2019 Tapping in Western Pennsylvania

[helptheold]

Two weeks ago I was going to put out taps around the 16th. Now the weather forecast is making me think I won't put any taps in until mid or even late February.

What's everyone else planning on doing?

[Dennis H.]

I am east of you out near Carlisle and Harrisburg.
For the last few years I have been all tapped in and making syrup by now, I too was thinking of tapping a week or two ago and decided to hold off a little to see what the weather was going to do.
Well I am really happy that I held off, we are to have a day or two that will get above freezing but outside of that, hold on to your hat, boy is it going to get cold!

I know the weather can make a quick change so I have everything sitting ready to go.

[minehart gap]

I'm right near the center of the state and I'm with you guys. Glad that I didn't tap yet.

I am looking at the forecast and if AccuWeather stays the same and true, I'll be tapping late next weekend. AccuWeather is the only AP that I have that goes out more than 1 week.

[Sugarmaker]

I think mid Feb maybe the time to tap. Assuming we get the warming we need. I always felt these hard freezes were good. Although we had so much rain in the last week, the ground is not frozen yet. So we may have a good season this year. Thats my prediction! Check back in April!
Regards,
Chris

[minehart gap]

Sugarmaker, I think that as far south of you that we are, and you are looking at mid-February then we should be a week or so ahead of you. My ground is frozen solid but has only been that way for a week now. This year's weather pattern has been unusually for sure.

I hope you are correct in your prediction.

[Plutoman15]

Any concerns the sugar will be low from such a wet year? Fruit is always sweeter during dry years.

I am south of Chambersburg and am waiting with the rest of you. Next weekend at the soonest but watching the forecast. My weathers guys are saying a cold Feb and March.

[Sugarmaker]

Sugar content will be good. The shorter the season the sweeter the sap!
May be into March the way the weather looks! Keep getting ready!
Regards,
Chris

[sbedilion]

I'm 30 mins south of Pittsburgh. I'll be tapping Sat/Sun. Weather looks perfect after this week's cold spell.

[Gary R]

Hello all and hope everyone has a great year! Earlier this week my coworker / backyarder talked about tapping this weekend. I told him he was full of crap. Looks like I will be eating my words :o I plan on tapping this Sunday. I don't expect any sap until at least Tuesday because of frozen trees. I will at least get the vacuum on and fix leaks. I'm not tapping my 3/16" this year. I'll probably stop at about 20 gallons if mother nature lets me get there. Good luck everyone!

[Gary R]

Wow, what crazy weather. Tapped yesterday and fixed leaks. Everything is clean and ready. Sucked some hot water through the mainline and dumped the first 30 gallons or so of sap. Sap is collecting in the tank now:) First boil should be tomorrow! Special thanks to my great wife who helped right along. Anyone else collecting?

[sbedilion]

Finished tapping midday yesterday. I'm sore today! 70 taps on 3 lines. Sap was flowing like a river. I usually try to boil on the weekends but with this warm weather, I'll probably do my first boil on Wednesday.

Lots of improvements over last year so I'm excited to see how things go. Last year I had each of my 3 lines ran to different points....this year they all run to 1 collect tank. Last year I collected via my truck and transferred into my truck via 5 gallon bucks....this year I bought a small transfer pump. Last year I was boiling 1% sugar.....this year I build a small RO.

[helptheold]

I put out 11 taps yesterday & today, have some more to put out the rest of the week. I'm handing over most of the week's collection to my husband so he can test the RO machine he built. And I started using the SapTapApp, it is so useful!

[helptheold]

Finished tapping midday yesterday. I'm sore today! 70 taps on 3 lines. Sap was flowing like a river. I usually try to boil on the weekends but with this warm weather, I'll probably do my first boil on Wednesday.

Lots of improvements over last year so I'm excited to see how things go. Last year I had each of my 3 lines ran to different points....this year they all run to 1 collect tank. Last year I collected via my truck and transferred into my truck via 5 gallon bucks....this year I bought a small transfer pump. Last year I was boiling 1% sugar.....this year I build a small RO.

Are you still tapping around the old golf course/new high school?

