u2builder
03-16-2016, 02:42 PM
I am a small home hobbest. I have a little 2x4 evaporator made by Patrick Phaneuf. It is continuous feed but small, so I draw off the mostly made syrup and finish it in the house. I like to put it up in 12oz glass bottles but I don't like to see sugar sand settle out.
I think I have finally figured out how to prevent that. Formerly I would bring the syrup to its final Brix, filter it in my homemade beer kettle with Orlon final filter and several prefilters, keep it hot on the stove, draw it off, and can it. I would always get sugar sand settling to the bottom. Obviously it was dissolved when I filtered it, but came out of solution when the jars cooled.
So, what I have started doing is letting my batch (somewhat more than a gallon) of finished syrup cool way down in the pot I use to finish it. The sugar sand drops out of solution and is easy to see floating around in the pot. I reheat this finished syrup to somewhat over 200F but don't let it boil. Even though I read that reheating over 195 redissolves sugar sand, it is not happening in my case, at least in a noticeable amount. Then I run it through my filter canner rig which is on the stove at very low heat. I watch my thermometer and make sure it stays above 200 F. I put some water in my jars and put them all in the microwave and bring the water in them to a boil, The one at a time I remove a hot jar, dump the water, and fill it through the spigot on my canner, and put the top on it.
I am not getting any sugar sand in my jars now. I do have to change/wash prefilters once or twice during a gallon batch as they do get clogged faster with all the sand, but the final product looks great.
I think I have finally figured out how to prevent that. Formerly I would bring the syrup to its final Brix, filter it in my homemade beer kettle with Orlon final filter and several prefilters, keep it hot on the stove, draw it off, and can it. I would always get sugar sand settling to the bottom. Obviously it was dissolved when I filtered it, but came out of solution when the jars cooled.
So, what I have started doing is letting my batch (somewhat more than a gallon) of finished syrup cool way down in the pot I use to finish it. The sugar sand drops out of solution and is easy to see floating around in the pot. I reheat this finished syrup to somewhat over 200F but don't let it boil. Even though I read that reheating over 195 redissolves sugar sand, it is not happening in my case, at least in a noticeable amount. Then I run it through my filter canner rig which is on the stove at very low heat. I watch my thermometer and make sure it stays above 200 F. I put some water in my jars and put them all in the microwave and bring the water in them to a boil, The one at a time I remove a hot jar, dump the water, and fill it through the spigot on my canner, and put the top on it.
I am not getting any sugar sand in my jars now. I do have to change/wash prefilters once or twice during a gallon batch as they do get clogged faster with all the sand, but the final product looks great.