Spun up a CUP 15 for the first time this today! Looks like the right tool.
We’ve got a ways to go to make the process flow smoothly, but I’d say it worked ok as a first attempt.
Not super impressed with the filter unit they bundle with it. 1gal hold-up volume will work ok when I’m running 100gal through the filter at a time, but it sucks when I’m only running 10gal through there.
Unfortunately, because someone seems to have injected ball-bearings (probably kief) into my GC column, I couldn’t analyse any of the samples we took today, so I learned waaaay less than I was hoping.
Delta did not have data on solvent temp & dwell time vs extraction efficiency. I was hoping to make a start on that today. Anyone else have data they’re willing to share?
I don’t have direct data on this but I find I get most of my cannabinoid extracted at -50F with a 10-12min soak and no agitation.
I ran a 10:1 butane isomers to material ratio to ensure a full-pull and compared values to my ethanol at -50F at varying soak times. I find that with good material, I can do 38lb(5 gallons) etoh to 6lb material and soak it with material 3 times (so 18lb per 5 gallons etoh) with that soak time mentioned above and still pull most of the cannabinoids. Ive tried doing multiple hour long soaks while maintaining etoh temp and it doesnt seem to pull anything less/more.
we got ours in the door for $61k including the filter unit. (so $55k on the centrifuge). If I can get 200lb through it in a day, in 100gal of solvent ,and recover 94% of my solvent, rather than 90%, I’m saving $200 a day in solvent. it should pay for itself within the year on solvent savings alone. Delta claim 98% recovery.
I was trying to get that data today. -40C solvent. 10gal over 8lbs. four times. looking for the sweet spot.
last time I got kief in GC column I eventually gave up and purchased a new one. I’ve ordered a new one, but will beat my head against the old one again tomorrow. Backflushing is the right response, but I didn’t have joy last time I tried it.
Can you get a 98% solvent recovery with the rpms they run? I get a little over 98% with my 3200rpm spin dryer. Curious to see if the 1200ish rpm they run is enough.
Does 200lb a day seem doable in that system? With my bucket tek I am able to run 60lb an hour. Wondering if the cup would even speed up extraction for me, not just make it easier to do.
you got a link to that spin dryer?
what is the rotor diameter?
EDIT: radius is in cm here where version posted in other thread uses mm!
and here’s a handy calculator: RPM / RCF conversion
we got maybe 900rpm today. I think it’s a 14" basket.
8lb per run. 30min per run. => 128lb which was where we were today.
so the trick is to reduce cycle time below 18min. which seems doable. but will probably require sacrificing some solvent.
We could easily have gotten 10lb in there, but that was because the grind was too fine.
Edit: looks like the Panda spin dryer is also has an approx 14" diameter rotor
so the RPM should be usable to compare them directly.
Edit: you could throw a Panda away every day for a year and still come out on top…especially with Delta’s current pricing.
That Panda is what im rocking right now. Its a huge pain in the ass, labor wise, but it really gets the job done. We’ve made similar statements about it being disposable but its spun 100’s of lbs at this point and is holding fast.
Has anyone had any experience with a filter press? That really seems like the way to go if you’re in the the $50k+ market.
Filter press pulls a lot of components from the material you don’t want. I may custom make some bags that perfectly fit the panda spinner so that input/output of material isn’t a huge hassle. How are you handling that part right now?
I’m going to try and mod the hobart salad spinner so that I dont waste the money I spent on it. You know… as nice as that Delta Sep Cup15 is, it doesn’t seem to beat the numbers of bulk bucket tek. Update us when you get the run times down! If i get my hobart modded successfully I will let you know. Could use it to spin your run while the next one is washing. Could increase your output considerably with no solvent loss.
I was assuming that 3 or even 4 passes with the same solvent would be appropriate for my current material. not happy that I don’t have hard data on that.
Obviously we have been pitching filter presses here and we are an advocate. There are better solutions for this process but they require higher volumes, facility requirements, and specific skills that many users may not have. We recently commissioned a 5 cubic foot system and it packs over 150 pounds, making the price quite inexpensive for the volume.
Can you elaborate on what type of plates you used and if you had any automation? Just wondering why you feel it was labor intensive. Was it lack of automation or was it the feed that made it difficult to clean.
In my experience, any pressing of material I did caused it to pull more fats/waxes than it typically does. This is purely anecdotal and I don’t have any literature to backup this claim.
If you winterize, it does not make a difference. It just doesn’t work for me since I don’t winterize my cryo etoh extractions.
Well the new cup v2.0 spins at 1800 rpm. I just went over and talked to them about it. This shortens the spin speed also due to that this new one doesn’t have a ramp up time. Goes 0 to 1800 instantly. So you can do 4 runs an hour instead.