[Gary R]

Excellent sap run on vacuum. About 2 gallons per tap. I've got about 60 more gallons to boil tonight. It will be close tonight for the first draw of the season. Coworkers buckets are running slow.

[sbedilion]

Are you still tapping around the old golf course/new high school?

I wish. Those massive tree are so so good. Maybe once the park is open, I will pitch them an educational plan and exchange for letting me tap them. All my trees are on my inlaws farm in Lone Pine. Lots of trees but they have small canopies and produce low sugar. Last year I was averaging over 80 gallons to make 1 gallon....which is why I built the RO.

[sbedilion]

Collect 50+ gallons tonight. Lines were barely moving. Weather is too warm now..haha.

[Sugarmaker]

Just getting lines up. Then will look at weather forecast and decide when to tap. Sap was running from some big cut branches!
Regards,
Chris

[helptheold]

I wish. Those massive tree are so so good. Maybe once the park is open, I will pitch them an educational plan and exchange for letting me tap them. All my trees are on my inlaws farm in Lone Pine. Lots of trees but they have small canopies and produce low sugar. Last year I was averaging over 80 gallons to make 1 gallon....which is why I built the RO.

I think that would be an excellent idea, I'd be happy to work with you on that!

[helptheold]

Put out most of my taps now, I think there are a few more trees I've marked but I can't remember where they are! Will have to go looking for them later in the week. But I've gotten about 13 gallons which should be enough for testing the RO machine and getting things tweaked before some good runs happen.

[Gary R]

I’m boiling 200 gallons I got today. Made 3 gallons of syrup. Coworkers buckets did bad. It’s been 3 days without a freeze yet the ground is still frozen. Vacuum dropped a little and found some leaks. Water hydrant finally thawed. Was able to mop the floor! Looks like a freeze tonight and a good run tomorrow.

[iby]

I decided to put 50 taps in yesterday to test things out. After 14 hours I have gotten 50 gallons at 3.4% . Vacuum gauge at the top of the hill was showing 20 inches this morning... overall, very happy so far with my first run at tubing...

[sbedilion]

Ran the new diy RO last night. Wow! I struggled last year with 1% or less sugar. I ran 50 gallons of 1% through the RO last night in a few hours.....ending with about 12-13 gallons of 4%! Bring on the sap! Looks like a good reset this Fri/Sat and good sap weather all next week.

[Sugarmaker]

Folks,
Tubing is up! Had a with Tom, new sugarmaker in Local area. He is looking for more trees to fill his new 30 inch x 6 foot rig!
Regards,
Chris

[Gary R]

Didn’t get the freeze but you gotta love high vacuum! 160 gallons today. About another hour to boil yet. Sugarmaker, great job! Taps going in soon?

[HowardR]

I finally finished getting my taps in yesterday. It took me about 35 hours. I collected some sap earlier this week (making it into syrup today), but my trees are only trickling now due to the warm weather without frosts. I'm ready for the perfect maple syrup weather that will start on Saturday morning according to the long-range forecast. By the way, I just put up a general thread about tapping 1½' holes. You can read it here (http://mapletrader.com/community/showthread.php?33742-Tappling-1½-quot-deep-this-year):

[Sugarmaker]

Looks like PA is getting geared up.
Howard nice job getting started and making syrup. Your tap count is a little higher than mine and its not hard to get that much time into setting up and tapping.
Gary, Will try to tap early next week? Now it looks like only one warm day????
Out to work in the roadside sugarbush again today.
Regards,
Chris

[helptheold]

Ran the new diy RO last night. Wow! I struggled last year with 1% or less sugar. I ran 50 gallons of 1% through the RO last night in a few hours.....ending with about 12-13 gallons of 4%! Bring on the sap! Looks like a good reset this Fri/Sat and good sap weather all next week.

Nice! I finally got the refractometer I ordered so tonight we're going to test out the RO. I'm very excited to see what it does :)

[Gary R]

Boiling 210 tonight. Another hour to go. Will drain and clean the evaporator this weekend. Should filter and pack what I’ve made. I stopped and introduced myself to iby today. There still under construction but it should be a nice operation.

