Filter Paper or No Filter Paper — The Pros and Cons

When you boil it all down, your oil filtration practices can be a huge drain on time, labor, energy, and even profits. At the same time, if you don’t maintain clean oil that’s ideal for frying your customer’s favorite foods, you’ll be doing them a disservice and likely losing business as well as missing the opportunity to extend your oil life and reduce your considerable oil costs.

So, if we all agree that oil filtration is important, what is the best way to achieve it? There are two main options to consider — filtration using filter paper or filtration without it. Let’s take a quick look at the pros and cons of both.

THE PROS OF LEAVING OUT FILTER PAPER

Filter paper is, of course, an additional expense for your operation. Estimates show that operators can save on average of $2 per day when opting for paperless filtering, and this also saves time when staff doesn’t need to change filter paper. This can lead to higher oil program compliance by eliminating the headache of changing paper.

Pitco offers a paperless filter assembly that comes apart so the internal stainless layers are easily accessible for cleaning. This can be a great way to filter oil without the need for daily filter paper changes, though even with a paperless filter, it is highly recommended to perform daily cleaning of the assembly as well as the filter drawer. Operators will often scoop excess sediment off the top of the paperless filter assembly, though, which is quick and convenient when compared to changing your filter paper every day.

THE CONS OF PAPERLESS OIL FILTRATION

Unfortunately, things are never as black and white as we’d like them to be sometimes. Paperless options certainly do come with higher upfront costs and there are a few advantages to using a paper filter as part of your overall process. Paperless filter assembly can filter particles down to 100 microns, while filter paper from Pitco can filter it down to 30 microns. This means more sediment is captured, which leads to cleaner oil, better tasting food and ultimately longer oil life.

Every action taken to reduce sediment in the oil like avoiding the filling fry baskets directly over the oil, skimming the oil, regular filtration, daily cleaning of the filter drawer, considering the use of Filter Aid (powder), all contribute to cleaner oil, better tasting food and ultimately longer oil life and its subsequent savings!

So what should you choose? Paperless filtering or paper filters?

The choice is entirely yours. There are clearly pros and cons for both cases, and our team of experts here at Pitco is standing by to help you make the decision. Feel free to schedule a quick fryer consultation from one of our experts, who will help you determine which style is right for the unique challenges of your operation.