off to A BAD start

[whitetail farms]

well my second year of sugaring bult a new sugar house and got all the equipment i need include a 2X6 evaporater and got everything set up,waited for the temps to pick up so i could tap and then everything went downhill.....started with spraining my ankle 2 days before i tapped witch slowed me down a ton going through the wood,then had problems with my sap pupm witch i still am did a boil with about 60 gallons and got nothing drawn off,did another boil today with what i had left in the pan and 70 more gallons of sap and still didnt draw off anything:mad:....do you guys have any answers for my syrup making blues?

[Flat Lander Sugaring]

well my second year of sugaring bult a new sugar house and got all the equipment i need include a 2X6 evaporater and got everything set up,waited for the temps to pick up so i could tap and then everything went downhill.....started with spraining my ankle 2 days before i tapped witch slowed me down a ton going through the wood,then had problems with my sap pupm witch i still am did a boil with about 60 gallons and got nothing drawn off,did another boil today with what i had left in the pan and 70 more gallons of sap and still didnt draw off anything:mad:....do you guys have any answers for my syrup making blues?
Crown Royal Maple

[CampHamp]

My first year with a 2x6 as well and was amazed at how much sap it takes just to fill-'er-up. You've got some latitude up there and so have some boiling time ahead of you still.

[whitetail farms]

yeah ik im just ready to give up and go help a my mentor out so maybe he can teach me a little more,but i really think it was just my sugar content

[SWEETER CREATIONS]

Been doing this for 40 plus years , started the same way as you now 4x12 ,2300 taps the problems just magnify , that's what all the fun is . Wouldn't change a thing . Just have a little more patience and things will work out. Good luck . Mike

[PerryW]

Congratulations, you've just sweetened the pans.

It take 400 gallons of sap before I finally develop enough syrup to take-off the first batch of syrup on my 3x10. A 2x6 should take about 160 gallons before the first take-off, so you are almost there. I run my back pan about 1" deep (over the flues) and my front pan 2" deep. If you run deeper it will take longer.

[GramaCindy]

Hello Whitetail Farms….I felt exactly the same way my first year. Thought I was doing something wrong. Sweetening the pans takes A LOT of sap. I won't start up my evaporater until I have at least 100 gallons of sap in storage. Even then, I won't draw off until the second day with a good 60 more gallons to boil. It is frustrating, but hang in there. Once you do a draw off it will all be a distant memory! Happy Sappin'

[Ausable]

Gotta admit - At times like this - Batch Boiling does have some merits. Mother Nature has given up 35 gallons of sap so far and here I sit - Ice all over and everything froze up again. Like Grandma Cindy says - It takes about 100 gallons to get rolling. Meanwhile - My backup sap suppliers - 80 miles South of me - were all busy up till now --- and their trees are all budded out - so no sap from them this year. LOL! You are not alone whitetail farms. They say "Misery likes Company." - Well You have Company......I like to say -Have Fun- even my Fun Meter is running on low. LOL -----Mike----

[SSFLLC]

you need more taps.

[frjeff]

My first two days tapped had fairly good run. Since then - nothing,
Seven day forecast shows no decent temps through next Wednesday.
Guess I just wait and see if Mother Nature gives me anymore run (on or after March 21) before the buds pop out.
Frustrating first year attempt so far.

[Russell Lampron]

I also have a 2x6 evaporator and it usually takes 300 gallons of sap to sweeten the pans and draw off a couple of gallons of syrup. How many taps do you have? Sounds like you need to add more or maybe you just need a decent run. I have only gotten 2 decent runs this season but I have been getting a lot of smaller runs. Just finished a stretch of boiling for 7 nights in a row. That is unless the sap runs early enough to boil tonight too.

[whitetail farms]

i know ive been looking for more trees to tap and might have 80 more to tap this weekend,im also considering buying some sap...but you guys think eveything is normal and went i get some more sap i should just fire up again and keep pluggin away,how long can the sweet last in the pan and after im done boiling to i have to take out the sweet and add it back in,thanks nick

[highlandcattle]

This is our 3rd year with our CDL 2'x8' wood fired raised flue evaporator. We have 400 taps on vac, a 600 gallon stainless holding tank and a 125 gallon tank for the feed to the evaporator. Never knew you needed so much sap to get that started up. Just a couple of good runs so far. Today, cold(about 22, but wind chill is 5) high winds, snowed during the night. Glad we started the pump before going to the doctor yesterday, got home to a nice tankful. Took my little sap dog, Emma to the woods with several of the cats trailing along to look for leaks, snow still deep enough to make me turn back after getting a few pictures. Weird year again. Good thing we're both home now to mess with this all day. One of our friends over today to help with the fire,our windmills are really spinning in this wind, so lots of power. good luck everyone!

[jrgagne99]

you need more taps.