[Sugarmaker]

Gary,
Was thinking you were probably boiling tonight! Finally got my collection system in place. Yuk it was rainy and cool typical syrup weather. Looks like a freeze coming, will tap prior to next warm up.
Couple new trees may get tapped on the route this year to keep the tap count up.
Regards,
Chris

[iby]

Boiling 210 tonight. Another hour to go. Will drain and clean the evaporator this weekend. Should filter and pack what I’ve made. I stopped and introduced myself to iby today. There still under construction but it should be a nice operation.

I'm really glad you stopped, it was great meeting you..
Last night I RO'd 150 gallons of sap to about 8% and boiled it for a couple hours...

This weekend I plan to clean the place up, finalize all the plumbing since I've run it now and hopefully get the rest of the taps put in trees . :)

[cjf12]

Started tapping Saturday and have about 550 in. 315 are in red maple rest are in my original sugar bush and are all sugars. Got to R O ing the reds sap this morning and it's only 1.1 %. Knew it wasn't going to be what I'm used to but was disappointed with it being that low. What's others experience with reds? Normal?

[Gary R]

Woke up to another 100 in the tank. Boiled early this morning before things froze up. A great week! About 950 gallons and about half way to my season syrup goal.

cjf12, That is common on my sugar bush. My vacuum taps are 90% reds. Season usually starts out just above 1%, may get to 1.4 on a run but comes right back down. I have a 3/16" bush that is 80% sugars, it might only be a tenth or two higher than the reds. Lots of variables to cause it. You have an RO! i'd love to boil concentrated sap. Good luck with the season!

[Dennis H.]

Holy cow Gary, didn't you just tap a few days ago? Being half way there already sure looks like it could be a banner year for you.

Good Luck

[a.clarke]

Started tapping Saturday and have about 550 in. 315 are in red maple rest are in my original sugar bush and are all sugars. Got to R O ing the reds sap this morning and it's only 1.1 %. Knew it wasn't going to be what I'm used to but was disappointed with it being that low. What's others experience with reds? Normal?

I haven't tapped any reds until this year so I don't know what is normal for them but my 45 reds that I am tapping this year have been doing okay. The one run that I have collected so far was at 1.8%

[helptheold]

Just fired up our RO machine for the first time, it's working great. Started with 2% and it's coming out around 6%, fingers crossed it will go up later. I'm so very excited about this!

[sbedilion]

Just fired up our RO machine for the first time, it's working great. Started with 2% and it's coming out around 6%, fingers crossed it will go up later. I'm so very excited about this!

Very nice! The RO is so nice. Hopefully it runs smoothly for both of us all season!

Im in the middle of a big evaporator build. We scrapped a ton of 3in square tubing at work and the welders are teaching how to weld :)

19402

Im about 75% of the way done. front pan is a 2x3 flat and the top/rear is a 3x4 flat. Because of the 3in tubing...this thing is turning out huge! haha. Someone going to call the Peters Twp fire department thinking the steam is smoke. hahaha

[Dennis H.]

That is one beefy looking evap.

[sbedilion]

very. haha. its free material so beefy is going to have to do.

[Gary R]

Hi Dennis, My plan is to go to 20 gallons and stop. We don't sell it so it's just family and friends. Speaking of friends, one of them wants to help in lieu of 5 gallons of syrup. Thing is his idea of help is firing the evaporator and drinking beer. I mentioned my wood pile needs replenished. Haven't heard from him since :lol: Things ought to be good for you guys this week. Hope all is going well.

[Sugarmaker]

Was thinking of tapping Monday. Long range weather forecast doesn't look like much warm weather in Feb. Never know till its over. Feels about right time of the calendar to tap.
Gary,
Aaahhh yes the VHS vanashing helper syndrome!
Sbedillion,
Nice fab work on the new rig!
Regards,
Chris

[Dennis H.]

Gary, Actually I am taking a year off from making maple syrup! I Know I know, how can you do that.
This year while getting everything cleaned up and put into place I just was not feeling the fun in it. SO instead of pushing thru the season and maybe feel even worse about this hobby made the choice to not tap this year and take a break and hope that next year I feel better about it.

