how many of you guys have burnt a pan in your lifetime

[maplekid]

i was wandering how many of you have burnt or ruined pans in the time youve been sugaring.

[Fred Henderson]

You will not be considered a sugar maker until you burn or sourch a pan.I I have done both. Never ruined one.

[maplekid]

geuss im a true sugar maker. burn the 12x12 inch pan i boiled on last year

[Pete33Vt]

I've burnt one. We were boiling down the last of our sap at the end of the year, making cooking syrup. I guess we did. All of the front pan turned to syrup at once with no back up. As Fred said if you aint burnt you havn't sugared. LOL

[jason waterhouse]

I burnt one myself this year i wasnt running enuff sap and when it turned and i started to draw off.There wasnt enuff coming in:(

[Mike]

Hey Jason! Have you any luck selling your rig? How about your house? Have ya been at the shop lately? Not much happening here....Bought a vaccum pump from a farmer and now need to put a gas motor on it....Hope to have everything set up by the end on November.......Later......Mike

[ennismaple]

I still have my training wheels on when it comes to boiling so I haven't burned one. My father hasn't either - yet. My grandfather was relieved of his duties by my father about 20 years ago when he fell asleep and burned our front pan (5'x5'). I expect the boiling duties will be passed on to me in the same way!

[Fred Henderson]

Did ya ever think that maybe your grandpa fell asleep on purpose to get releived of his duties? ha ha.

[royalmaple]

This past year it seemed like most everytime I boiled which was about every night I burnt a spot on pans. Just infront of the draw off. But not the whole pan or a whole section. So I am in the minor leagues. But getting closer to my big break. I am happy staying where I am.

[Russell Lampron]

I have put some small burn marks in my pan, the kind that discolor the sugarsand but not warp. My former son in law burnt it real bad one day when I was at work. 3/4 of the pan was black and the bottom wasn't flat anymore. This season on the second boil my son burnt the same pan in the same spot. It is warped enough now so that the thermometer won't sit in the syrup anymore. It is a good thing that I bought a spare front pan after my former son in law burnt it the first time.

Russ

[ennismaple]

Did ya ever think that maybe your grandpa fell asleep on purpose to get releived of his duties? ha ha.

Grandpa wasn't stupid... I wouldn't put it past him! I'll just warm my father that I'm watching him...

[John Burton]

ive yet to burn a pan hope I never do. . never could understand how burning one gave you any extra qualifications as a sugarmaker .

[Fred Henderson]

ive yet to burn a pan hope I never do. . never could understand how burning one gave you any extra qualifications as a sugarmaker .

I guess its considered part of the learning curve.

[maplehound]

The first year we made on a evaporator we burnt it. Left it to a 13 year old boy to watch while the rest of use went to the woods to gather buckets. The pan was raw and we were sure it would be easie for him to run by himself. About half way thorugh gather our 200 buckets we got a call on the cell phone and all we heard was FIRE. Then he hung up and wouldn't answer back. The boy put the fire out with a fire eqstinguisher and ruined all the sap in the pan and the holding tank. Seems he knocked a hole in the drop flues and drained the pans dry. Lost all solder and put us out of business for the next 2 weeks while an amish farmer resoldered it.
What a learning experience.

[John Burton]

Fred, While I would agree that most of the best lessons in life that I have learned the hard way. some equaly impressive lessons have been learned from watching others. but it would be like saying your not a good driver unless youve totaled your car.I would think that knowlege and quality combined would be the benchmark for the title sugarmaker

[maple flats]

I put a small burm in one corner of the syrup pan this year. It cleaned up good and was not warped. I was having trouble with the front pan float and got to talking with a visitor instead of watching close enough.

[3% Solution]

Hi all,
Haven't yet (I'm not knocking on wood, I'm beating the hell out of the computer desk!!).
There have been a couple of times it was soooo close, it was no doubt closer to burning than it was the other direction.
You know where the rectal pucker is so strong it opens the doors of the sugarhouse inward, when they actually open outward.
Yup been there, just a bailing too.
Last year was the worst, had to watch it all the time!
That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Dave

[Mike]

Thats why I love oil!!!!!!!!! Ya turn it off in a flash........Hey Russell! You said ypur ex son inlaw burnt the pan ......was it ex before or after he burnt the pan????? Just curious.....

[Russell Lampron]

Mike it was ex after. Sugaring has been alot more fun since. He doesn't come around the sugarhouse anymore.

Russ

[TapME]

my use to be 13 yr. old sap hauler burnt the bottom of a 7" sauce pan this past year, does that count towards a burnt pan?

[Daren]

my pans burned on the sides every boil...unfortunately that was by design....just made them a bear to clean up. I have however burned my left wrist area pretty severely with hot "near syrup". I think this counts even more than burning the pan. I even have pictures of that one. Anyone interested? They are not posted on my hotlink below for good reason. They are pretty rugged pictures. I even flinch when I see them to this day. Almost needed skin from my butt to replace what would not grow back......that was an experience I do not wish on anyone...even those I cant stand! Not sure that it makes me a sugar maker or not, but sure makes me shy of hot stuff!

[bison1973]

I burned a cross flow syrup pan this season and it's warped. Is there any way of straightening it or fixing it? Any tips or help would be good.

[oneoldsap]

There are three kinds of sugarmakers!

