Pan problem possibly solved; making coffee though

[Lazarus]

OK, it appears I may have found the trick to my syrup pan being too cold. First, I built a wall behind my firebox before the ramp, and I'm keeping the draft door only about an inch open. That helped a bunch, but I still had the problem of diving temps after a draw and no rebound. Now the weird part. My first draw today was awesome, very quick to get to, but then the temps just got stuck. The only thing I could figure out that was different from when I first started it up was that there was ash in the pan. So I cleaned it out (not the safest idea while the evap is screamin' hot). But the temps immediately started to rise, just like that. So now, to make the temps rebound within an hour after a draw, I have to clean the ash pan. I have repeated this four times now. I dunno, that seems just plain stupid.

The bummer is, what I have made this weekend is 5 gallons of syrup the color of a very dark cup of Starbucks. I was SO hoping to get good light syrup for candy. I started with a perfectly clean, scrubbed set of pans yesterday and boiled on all new sap for 10 hours, then about 2 today before the first draw. Tastes fine, no burnt taste. Sap was UV'd continuously since collection (several days worth), then run through a 5 micron sediment filter prior to boiling. 2% sugar on the nose.

Is is remotely possible it will all filter out? How is it possible to make something that dark after only 12 hours in the pan?

225 taps
GBM 2x6
Continuous UV sap storage
Honda Foreman 500, YuTrax trailer
and 100 gal PCO tank super-hauler
Boiling outside in 2012 due to barn collapse
New sugarhouse planned for 2013

[Bucket Head]

Is your 2x6 a flat pan(s)? If so, the dark syrup is normal. With a flat pan, the amount of time it takes to evaporate enough sap for syrup is quite a while, and all that heating time darkens the color. Also, the longer sap sits before boiling, the darker the syrup- again, just normal. The UV might have even added a little warmth to the sap. Heat is an enemy of sap too. How cold are you able to keep the stored sap? The colder the better. Keep it in the shade, maybe shovel some snow around the tank. We never made light syrup when we were on flat pans. And no, the dark color won't filter out, but its not a bad thing! Just call it "Ohio Special Dark"- everybody will still love it.

Steve

[Lazarus]

Sadly, no, it's not a flat pan. It has 7" drop flues. I made wonderfully light syrup on a little Mason flat pan a few years back (kinda wish I had that back). Unfortunately, all I've been able to make on this 2 x 6 since I got it last year is dark junk, but last year it didn't turn to absolute coffee until after weeks of boiling.

The UV unit I have does not appear to warm the sap up. It comes in cold, goes out cold. It has been a very warm week around here but unless I'm mistaken, slightly warmish surroundings are bad because it can cause the growth of bacteria. Our sap is stored in the barn on a concrete slab - it actually stays a lot cooler in there than outside (we haven't seen any snow or anything that looks like it in these parts for a long time!). The UV light kills the bacteria, so that shouldn't be a problem.

I had only been boiling a total of 12 hours to get from clear to coffee; that's a new record even for me!

[buckeye gold]

A friend of mine was fighting dark syrup on his 2x6 and he finally just gave in and started pulling sap off around 215 degrees and finishing over propane. I know that's not an answer you wanted to hear. I do the same thing on my half pint and i make some really light syrup. If I want darker I will store some sap a day and let it boil farther in the pan then finish when I have my color. I finish as fast and hard a boil as I can on the propane.

[Dill]

What kind of wood are you using? I've never had to clean ash on a evap while burning softwood. Not sure about the GBM line, do they have an ash pan? What happens if you pull the pan and just let the ash fall under the evap?