I hear you about the help, I actually prefer to do things on my own, I can suffer from OCD at times and when making maple syrup that is one of those times.
I do not have a problem getting mad at myself if I do something wrong but if someone who is helping does something wrong, I just do not want to deal with that.

[HowardR]

Last week started out frenetic. I was tapping every second of light. This week is starting out slow with everything frozen solid. But the forecast promises a nice run on Thursday and Friday.

[Sugarmaker]

Dennis,
I hear you! Sometimes I feel like exiting the maple syrup production. But the Grandson is coming to help today and the suprs me on. We will be tapping the rest of the trees today. Approx 400 taps. I ahve made a decision to not go crazy and get a bunch more taps! around 600 and I can handle it all myself most days.
Your welcome to come and visit!
Regards,
Chris

[Moeferg]

Gary,

Where are you from? would
love to see your setup.

[Sugarmaker]

Folks,
Ok its official! We are fully tapped. Many thanks to Grandson Mike helping and learning how to tap!
https://i.imgur.com/aef0fW4.jpg?1

https://i.imgur.com/w29S6Ba.jpg?3

Here is a sap sicle I found when tapping yesterday!
https://i.imgur.com/VFCdwvJ.jpg?1

Regards,
Chris

[Moeferg]

Anyone in Armstrong County?

[Gary R]

Pumps on and I hope something comes in tonight. Weather has been poor.

Dennis, I know how you feel. I don't have the fire burning in me either. My wife and I sure love having syrup everyday. Fortunately my operation is all right by the house. I don't get down your way anymore. If your ever up this way your always welcome to stop.

Moeferg, I'm in southwest Venango County. I'll send you a private message with contact info. Your welcome to come check it out.

[Dennis H.]

Gary I am really think of doing a road trip this year. I never had the chance to visit anyone during the season and while I may not have the desire to make syrup this year I still love talking about it and smell that maple smell while boiling.

I will have to see if I can get a Friday off work and venture up your way so that I can swing in on a Sat. I may try to stop by Chris's place and even stop by Daryl's while there.
I know Dave Yeany is a little out of the way but I always wanted to stop in there also.

This could end up being a several day trip!! sounds like fun.
Now when do I want to go!!

[unc23win]

Dennis maybe you could check out some maple weekends. The Somerset Maple weekend is March 9-10, Potter Tioga maple weekend is March 16-17th and New York State is March 23-24 & 30-31. Just a thought.

[Dennis H.]

Just so many options. What to do, what to do.

[Sugarmaker]

Dennis,
Also Northwestern PA Maple Taste and Tour March 16 and 17! We have 19 sugarhouses to visit. www.pamaple.org
Your welcome anytime! I enjoy going to other local sugarhouses to get recharged too!
Not sure when we will be getting the first boil in? Froze up today. Might have some sap by Friday evening???
Regards,
Chris

[HowardR]

Hi, Moeferg,

You asked if anybody is in Armstrong County. I'm half way between Kittanning and Rural Valley.

[Gary R]

Well, finally some sap! Weather has been cold. Only have about 200 in the tank. Just got the fire going. Might be another week froze up starting tonight. I’ll take what I can get.

[HowardR]

I finally finished building my second RO at 5:30pm today. (The way the sap was coming out today, I wished I had finished it earlier.) The new RO is almost identical to my first RO.

I've got a continuous process system going. The sap flows down from the hillside into my collection barrels into my side-by-side ROs which push out the concentrate into my stove-top evaporator, and at the end of the evaporator I've got a stainless steel bucket collecting a trickle of 214 degree almost-maple-syrup. While it's running, all I have to do is check every few hours or so to make sure everything is working.

[sbedilion]

that sounds awesome HowardR!

i snagged 2 wireless security cameras from my work and they are now watching my RO process....and when I boil, I’ll just need to check the cameras in between loading wood to make sure the boiling is going fine.

Collected 180 gallons today. My sap finally registered over 1% today! A solid 2%! Im so excited. hahaha.

Things are freezing up tonight and will hit 36 tmw. Im going to spend the day and finish welding up my new evaporator and will be boiling hopefully on it by Sunday morning. If not...I’ll break out the cinderblocks to boil this down.

Have a good wkend everyone!

