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| Tarleton's Apple Juicer Plans |
 1. This juicer is made from a Maytag Top Loading Washer. Top is discarded. Agitator is discarded. Motor is set in the spin only position (a little difficult for Maytag washers, follow electrical plan on inside of front panel). Note the pipe handle and wheels for moving the juicer, tilt like a refrigerator dolly. |
2. Build a juicer top that mounts to the top of the washer tank. A ¾" piece of plywood makes a good top with a half tire (not a steel belted radial as the wires stick out to cut you during juicing) for the funnel. Make a Push Stick to force the apples down the hole on to the Shredder. Make a Shredder Nut Remover to allow the retainer nut to be removed for tank cleaning. |
 3. The Shredder Pipe is 4" sewer plastic pipe screwed to the top plywood and has 2 metal strap retainers. Note the notched rim of the tank top where the metal is bent at 90°. I did that to keep the lid at a set distance from the Shredder Disk. Too close and the pipe gets shredded. Too far away, the apples don't get fully shredded. Measure the pipe length after the lid is completed and cut to fit. |
 4. The tank drain hose can be made from a car radiator or hardware store plastic hose. I removed the washer pump and drain the tank directly. Drain the juice into a 3 gallon pail with cheese cloth cover. The cheese cloth catches most of the bigger apple chunks that get through the washer basket during centrifugation. |
Top of Shredder Disk with Retainer Nut
Bottom of Shredder Disk |
A Shredder Disk replaces the agitator. This disk can be made of ½" or ¾" plywood. The center hole should be fitted to the agitator retainer washer so there is a good fit and no wobble of the Shredder Disk when locked in place with a retaining nut.
I turned the disk on a wood lathe to get a good fit of the retainer washer. The washer was then held in place with the epoxy glue, J-B Weld (wonderful stuff!). I used almost 200 stainless steel screws to do the apple shredding. These screws need to be long enough to project through the plywood about ¼". The screws are round head so they stop when installed. This allows them to be all the same height. The holes for the screws must be pre-drilled. If they are not pre-drilled the Shredder Disk plywood will warp badly. After the screws were installed I coated the disk on both sides with casting resin to allow easier cleaning. Some additional tips: The Washer tank and basket must be thoroughly cleaned. There will be a lot of scum build up in an old washer. Install an off/on switch and good grounding. Try and use the juicer in a dry area trying to keep the mess down as bees and flies will love this process. A cool morning is the best time to juice. You should be able to make about 10 gallons of juice an hour with this machine. Turn off the juicer after each 5 gallons of apples, remove the top and clean out the remaining pulp by hand before juicing another 5 gallons of apples (I have been told that cows love the pulp). I let the juice settle over night in a refrigerator then pasteurize in capped champagne bottles the next day or freeze in jugs. Wash and rinse the juicer after each use so fruit and juice will not dry on it. Be careful not to get the motor or electrical wiring wet. |
Bill 