Cold nights- what can we do

[hounder]

What does everyone do on cold nights to keep pans from freezing? Anything other than draining pans? We were going to try a heat lamp and a small electric heater on the back pan. Sap house is 24 x 30 and the evaporator is a 4 X 12 and it sits on the top of the hill.

[spencer11]

as long is the sugar content is high enough is wont freeze solid. at most just become slush. if its fresh sap i would drain it or heat it somehow. start a small fire in there in the morning to melt some maybe.

spencer

[Jec]

Alot of people put a 100 watt bulb in thier arch to keep the pans hot. But, like spencer said, the sugar content keeps it from freezing as easily. The raw sap is what you need to worry about.

[bees1st]

This last cold spell we had I put a small heater right in the fire box and closed the doors.At the end of a boil I usally drain my piggy back into my evaporator as I'm shutting down.I run a 3x10.

[PerryW]

I let my 3x10 back pan freeze solid. I just run it down as close to the flues as possible first. I have done this dozens of times over the last 24 years. The flues have plenty of flex to absorb the ice expansion. It would be impossible to keep my pan from freezing on a night like tonite with a predicted low of -1 F. You can though a cat through some of the spaces between my board siding.

The raw sap? I boil is all up before the freeze.

[hounder]

We boiled all sap last night so good there. Thanks for the info, will leave the heater in and the lamp on and sleep well tonight! Don't want to break the new toy and have to go back outside and boil on the firepit. WAY too many trees
this year for that.

[bees1st]

For me it's cheap insurance! Sure would hate to pop a seam at the start of the season. Not only that it makes for a quicker start up next time you have sap to process.

[West Mountain Maple]

Oh yeah, flexed bent flues from ice sounds great. It's great for the flue drain too! Just went through extensive repairs to a flue drain that was bulged from freezing and leaking at almost every flu, it also blew the drain valve apart. I would certainly not recommend letting it freeze solid if you can help it.

[village idiot]

I just let mine freeze. Sap, near syrup, whatever is left in there when I bring the tank down close to empty. Next time I boil I just light the fire, let all the stuff melt and then its off to the races. I'm surprised the ice expansion would cause any problems since it is not a closed container.

Edit to add I don't have my arch in a shack so when the weather gets cold I don't really have any options. It's a Grim 2x4 raised flue I haul out onto the back deck every year.

[500592]

It does cause a problem on ss soldered pans.

[PerryW]

I just let mine freeze. Sap, near syrup, whatever is left in there when I bring the tank down close to empty. Next time I boil I just light the fire, let all the stuff melt and then its off to the races. I'm surprised the ice expansion would cause any problems since it is not a closed container.

Edit to add I don't have my arch in a shack so when the weather gets cold I don't really have any options. It's a Grim 2x4 raised flue I haul out onto the back deck every year.I don't really have options either. The first year (1989) I tapped, sweetened the pans and the temps dropped to -27 deg. F and stayed below zero for almost a week. I tried to keep my back pan thawed,. After the first night, it was frozen solid again, so I start another fire and thaw the thing out. Then I went back again and it was frozen solid. So I figgured I was doing more damage with the repeated freezing and thawing so I gave up and never looked back.

My pans are soldered stainless steel w/ 7" deep raised flues manufactured in 1989.