Family have an excess of apples and pears. Rather than filling the compost heap, it struck me that a small sized press might be just the job…

Does anyone on here use such a thing, or have any recommendations?

Got a small vigo press and crusher one and it works well or though we now need a new one after some years of use. Just bottled up 50 odd L from last year actually! You will also need a crusher as you will not be able to press the apples without first crushing them. There are also loads of DIY ones just google, but our small vigo one has been ok.

Sorry for bringing up an old thread but what did you end up going for in the end? I am after a used cider press myself after many years of indecisiveness…

I use a 5-litre basket press off eBay to make around 100 litres a year. Works perfectly well but can imagine I’d need to step it up if I pressed much more. I also got a manual scratter off eBay too (£100), like a giant round cheese grater with a handle.

Have a trawl round local facebook groups and google. There’s a couple of communal presses round here so I’d expect it’s not uncommon. Sometimes there’s a nominal charge, sometimes the owner takes a % of the juice, sometimes it’s free because the press is owned by an allotment association or somesuch.

Hmmmm,

Apples and pears are starting to swell up now – looks like a good crop 🙂

So, right time to look at some crushing and pressing kit. A bit of googling suggests that smaller ones are quite reasonably priced, but stepping up to 12 or 18L presses escalates the price significantly.

Now, it worries me that with a 5-6L press I’d end up messing around for ages and ages…

would that be right?

And once pressed, is it a question of adding the juice to a large 25L wine fermenting barrel and letting it ferment out?