+1. You need at least 100 taps to run a 2x6.

[Mike in NY]

+1. You need at least 100 taps to run a 2x6.
325 taps this year and we are still waiting for the next run. we did run about 16-18 hrs a day but were able to keep up on a home made 2x6 raised flue with a pre heater

[whitetail farms]

well i have 125 right now and will be putting in 60 more this weekend nothings really running but most of my sap was probably rain water as i collec ted the 2 days we had alot of rain on

[Flat Lander Sugaring]

up until last year I ran my 2x6 on 125 taps since 2002. Some days I would have 60 gallons to boil others 150 on really good days. I would say i probably averaged around 110 on a 1 day run. when I ran my pans at 3/4" or so it would take 25 gal sap to flood pans I haven't checked this year since I'm upto 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 deep now. It took 4 gallons of sap just to fill flues up the other day after I cleaned my rig and 4 gal in syrup pan gave me like 1/4 to 1/2".
come over this weekend whitetail if you want I should be boiling at least on sunday if my weatherman man right (HAHAHAHA) PM me I give you my number and address

[stoweski]

The sap knows your ankle is sore. It's waiting for you to heal! :)
175 taps on a 2x6. You're an hour north of me and an hour colder. My parents are in Lake Luzerne and there are days down here when the sap is running well but up there it's still below freezing. Take your time and let it happen. It's not over yet... the 10 day forecast looks ideal for sap. I wait until I have 200 gallons before my first boil. Sweeten the pans and let it sit. The next 200 gallons will give you a few drawoffs and make it worth your efforts.

Two years ago I had 125 on the same 2x6. Made 32 gallons that season. It'll happen.... give it time. And good luck! Hope the ankle is doing better.

[Waynehere]

Crown Royal Maple

Have you tried Cabin Fever? I like it a bit better. Plus made by a syrup producer too.... :)

http://www.cabinfeverspirits.com/

[bowtie]

i will probably have this problem to look foward to next with bigger evap. if i had bought a new one this year. i would have boiled only once. i have collected around 300-350 :cry:gallons of sap so far and i have 300 taps out. not a good deal and the next 7 days do not look like they any runs in them as yet. i might just keep my little evap even after i get bigger one just for this reason.
i think nature is messing with us. if you take out the next 7 days, it looks like we have 10-15 days of season left. i can't believe the sap will still be good after the first week of april. not here anyways. it seems to be normal anymore to straight from winter to summer-like temps. on the upside most soft mast trees should not get frosted off this year, hopefully.

[Waynehere]

Man, kind of in the same boat here. All of my trees are yard trees with about 220 taps, mixture of line and buckets. Made about 25 gal this year so far. Made 70 last year because we started early Feb. But my neighbor behind me with 3000 taps, all on a north side of a hill, only boiled once so far this year and it was a short one. Looks like it might run next weekend.

[LukeW]

well my second year of sugaring bult a new sugar house and got all the equipment i need include a 2X6 evaporater and got everything set up,waited for the temps to pick up so i could tap and then everything went downhill.....started with spraining my ankle 2 days before i tapped witch slowed me down a ton going through the wood,then had problems with my sap pupm witch i still am did a boil with about 60 gallons and got nothing drawn off,did another boil today with what i had left in the pan and 70 more gallons of sap and still didnt draw off anything:mad:....do you guys have any answers for my syrup making blues?

The first boil of the season takes A LOT of sap to sweeten the pans. Once the pans are sweetened, it's smooth sailing. I just wish the sap would run! Take care and good luck.

[ClarkFarmMapleSyrup]

It will take over 200 before you draw off syrup usually on a 2x6. It did this year on mine and about 200-220 I was making syrup, made a few gals, every time I have boiled since then.

[CPlace]

I'm in the same boat this year as well. New sugar house, 2X5 evaporator, tanks and other equipment. I had it all set up and ready for the season and just made my first 4 gallons of syrup this past Wednesday. My problem has been getting sap, my best collection day was only 60 gallons on 150 taps and have only collected a little over 300 gallons this year. I got the blues myself and was fortunate that a a local sugar maker gave me his extra sap that he was going to dump that he couldnt get too. I know next year my money will be going into the woods, because all the fancy equipment is useless without the sap to feed it.

[maple flats]

On my 3x8 with 10" raised flues I was wondering the same thing. It does take what seems like forever. But in time you will start drawing regularly. Even boiling concentrate, I boiled several hours before my first draw. Just hang in there. It will happen when the time is right.

[Flat Lander Sugaring]

Have you tried Cabin Fever? I like it a bit better. Plus made by a syrup producer too.... :)

http://www.cabinfeverspirits.com/

yea I have had them all, not much on cabin fever it has a burnt taste to me, so between the two whiskeys I prefer Crown , on the liquer side both I have tried are outstanding. sorry dont want to change thread