[Chuck c]

I'm right outside KITTANNING on route 85. This is my 2nd year. Very small 9 taps just trying to learn as I go. Around 15 gallons of sap as of Thursday. My containers have allot of sap in them Friday Eve. Empty and start to boil sat morning

[Sugarmaker]

Folks,
Avg sap run yesterday, 440 gallons of 2.2%. Tis the season for things to go wrong! Broke a valve on the float box, snapped a feed hose in half for the gathering system, repaired air line for steamaway it was too short first time. Yep its syrup time! Made 8 gallons of Amber last night! Looks like we will be froze up till next Wednesday.
Regards,
Chris

[HowardR]

Chris,

Tough luck to start the season, but it sounds like you were on top of things and didn't have to send away somewhere and wait for parts to come in and were able to solve the problems yourself!

[HowardR]

Chuck c,

You're only a few miles from me as I also live on Route 85. I think Tim and Janet Rosenberger (Rosenberger Farms) told me about you. Either that, or there's another maple syrup producer near Sunnyside.

[Sugarmaker]

Folks,
Couple shots from our syrup perspective!
All the girls helping make syrup last night.
Cheryl (wife in red) next to her is granddaughter Addison, then her sister Marly and our daughter Kelly.
https://i.imgur.com/cCsiEsD.jpg

Here is the new hose for the 325 gal leg tank
https://i.imgur.com/E84HTqf.jpg

Those fittings go into the new 1-1/4 tubing hard! Really wanted a disconnect fitting going into the tank, but Tractor Supply only had larger sizes!

Regards,
Chris

[Chuck c]

HowardR, Tim has a friend Eric that also lives in Sunnyside. He was probably talking about him. I'm very new at this. Last year was my first try I made a pint. Is your operation at your house? Never seen anyone around here have an operation that big.

[helptheold]

Spent the past few days pulling sap out of the woods, running the RO almost 24/7 and getting the kinks worked out with my new pan. Everything's running smoothly now but I'm kind of glad we're in a cold snap as I need a break!

[HowardR]

Chuck C and Moeferg,

I've sent you private messages inviting you to visit my farm on Friday to see my operation. I would invite you on Thursday, but, according to the latest forecast, a huge run starts that day and I'll probably spend most of the day in the woods looking for leaks, improving the flow, and putting out a few additional taps.

I am not a modern maple syrup producer. I started off as a hobbyist with buckets about 35 years ago and I've been expanding little by little ever since. I use old fashioned equipment and techniques that no modern producer would ever dream of starting with. I invent new ways of doing things to keep myself enthusiastic and make each season better than the last one.

If you want to learn good technique, you won't learn it from me. You should visit Andy Kinter in Marion Center. He sells maple syrup supplies and is welcoming to visitors. Everything he does is well researched and extremely productive. His family has been making maple syrup forever. They travel to learn the latest techniques. And he gets the most sap possible from every tap.

Howard

[Sugarmaker]

Howard,
Sounds like your having a grand time making syrup! I am sure some of your techniques and inventions would be well recieved too. Most of us old timers are still trying to learn about this syrup thing! Andy is a good guy! Tell him I said hi!
Regards,
Chris

[HowardR]

Howard,
Sounds like your having a grand time making syrup! I am sure some of your techniques and inventions would be well recieved too. Most of us old timers are still trying to learn about this syrup thing! Andy is a good guy! Tell him I said hi!
Regards,
Chris

Thank you Chris. You can find three of my latest inventions (my homemade RO, my stovetop evaporator and my Star San tube pump) under my signature. I've described them all in threads here at mapletrader.com.

