel (see photos included on the right hand side if viewing on a desktop or scroll down to the photos for examples of this if viewing this page on a mobile – it is also explained on the video clip).
      • NOTE: The funnel insert plastic doesn’t cope too well with hot water so please only rinse in cold water
    • There is a separate coarse piece of filter fabric which is recommended to place in the top of the funnel as well.
    • If using a flexi tub to collect your juice, it can help to use string between the handles to create a support for the funnel so you don’t have to hold it in place during the juicing process.

Note: Juice will flow freely before pressing so be ready with a collecting container before putting any pulp in the press!

    • Insert the pressing bag into the cylinder spreading the bottom out and folding the top over the rim of the press cylinder.
    • Pour fruit pulp evenly into the basket, using the supplied scoops, firming it down with your hand until the cylinder is full to the level of the top of the rubber membrane.
    • Fold the cloth over the top of the pulp.
    • Fit the lid onto the cylinder. Replace the washer and securely tighten the nut.
    • Turn on the water supply and depress the air release button in the centre of the lid until water escapes from around the button — then release the button.
    • The rate of pressing can be controlled by regulating the water pressure in the membrane — simply open or close the water supply.

Note: A slower, more gradual pressing will yield more juice.

    • Once the fruit pulp yields no more juice shut off the water supply.

Note: You may notice the pressure release valve under the press starting to spray at this point

    • Open the drain valve to empty out the rubber membrane until water ceases to flow out of the drain.

Note: Allowing the press to remain at full pressure (before releasing the water) for several minutes will help ensure maximum juice is gained from the pulp.

    • Remove the lid, lift off the cylinder with the liner sack and pulp inside (easiest done with two people, easing the base of the cylinder up and pushing the liner fabric under the pulp before then lifting straight upwards), once free of the press the pulp often slides with relative ease out of the cylinder/liner into your waiting vessel.

CLEANING

    • Wash the press immediately after the final use in a pressing session, before the pulp has dried.
    • Disassemble the press and use a low pressure hose and a nylon brush to clean thoroughly.
    • Rinse with fresh water
    • For returning the kit please make sure you remove the hose as leaving it on the press can cause kinks which cause it to split.
    • Please also ensure the press is assembled before transporting – this prevents distortion of the stainless cylinder and prevents potential damage to the water bladder.

Stage three: Bottling and Pasteurising

If you are pressing your apples to make cider you are likely to press directly into a fermenting vessel in so this part of the process will not apply.

SAFETY PRECAUTIONS:

    • This gets hot!
    • Never move the equipment once full with hot water, so take care to situate it in the right place before starting
    • It is best to plug directly into a main socket rather than using an extension lead as this can lead to tripping of electricity supply or blowing fuses.

PREPARATION:

    • Bottles should be filled to approx. one inch below the brim – normally the base of the neck of the bottle.

Note: Heating the juice causes it to expand hence not filling the bottle to the top.

    • Use only clean bottles – the equipment will kill yeast to stop the juice fermenting but will not be effective against dirt!
    • Bottles should have the lids loosely fitted to allow air to escape when heated.

OPERATION:

IMPORTANT: Never turn the equipment on without some water inside. Always fill with water BEFORE plugging in the pasteurisers. The photo of melted trivets show why this is really important to remember! 

(Some of the following steps will have been completed before you started pressing)

    • Place the pasteuriser on a level surface.
    • Fill approximately one third full (if you heat the water in a kettle first this will save a lot of time)
    • Now connect the power cable to a standard plug socket.
    • Place the bottles into the urn. You should be able to fit 14 at a time.
    • If the water in the pasteuriser does not reach the level of the fluid inside the bottles add some more – if it is too full then pour some out using the tap.
    • Fit the lid
    • Turn the temperature dial to 75°C
    • Set the Timer on the pasteuriser to the “Continuous” position – anti-clockwise until it clicks.

Note: You can use the timer on the pasteuriser however it doesn’t give you any indication when the set time has completed, and once it has finished it will start cooling down meaning you need to re-heat the pasteuriser to do the next batch of bottles – hence we recommend the next step instead:

    • Use a kitchen timer or phone to set an alarm for 25-30 minutes once you’ve put the juice-filled bottles in the urn.
    • Once the timer has finished dip test a couple of bottles to check they’re at 75°C. Set the timer for a further 3 minutes to be certain the juice is fully pasteurised.
    • Invert the bottle to sterilise the lid with the hot liquid.
    • It is advised to allow the bottles to cool lying on their sides.

