Hand-crank grinders, electric apple grinders, and basket, bladder and hydraulic presses are types of equipment for crushing and pressing apples into juice or cider. Normally used together, apple grinders crush the fruit, and presses squeeze the juice from the apple pomace.Continue Reading
Hand-crank grinders have baskets or hoppers with teethed cylinders inside. A crank on the outside of the hopper rotates the cylinder and crushes pieces of fruit. Electric grinders use high voltage motors and can crush a bushel of apples in 90 seconds.
Basket presses consist of steel frames, slatted, wooden baskets and cross pieces. A screw attached to the crosspiece puts pressure on a plate inside the basket, incrementally exerting pressure on apple pomace. Cheese cloth lines the interior of the basket to prevent solid pieces of apple or seeds from escaping. Juice runs out of the basket into a collection bin at the bottom of the frame.
A bladder press squeezes apple pomace against the outer ring of a cylinder. Holes allow juice to funnel through into a collecting container. Hydraulic presses process large amounts of fruit in industrial and high-volume operations. Apple cider mills combine upper hand-crank grinders that deposit crushed pomace directly into presses for two-person operation.Learn more about Kitchen