[Sugarmaker]

Howard,
Your stove top evaporator/s are the prototypes for the all electric evaporator! Nice.
Regards,
Chris

[deacm]

Tapping Weather Opinion? I'm in Edinboro, PA with 60 buckets and trying to decide whether to tap at the end of this week (Feb 21st) for the 3-4 days that appear favorable.......or wait for that next cold spell to go through (Feb 25-Mar 5) for 10 days and then tap after that, where it looks to be 40 H and 20 L for almost two weeks. Opinions? Thanks

[Sugarmaker]

Deac,
Must make syrup now!:)
Regards,
Chris

[sbedilion]

Tapping Weather Opinion? I'm in Edinboro, PA with 60 buckets and trying to decide whether to tap at the end of this week (Feb 21st) for the 3-4 days that appear favorable.......or wait for that next cold spell to go through (Feb 25-Mar 5) for 10 days and then tap after that, where it looks to be 40 H and 20 L for almost two weeks. Opinions? Thanks

I'm south of pittsburgh and I'm tapped. If you tap now....your weather looks good for the next week before it freezes for a few days. I'd tap now....get your first run in the books....then when things freeze for a few days, you can get caught up and prepared with then things thaw. I think most of us are tapped. But it also depends on your schedule and free time. I tend to tap early and wrap up early....too many spring hobbies to be boiling when the days are nice :)

[sbedilion]

Deac,
Must make syrup now!:)
Regards,
Chris

hahahaha. :lol:

[Sugarmaker]

hahahaha. :lol:

I have a little different issue than some. On March 16 and 17 is our Northwest PA Maple Syrup Taste and Tour, we will have 150 to 200 visitors per day standing outside the door of the sugarhouse expecting maple products to be ready for their tasting and maybe even take home some for their pancakes.
So we must get the electric blankets out and the real long extension cords for all road side trees. Sure is great all the folks let me plug those in to there outside electric! Humm, wonder what there bill looks like in the spring around April fools day? We also have little roadside chats with the sugar maples, kind of like a fire side chat only colder. Then we also take requests and deliver them what ever they need to PRODUCE SAP NOW!!! Ok you get the idea.!:)
We are in crazed syrup making mode.
Hope my evaporator is ok after the 6 degrees F last night? I did put a electric heater in the arch. Yea ran the cord over to the neighbors too! He he he:).
Regards,
Chris

[helptheold]

Thank you Chris. You can find three of my latest inventions (my homemade RO, my stovetop evaporator and my Star San tube pump) under my signature. I've described them all in threads here at mapletrader.com.

That is crazy mad scientist stuff, I love it! I've got to find a smaller table for our RO but it's working fine for us now, just a tight squeeze to get into the cars.

19478

[Gary R]

deacm, I'd tap before this weekend. The rule of thump for buckets is the tap holes last 6 weeks if it's not too warm. Tapping now puts you to the beginning of April. You are in a relative cold area but, not a lot of great syrup is made around here in April. Good luck!

Chris, hope you made out ok. I drained my evaporator for this cold spell. I don't have a cord long enough to reach the neighbors!

If things work out I should be done for the season Monday?

[slammer3364]

Tapped today for upcoming weekend,last two years have been rough for sap,hopefully this year will be better. Good Luck to all!

[HowardR]

slammer,

You haven't missed much by tapping this late. The first run at the beginning of February got cut off after a few days by warm weather. Last week's run got cut off after two days by cold weather. If the forecast is correct, this run will last a week or two.

[sbedilion]

10day forecast looks goooood. Im sitting on 50gallons of consentrated sap (6%). Luckily we got snow and I packed it really well. Boiling Friday on the new evaporator that I built this week. Also have close to 200gal of sap to collect and process on Friday. Its going to be a busy weekend/week.

19491

[helptheold]

10day forecast looks goooood. Im sitting on 50gallons of consentrated sap (6%). Luckily we got snow and I packed it really well. Boiling Friday on the new evaporator that I built this week. Also have close to 200gal of sap to collect and process on Friday. Its going to be a busy weekend/week.

19491

We're headed out of town for a week on the 1st, I'm hoping that I can keep up with everything until Wednesday night, then I'll rinse & store my buckets until we get back.

[HowardR]

Sun came out and the trees woke up after last week's cold spell. Nice run today.

[Paddymountain]

HowardR: Sounds like your season is progressing well! Right now it seems steady. Cool down for about 4 days, and a
good run for 3 days or so. It makes it easy to keep up. I started a part time job a couple of weeks ago
and will certainly need to make adjustments whenever we get dumped on!

[HowardR]

Paddymountain,

Yes, we are getting the same weather pattern here. But I won't complain so long as the days off are due to cold weather!