Those that have burned pans.
Those that haven't burned their pans yet.
Those that lie

[oldemaple]

Well, if burning pans makes you a sugarmaker, I must be a real pro. I burned two syrup pans back in the 70's. Ever since then I've been a lot more careful. It was an expensive lesson learned at around $600 a pan.

[powerdub]

I'm on pan #3. I don't know what to say other than oops. Sh!, ahh stuff happens. One was inattention and the other was a suicide. The one I have now has a season and half on it and it is in rough shape. Burn marks on both sides and some warpage. If you ask me the pan I bought back in 1993 is twice the thickness as the one I got last year. When you run on the edge you got to figure you are going to fall over once in a while.

[maplekid]

what did you do with the other 2 pans pwrdb

[BradWilson]

So it's the first year. Now that we have agreed on a sap level that we are comfortable with we are doing well; 22+ gallons so far this year. Anyway, on the back of the front pan, we have started to get a burn mark on the end upright, where the front pan meets the flue pan. Have cleaned it each night but it keeps growing. No apparent warping that I can tell. Thot at first it was burnt foam but I don't think that the case now. Anyone else have the same issues? Any ideas? Thanks in advance.

[kinalfarm]

if your pan is burnt where the syrup pan hits the flu pan you need a better gasket between your pans.

[Stickypaw]

I burned a cross flow syrup pan this season and it's warped. Is there any way of straightening it or fixing it? Any tips or help would be good.

Hey there. Did you get any good replies to your question? I just burnt my syrup pan and am wondering if I can salvage it.

Thanks!

[Brian Ryther]

If it does not leak then run it deep. Clean the carbon off the bottom with a razor blade, wash, make more syrup. Warped pans make fine syrup, as log as they don't leak, trust me I know.

[Mike in NY]

burned a softball sized scorch in my front pan last week. Following night back pan got low and scorched the flues due to float valve sticking closed.
being asleep at the handle was an issue on both issues

[Russell Lampron]

One of my front pans had been burned by my former son in law and then my son. Well guess what I burned it myself at the end of last season and if that weren't enough I burned my other front pan in the same spot the very next boil. I cleaned out the charcoal and have been using the pans anyway and have been making some wonderful syrup so far this season. I can only draw off on the right side now because the hot spot is on that side of the pans but that hasn't been a problem.

[farmall h]

Russel funny you should bring that dirty word "burnt" up for conversation. Did it today at 5 pm....stupid...wasn't paying attention and my bulk tank went dry...had 600 gallons on hand in the other tanks...Anyway, I found that if you drain and clean as much of the black & carramel off then shop-vac the flakes out, rinse then switch draw-off sides it will get rid of most of the carramel stuff. But still, anyway you look at it it's burnt. Happens fast!:mad: :mad: :emb:

[Russell Lampron]

I did mine last spring trying to dial in the new blower that I had just installed and I wanted to use the hand pump filter press that I had just bought. April sap that should have been dumped just added to the disaster. Got the damper in the right place on the blower now and figured out the best way to run the press too. Things have been going pretty smooth the past week or so now that this seasons catching up and tweeking are done.

[Brent]

There's two kinds of sugarmakers.

Those that have burnt a pan

and those that have yet to do it.

[farmall h]

And then there are those that have burnt a pan more than once...twice...three?;) :emb:

[KenWP]

There's two kinds of sugarmakers.

Those that have burnt a pan

and those that have yet to do it.

There's two kinds of sugar makers. Those that admit to doing it and those that don't.

[Haynes Forest Products]

And those that have two sets of finish pans:emb:

[Treetapper]

I've done it twice in the last 10 years. Its really easy!

[Homestead Maple]

I scorched an area in the back of a 2x4 front pan I used to have, because the sap level was to low and it was end of season "stuff" that was so dark. I did the same thing on the 3x8 I have now, so I'm real leery now of boiling year end "stuff". I run the level deeper at the end of the year now.

[Stickypaw]

Good to know Bryan. Thanks.

What about the sweet sap that was in the pan? Ok to filter it put it back in and make syrup with it?

Or should I just toss it?

[trackerguy]

Came very close twice. One was my float bottomed out on some sugar sand that had accumulated under the float and nearly dried out the flu pan (under a hood so i can't see it), I was saved by that greatest feature of an oil fired evap, the "off" switch, plus the 3 gallon bucket of sap. No damage at all, faint smell of burnt sugar.

Second was one heckofa long draw when the thermometer keep climbing during the draw. It got to 12 over when I shut down and dumped a gallon of sap in (saved by the burner switch again). The connector between the flu and syrup pan had a sugar sand dune that was big enough to block flow. That one gets flushed every 25 gallons now. I'm very wary of the next "didn't know that could happen" event....a nervous boiler.

[farmall h]

stickypaw, I tend to heave it 'cause it tastes burnt.

trackerguy, what town are you in?

[cpmaple]

Second year sugaring and i burnt my pan the very first time i boil last year and i did it again one week again connector pipe between front pan and back pan pluged with sugar sand didnt know it. came time to draw off i didnt know so no sap came in to front pan while pulling some off.:(

[JohnsSugarShack]

Haven't burnt a divider pan YET! and hope not to for a long time. But I have burned 2-20 quart pots in the past. The last one being last year I was making a couple gallons on my dual propane burner on my porch. Had a 20 quart ss pot boiling good and had gone through 30gal of sap. Was in the house and got side tracked thought I had plenty of time but to my suprise it had burned completely and there was no bottom to the pot at all. Just the fire from the burner was in the middle of the pot. Lesson learned, don't get side tracked.:o