CLEANING:

    • Empty the water using the tap.
    • Once the equipment has cooled down rinse with warm water

Please do not put the lead and plug inside the pasteuriser where it can get wet, instead loop it through one of the handles as it was when you collected it.

 Your juice will keep best if stored in a cool dark place and assuming you have correctly pasteurised the juice – as described above – it should keep for up to two years although when selling our own juice we put a “best-before date” of a year post-production.

Experience has shown us in recent years that there appears to be a limited life for re-using bottles. It seems there are a finite number of times that they will tolerate being re-used (particularly heated in the pasteurisers) and in recent years we have seen a few bottles fail during pasteurising as a result. 

If you plan to re-use your bottles for next years juice it’s much easier to rinse the bottle as soon as it’s been emptied than it is to clean out dried on sediment!

Bottling Kit Instructions

If you have also hired the bottling kit you will get an additional set of equipment that should include:

    • A pump
    • 3 hoses
    • 2 plastic 30ltr barrels
    • 1 Siphon bottling unit – comprising:
      • A stainless steel reservoir on legs, with ball valve float switch
      • 2 Stainless filling arms
      • 1 pin to hold the filling arms in place
      • 1 lid to cover the juice
      • 1 wooden base to help stabilise the bottling unit
    • A washer (vital piece of kit, easily lost!)

The Pump

Priming the pump:

    • Before connecting the 2 larger hoses to the pump
    • Pour some water into the tube the hoses connect to
    • Then connect the hoses.
    • Place the filter end in the vessel that has collected the juice from the press and the other hose in the “top” barrel.

Note: Do not push hose too far into barrel or juice may siphon back when pump is turned off!

Before you use the pump:

    • You will want your 2nd barrel set up on a higher level so that the juice can siphon from this barrel into the bottling unit when you’re ready.
    • Connect the smaller hose with the orange end to the barrel, leaving the black end to attach to the top of the bottling unit
    • On the bottling unit you will see the nut holding the top of the ball valve in place (this is adjustable if you find it isn’t letting enough juice in or too much) – on that nut you will find a washer which you’ll need to take off the nut (unscrew and hold the ball valve to stop it dropping)
    • Place this black washer into the end of the small hose before attaching to the inlet pipe on the top of the bottling unit.

Now you can:

    • Switch on the pump with the 2 way switch at the back of the pump  in the direction you want the juice to flow (please make sure your hands are dry).
    • Turn off the pump when insufficient juice left to pump.

Using the Bottling Unit

    • Before you use the unit you will want to make sure the 2 stainless steel arms are fitted onto the unit, by sliding the pin through the hole at the front of the unit and through the holes on the bracket of each arm .
    • Once set up you can open the barrel tap and juice should flow down to bottling unit, by gravity.
    • Once the reservoir tank is full lower one of the arms and suck through some juice then lift arm up while maintaining vacuum.
    • Repeat for other arm.
    • Slide a bottle onto one or both arms and then lower down so the bottle is held in place at the neck by the metal plate.
    • The bottle should now start to fill. Filling will automatically stop when the bottle is full.
    • Once full lift bottle and slide off while lifting the fill arm held up.
    • Repeat until finished!

Cleaning

    • Once finished the easiest way to clean all items is to flush water through all the hoses, running the pump to take water through the hoses on there, and then flushing water through the barrels.
    • The bottling unit can be fully submerged in water – please don’t use detergent, plain water is sufficient to clean the juice. 
    • Ensure the filling arms are removed and flushed through fully with water as well – they are not easy to clean and can end up with some muck getting left behind if not thoroughly flushed through.

Any problems?

If you are unsure at any time about any of the instructions on this page, or have any problems during your hire please don’t hesitate to give Apple Press Manager Rupert a call on 07538 303028 as he’ll always be happy to help sort out any issues.

2 Common problem areas:

    • The Mill won’t work: –
      • First things first, check the fuse on the lead as they blow very easily! 
      • Also make sure the hopper has been put on the mill with the screw into the hole for the safety cut-out switch
      • If neither of these sort the problem, give Rupert a call!
    • Pasteurisers:
      • The biggest problem with these is when they’re plugged into an extension lead as this often results in tripped electrics so try to always plug in to a main socket to avoid this.