eMaple digital refractometer

[brookledge]

Just wondering if anyone has used one and are they happy with it. It would be nice to use one if they do as they say. Test sap or syrup hot or cold and no need to compensate for temperatures.
Keith

[Bucket Head]

Is this the blue colored Misco unit? Thats what I have and I'm having issues with it. Others love them but I have many errant readings with mine. It does allright with sap and room temperature syrup, but hot or warm syrup is rarely correct. Cold syrup readings are off also. Just the other day I put syrup in it (again) for curiosity and the reading drifted between 60 and 63%. I put the hydrometer in it and it was syrup. I've done this test many times, with new batteries in the unit, tried several hydrometers for comparison, and the unit is always off on the warm or colder than room temp. syrup.

I don't know why it does this. I too liked the idea of testing syrup wherever and whenever, without temperature being a concern. Needless to say, I have several sap and syrup hydrometers around and photocopies of the temp. conversion chart nearby. No faulty readings there. Technology is great, but it does'nt allways work the way its supposed to.

Steve

[DrTimPerkins]

Is this the blue colored Misco unit? Thats what I have and I'm having issues with it. Others love them but I have many errant readings with mine.

The temperature compensating mechanism takes a little time to function. If you put really hot syrup on it, it'll read wrong. You have to wait 10 sec or more for it to stabilize a little. Similarly with the electronics....if they're really cold, and you pick it up with warm hands, it'll drift a little.

Not saying that this is a defect with the instrument -- it isn't. They all do this. The Misco is probably better than most in dealing with such issues. However you have to know their limitations and use them properly to get the right readings. These cautions are in the instructions.

[green4310]

I have a cheap $135 like Maple guys sold. I don't know if they do now. Like the Doc says,it likes the temp. to be stable I sample a teasploon and when it is cool to the touch I put a few drops in the reader cup. I then wait a few minutes. I always use my hand to shade the reader from the flouresent lights and let it read. I will make 3 or 4 reads and it has been stable. I have double checked against my long stem and it is really close, as close as I can interpolate the long stem.

[Wardner in Tewksbury]

My Hanna digital refractometer has temperature display on the screen. Whatever fluid goes into the test well should be at nearly the same temperature or the Brix value will be wrong.

This is easy to observe. If you bring in cold sap to a heated space where the refractometer has been for a while, the immediate reading might be 1.7. If you keep hitting the test button it will climb. It might end up being 2.5 after the sap in the test well has reached parity with the refractometer after several minutes.

If you are testing sap at the tree and the refractometer is allowed to acclimate to ambient, the readings will not vary much with repeated tests on the same sample. My instrument will either nail the same value over and over again or vary by one tenth.

The same situation applies to hot syrup from the pans. You will have to wait 30 seconds to a minute for the sap to cool in order to get an accurate reading. Use one or two drops of syrup so that it cools faster.

That won't work, of course, if you are near 66 Brix. The time difference will cause the actual temperature and Brix of the syrup to be higher because it is still receiving BTUs from the fire. In other words, you are not getting readings in "real time". This really only applies to small batches and not so much to large evaporators where a 30 second delay may be insignificant.

I have had no problems with my $160 Hanna HI-96801. It seems to be very precise and repeatable. When outside on a sunny day, the stainless steel test well should be shielded with your palm or you will get an error message. The high intensity sunlight will overwhelm the battery powered light source in the refractometer

[DrTimPerkins]

Also...be aware that some of the cheaper units have plastic wells and plastic prism materials. Hot syrup can cause permanent damage to these units. Once the plastic has been cooked a little, it'll blur and you'll never get a good reading again with sap or syrup.

The better models have stainless wells and sapphire prisms that can take the heat. That's why they cost more than the others.

[Homestead Maple]

I have an Atago PAL-2 and I wait for my sample to cool 10 seconds or so before I put any on the prism and the readings are accurate.

[Timber Juice]

I'm a very small syruper, but I love gadgets and precision.

So I got an ATAGO 65th anniversary PAL 0-85% Brix digital refractometer.

I love it.

I can check sap in the field at each tree, hot sap, hot near syrup, hot syrup ready for candy, cold syrup, whatever.


I really like being able to check saplings for high % sugar for Tree Stand Improvement. Just a shallow 3/16th" hole, 3-4 drops and I know the ones to keep.

I can check the change during the season.

It is so easy, I love it.

Now if I could just figure out an easy way to record all this data and track it year to year.
I need more hands, maybe an automatic voice recorder that can handle the cold and a good GPS.

More toys for the boys.

People actually make money at this?:D:lol:

[Wardner in Tewksbury]

Just a shallow 3/16th" hole, 3-4 drops and I know the ones to keep.

:D:lol:

I check trees too. I just break off a small branch and will have several drops within a minute. If I don't want to wait, I'll break off ten or more branches down the line and come back. The only trees I want to tap are the high-sugar full-crown specimens that usually have low hanging branches.

[Brent]

I use one as my primary tester for both sap and syrup.

Don't expect instant readings ... you really need to wait
close to a minute to get accurate readings on hot syrup.
More if the reader is cold and the syrup is hot or vice versa. Put a small sample on and close the lid while you wait. There will be some evaporation from the hot syrup while it cools that can throw off the reading. On a small sample it doesn't take much evaporation to change the percentage.

Be sure to take multiple readings. Keep the battery fresh.
Flush and dry the reading crystal before each test.

Always use a hydrometer for confirmation before bottling.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

How about the Hanna units, are they good units??

[green4310]

I have a Hanna just like the one that Maple Guys sell or sold and it works very well.

[Brent]

I think either will likely work well enough for most testing

IF you understand how fast the density changes with temperature and evaporation off the hot sample if it is not covered. You have to be patient with these things.

That said, when I do my final adjustments at bottling time, I still use the Acu-cup and a hydrometer.