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Receiving Hoppers & Incline Conveyors

The 6' horizontal receiving hopper or the incline belt conveyor, or both. A constant, regulated flow of fruit is the key to the best results from your destemmer.

Hopper or Belt? Or Both?

There are two ways to feed your crush pad a steady, gentle flow of fruit, and many wineries use both:

6' Horizontal Receiving HopperIncline Belt Conveyor
Best forDumping half-ton bins on the flyFruit that's raked or dropped in, and changing the height of incoming fruit
How it moves fruitOversized, flight-edged, seamless augerVariable-speed belt with cupped cleats that hold juice
HeightDischarge adjusts from 62¾" to 107¾" with a forkliftScrew jack raises or lowers the discharge
Use bothReceive with the hopper, then lift with the belt, for example from a sorting table or destemmer to the press or fermentor.

The Carlsen 6' Horizontal Receiving Hopper

Carlsen 6-foot horizontal receiving hopper

The most valuable piece of crush equipment on the planet.

How would you like to see 90% of the result of sorting simply by supplying your destemmer with a constant, regulated flow of grapes? Designed for dumping half-ton bins into on the fly, the Carlsen 6-foot horizontal receiving hopper is the key to the best results from your destemmer.

By supplying the destemmer with a specific flow rate of grapes, the operator can dial in the perfect speed at the destemmer. With hand-picked fruit, this can minimize the need for sorting. It saves labor and increases the quality of the destemmed fruit.

This Hopper Can Deliver

  • Whole cluster fruit to the press
  • Fermented red must to the press
  • Fruit to the destemmer crusher
  • Fruit to a sorting table

Height adjustments are made easily with the supplied forklift pockets, so the hopper works with your other crush equipment. Discharge height adjusts from 62¾ to 107¾ inches.

6' Receiving Hopper Specifications

6' Receiving HopperSpecification
Throughput1 to 15 tons per hour, depending on your forklift delivery
Hopper holds½ ton of hand-picked fruit or drained pomace
Hopper size72" × 72" at the top
Overall length133½" including the discharge
Discharge height62¾" to 107¾", adjustable in 5" steps
Rim (infeed) height116¾" to 139¾"
AugerReplaceable, with flight edging; hinged top cover and removable front cover
ConstructionAll stainless steel; forklift pockets
DriveVariable speed control; single or three phase
OptionsRemote start/stop with 50' cord; acrylic mirror on the mast to see into the hopper from the ground or forklift; magnet for machine-harvested fruit

Is It Gentle on Grapes?

A horizontal, tight-fitting, flight-edged, polished, oversized, continuously welded, seamless shaft auger is not harming the fruit. There is no pinch zone between the hopper floor and the screw, and negligible, if any, increase in solids. The bunches slide easily on the polished stainless interior, so the energy used to move the fruit isn't wasted.

This design is gentler than hand-raking fruit out of a bin into the destemmer. It is also much more efficient, and that saves labor. The grapes don't know they weren't dropped into the destemmer or press by hand.

Flight-edged seamless auger inside the hopper
Flight-edged, seamless, continuously welded, and super gentle.
Receiving hopper discharge
The hood opens for cleaning and inspection.

The Carlsen Incline Belt Conveyor

An alternative to the horizontal hopper, or a partner to it.

Carlsen incline belt conveyor feeding a destemmer

The last word in gentle mechanical movement of grapes. The American-made incline belt conveyor is variable speed with single- or three-phase power, which makes it very versatile anywhere you need to change the height of incoming fruit. A manual hydraulic ram raises or lowers the discharge height.

  • Feed a destemmer or press
  • Receive from a sorting table
  • Receive from a destemmer
  • Feed a fermentor
  • Cupped belt cleats hold juice
  • Metered, variable-speed feed

This is not automated crush equipment or a labor-less system. There will be some care required to drop the correct amount of fruit into the intake.

Incline Belt Conveyor Specifications

Incline Belt ConveyorSpecification
Throughput1 to 10 tons per hour
Discharge height90" to 123", adjusted with a screw jack (optional drill adapter)
Standard hopperAbout 30" × 38"; fits under a destemmer to load tanks or presses
Optional large hopperAbout 64⅜" wide × 59" long
Motor2 HP with variable frequency drive; single or three phase
BeltFood-grade nitrile belt with alligator lacing; curved cleats, 2" high, bonded on 12" centers; adjustable belt tension; belt scraper on the return side
DischargeFood-grade flexible discharge chute
ConstructionStainless steel frame and body; open design for cleanup; cleanout port at the base; stainless steel casters with brakes