Anything new?

[Kh7722]

Hey all,

Anyone have any expansion plans for the upcoming year?
I will be adding about 200-300 more taps with a high vacuum pump, this will be on top of my 500 from last year, had a old vac that would only get about 18" so this year should be good.
Share what your adding excited to hear all the additions
Thanks

[Potters3]

New 2 post Lapierre R/O, and hopefully 300-400 new taps if I can get into the woods to clean out. Has been too wet this summer to get the tractor w/ winch without making a mess.

[Jonnie Maple]

Bought a used Mason 2x4XL to replace my block arch with hotel pans. Moving the operation indoors to the garage. Also got an IBC tank and 2 burner gas stove for finishing. Going to go from 20-25 taps to 40-50. Want to try running some 3/16 lines also.

[Biz]

New 2x5 Smokey Lake hybrid is coming this week. Should be able to boil sap in half the time, which I will try and cancel out partially by setting 30% more taps this year :)

Dave

[amasonry]

ordered a new syrup pan this year. adding 40ish more taps on 3/16ths. going to have 200 this year.

[n8hutch]

Will be in New Shack this year, waiting on my New 600gph RO, a few new tanks. Hopefully get another 300 taps out. I've had to buy syrup every year and at today's bulk prices it's not a big deal but I'd still like to be making all the syrup I sell.

[Ultimatetreehugger]

Adding 200 taps on 3/16. Possibly a Bosworth diaphragm sap sucker. :)

[Woodsrover]

Bought a used Mason 2x4XL to replace my block arch with hotel pans. Moving the operation indoors to the garage. Also got an IBC tank and 2 burner gas stove for finishing. Going to go from 20-25 taps to 40-50. Want to try running some 3/16 lines also.

Sold my Mason 2x4XL to some sap in Dutchess County! :)

Have a new 2x5 Smokey Lake drop-flue pan with a hood being built as we speak.

Bought the 19 acres right next door to me. Hope to close next week. Poked around and there seems to be a fair amount of maples on one section. Not sure how many more taps we'll do this year but a few I'd guess!!

[Jonnie Maple]

I resemble that remark :)

Sold my Mason 2x4XL to some sap in Dutchess County! :)

Have a new 2x5 Smokey Lake drop-flue pan with a hood being built as we speak.

Bought the 19 acres right next door to me. Hope to close next week. Poked around and there seems to be a fair amount of maples on one section. Not sure how many more taps we'll do this year but a few I'd guess!!

[mol1jb]

Up to 140ish taps this year. All on 3/16 gravity plus shurflo pump. New pipe line to pump everything from lower holding tank to kitchen. New 2x6 arch build in progress with used raised flue pans. Moving boiling indoors and hoping to get the kitchen in the building licensed for syrup sale small time. Still figuring out the bottling side of it. So basically replacing every piece of equipment for 2018 season 😊

[Clinkis]

Building a new 2 post RO and adding another 30-40 taps which should get me up to around 300. Hopefully doing a few Reno's to the maple house. Some new plumbing and upgrades to water system. Also need to make some changes to accommodate my new RO. Have the main components just need to get my but in gear and do it. Was hoping to have a lot of it done by now but with this crazy wet summer we've been having I'm WAY behind on a lot of my other farming duties.

[jimmygarison]

Hi all ,i am jimmy , i am busy watching the cricket matches and coming movies i am so excited .I hope you like this forum.

[bmbmkr]

We are picking up 300 and 800 gallon dairy tank later this month. Slowly finishing my pre-heater and steam hood. Just started a 2 post RO. Moving 1700 ft of mainline 40ft down the hill, adding 500 ft to it to pick up another 200 sugars on 3/16. Puttin in lots of wood, mostly emerald bored ash and thinning the bush of beech trees. Picking out red oaks and white oaks for the timber frame.

[minehart gap]

Just starting our first year. So here goes. 30 acre sugar bush. Starting with 110 taps to see how things work. All on 3/16 gravity to a 750 gal milk bulk tank. We are recycling a 14' x 18' timber frame pig pen that was built in the 1800's, moving it and reassembling it for a sugar shack. It should be done by end of October. Purchased a 26" x6' raised flue pan and a 26" x 2' syrup pan and am building an arch ( almost done). My wife and I just got back from Bascom 2 days ago (now I'm broke) with everything that I think I will need. Sam Bascom answered a lot of questions. Paddy Mountain Maple has taught me a lot too. Thanks to both

[Maplewalnut]

Just starting our first year. So here goes. 30 acre sugar bush. Starting with 110 taps to see how things work. All on 3/16 gravity to a 750 gal milk bulk tank. We are recycling a 14' x 18' timber frame pig pen that was built in the 1800's, moving it and reassembling it for a sugar shack. It should be done by end of October. Purchased a 26" x6' raised flue pan and a 26" x 2' syrup pan and am building an arch ( almost done). My wife and I just got back from Bascom 2 days ago (now I'm broke) with everything that I think I will need. Sam Bascom answered a lot of questions. Paddy Mountain Maple has taught me a lot too. Thanks to both

Good Luck Minehart Gap

[VT_K9]

We currently use high vacuum to bring sap from about 400 taps to a 588 gallon tank in a "sap shack" in the norther section of the property. We pump the sap 725' with a 70' rise to the sugar house and into a 260 gallon tank (we were limited on the size). We use a Hobby 250 RO to concentrate the sap and boil on a Leader WSE 2x6 evaporator.

This years projects are to build a new "sap shack" in a southern location which will service all other areas of the property (there is a decent ridge between the two sap shacks). The new sap shack is located about 1200' away and 65' below the sugar house. This sap shack will contain a 787 gallon tank. The initial year we will use a sap puller at the new sap shack which we already have on hand.

I am almost done with clearing the area for the sap shack and then will clear the path along the mainline and lateral mainlines of all trees which are not maple and will likely fall on the lines or have to be removed across lines. This will improve the sunlight for the maples and allow for fuller canopies. The mainline will be 1 1/4" and this year will service 400 new taps. The end goal in the next 2 years is to expand to 1000-1200 taps. The potential is probably 2000 taps.

Also this year well are going to remove the 260 gallon sap holding tank in the sugar house and replace it with a 787 gallon tank. We will knock out a wall and add to the roof to keep the sugar house secure and debris out of the tank.

Next year (2018) after we clean up from the season we will empty the sugar house, tear it down, and build a new one. We will also add a 3x10 evaporator and larger RO. If there is time maybe another couple hundred taps.

There is a lot of hard work for my Father and I. The hardest will be removing the sugar house three generations have worked on. My Grandfather built it in the 1970's. We will also have to remove a section of stone wall my Great Grandfather built, but fortunately that is only a small section and should allow my Great Grandchildren to use the sugar house.

Good luck to everyone on their plans.

Mike