Cleaning pans during(and after season)

[Bruce L]

Up until this year,I could do an acid wash on the syrup pan every 100 gallons or so,as we have alot of sugarsand here.This year with the revolution syrup pan,I could not as the Lightning pan was made to drain every drop,but Leader's pan leaves a good 1/2 inch or more of liquid in the pan(may be a safety issue) This would probably take out the idea of an acid wash,since the pan would have to be removed and inverted,rinsed,etc.What other option might I have to clean up during the season.I just finished cleaning the syrup pan up this morning,the crimp pan cleaned up quickly with the old fermented sap,but we didn't give the syrup pan long enough and had to wash with acid.Any advice greatly appreciated,as on a bumper crop year i may run into trouble if i do not do a clean up on the syrup pan throughout the season.

[Papa John's Sugar Shack]

Bruce,

I use a wet/dry vac to remove all the liquid that is left in the after using water to push out the acid. Then I rinse again and vac the pan out one more time.

[Bruce L]

Thanks John,be much simpler than taking fittings apart and lifting the pan off when I want to clean.

[mtnmeadowmplfarm]

The partitions in my syrup pan are 12" wide. I went to the hardware store and found a squeege that fits them perfectly. This works great for moving the remainder of the sweet out of your pans before cleaning.

I use it to drain some of the acid solution, but like john we also use a shop vac and plenty of rinsing.

[maple flats]

I also use a wet/dry vac (bought at Lowes, "Bucket Max, about $22, fits on 5 gal bucket, find it in the shop vac area.). It is used exclusively for maple. It will remove all liquid easily. Then rinse three X and vac dry each time.

[rookie]

what kind of acid do you use?

[500592]

Pan acid bought from the dealer