Filling issues with 4-Head counter pressure filter

[Mark Watkins]

Anyone else have a 4-Head counter pressure filter (1) from Vigo?

We bought one new last year and struggle with getting reliable filling levels. The bottled cider foams when the valve is closed, leaving an inconsistent and incorrect filling line. Some 75cl have to be topped up, but almost every 33cl. A picture is attached showing a standard round. Each bottle was filled one by one, and yet the filling lines are all different. 

It’s frustrating, but it also slows down our bottling. Would be great to find a fix. 

I have been testing various protocols and have found that the colder the cider when bottling, the less it foams. I can typically get our ciders below 10°C at bottling, so cool but perhaps not cold enough? I put some tanks in a chest freezer once overnight and bottled at 0°C. Very little foaming then, which was great, but practically impossible to move whole batches into a chest freezer to bottle. 

Polsinelli and others sells the same style filter, so I figured maybe someone else out there has experienced the same. Could be I just need to get things colder. Any input would be appreciated.

Kindly,

Mark

(1) https://vigoltd.com/products/4-head-manual-counter-pressure-filler?srsltid=AfmBOorsXpZhFjjJ90mYwU17Qk4JS6OHOYwhbSbw7OJPFd2ycasUQhyn

—

Mark Watkins

Torheim Gard

Strynevegen 3196

Hjelledalen, 6798

(+47) 955-27-967

[rhand...@rockisland.com]

I have been in constant combat with my old CPF (not Virgo) for 20 odd years. A problem with foaming and not filling points to a problem of not having sufficient counter pressure on the fill cycle.  I would look at the CO2 pressure.

 

From: cider-w...@googlegroups.com <cider-w...@googlegroups.com> On Behalf Of Mark Watkins
Sent: Saturday, December 13, 2025 1:40 PM
To: cider-w...@googlegroups.com
Subject: [Cider Workshop] Filling issues with 4-Head counter pressure filter

 

Anyone else have a 4-Head counter pressure filter (1) from Vigo?

 

We bought one new last year and struggle with getting reliable filling levels. The bottled cider foams when the valve is closed, leaving an inconsistent and incorrect filling line. Some 75cl have to be topped up, but almost every 33cl. A picture is attached showing a standard round. Each bottle was filled one by one, and yet the filling lines are all different. 

It’s frustrating, but it also slows down our bottling. Would be great to find a fix. 

 

I have been testing various protocols and have found that the colder the cider when bottling, the less it foams. I can typically get our ciders below 10°C at bottling, so cool but perhaps not cold enough? I put some tanks in a chest freezer once overnight and bottled at 0°C. Very little foaming then, which was great, but practically impossible to move whole batches into a chest freezer to bottle. 

 

Polsinelli and others sells the same style filter, so I figured maybe someone else out there has experienced the same. Could be I just need to get things colder. Any input would be appreciated.

Kindly,

Mark

(1) https://vigoltd.com/products/4-head-manual-counter-pressure-filler?srsltid=AfmBOorsXpZhFjjJ90mYwU17Qk4JS6OHOYwhbSbw7OJPFd2ycasUQhyn

—

Mark Watkins

Torheim Gard

Strynevegen 3196

Hjelledalen, 6798

(+47) 955-27-967

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[jeff.k...@gmail.com]

Hi Mark,

I assume that the attached photo was taken some time after filling, to allow the foam to dissipate?

I have an 8-head filler and had foaming problems too.  I also found that the issue dissipated with colder cider.  My solution was to install a stainless steel chill coil I fabricated from 12mm diameter piping right inside the filler's tank.  Those pipes come in 6 m lengths, I used an off-the-shelf manual pipe bender to coil it back and forth so the whole length fit inside the tank.  I drilled inlet and outlet holes through one end of the tank, threaded them and installed pass-through fittings for 12mm piping.  Then I bought 100 liters of polypropelene glycol coolant and put it in a big tub in my chest freezer, where it gets down to -20C.  A cheap submersible garden pump drives the coolant through garden hose to the inlet, and it flows by gravity back from the outlet back to the tub.  

The whole thing works like a charm.  I get a tank of cider (60 liters in my case) down to zero Centigrade in about 10 minutes.  Then I feather the submersible pump on and off as needed to keep the temperature low for the filling run.  

I also insulated the filler tank by wrapping bubble wrap around it.  

Good luck!  Hope that helps!

/Jeff