Based upon the forecast a few days ago, I thought that this week would be one long continuous run -- but the latest forecasts (weather.com and accuweather.com) call for below freezing temperatures all day on Monday and Tuesday.

[Gary R]

I'm telling you this winter won't relent. When I see that groundhog, I'm taking him out!:) I've only collected 125 in the last two days. I've refilled the evaporator and boiling it in now.

[iby]

I'm telling you this winter won't relent. When I see that groundhog, I'm taking him out!:) I've only collected 125 in the last two days. I've refilled the evaporator and boiling it in now.

I've never tried it, but maybe groundhog tastes good... I'm willing to try it with you :)

[sbedilion]

made about 3 gallons of syrup today with another 150gallons of sap to go. I’ll probably work it for another hour then shut it down for the night.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190223/978a130b1786499b5a3b6e328035110e.jpg


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[slammer3364]

Not much going on here either,did find a nice shed antler today picking up sap!

[HowardR]

Slammer and Gary,

I've got the opposite problem here. The sap is coming out so fast that I'm having trouble keeping up.

I don't have a high powered evaporator; I've got a continuous process system. My gravity collection pipes feed into my barrels, which feed into my ROs, which feed into my stove-top evaporator, which trickle out almost-syrup into a stainless steel bucket. During a warm night in the middle of a big run, I run my system all night.

The forecast is for above freezing tonight with a high of 55 tomorrow, so I'll have to run my system all night tonight to keep up. I'll get up a few times during the night to make sure everything is running smoothly.

[sbedilion]

Im with HowardR. Trees have been running good. So far I’m keeping up nicely.

Made another 3 gallons yesterday. Puts me at 6 gallons for the season. Collected another 100 gallons this morning. Running it through the RO now. We have high winds so I dont know if I’ll be boiling today or not.

Last years total was 10 gallons. Already over half way there. My sugar % is much better this season. Im between 2-2.5%. Last yr I was under 1%.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Gary R]

Great to hear you guys are getting the sap. I'm about 50 miles north at 1500' and a slight north facing sugar bush. Didn't boil yesterday. I have about 300 gallons today that I've started on. Should be done about 8pm. Good news is sugar content is just above 1.5% which is great for me. I'll probably be about a gallon shy of my season goal tonight then a long freeze. Not sure what I'll do. Finish front pan? Good luck to all!

[HowardR]

We are just now finishing up a very good 4 day run (Thursday through Sunday). According to the forecast there will be a cool down for two days (Monday and Tuesday) followed by another four day run (Wednesday through Saturday) followed by another cool down. A couple days ago, Paddymountain detected this spring's cool-down-and-then-good-run weather pattern. He wrote:


Right now [the weather] seems steady. Cool down for about 4 days, and a good run for 3 days or so.

This could be great maple syrup year.

[Rossell's Sugar Camp]

So the season is off to a good start for us here. We are at 202 gallons after tonight's boil. I have been getting sap sugar content between 1.1 and 1.5 % sugar, but I have been getting BIG runs. Huge runs. Believe me they are the biggest runs. Anyways, from 1000 taps I got 3000 gallons in 24 hours last week.

[Sugarmaker]

Folks,
4 boils 41 gallons of nice Amber. Finished last night in the middle of the wind storm. Took all after noon to gather 600 gallons of 2.2%. High winds, had a dead branch graze me while gathering.
Regards,
Chris

[iby]

Folks,
4 boils 41 gallons of nice Amber. Finished last night in the middle of the wind storm. Took all after noon to gather 600 gallons of 2.2%. High winds, had a dead branch graze me while gathering.
Regards,
Chris

Wow... you're a brave man.. at about 11am yesterday I lost a line of about 50 taps that was running strong.. I assume a tree took it out, but I am not brave enough to venture into the woods to research with those winds... I got about 710 gallons from 290 taps between thursday evening and last night...

[Sugarmaker]

iby,
Your taps are running and producing real well! I may be dumber than brave!:) Sap collecting passion I guess. Started gathering at 55 deg F and sunshine, ending in a rain suit, blizzard conditions! My rented roadside maples are not the safest to be around in good weather. I probably should check the lines before next run, for down lines due to limbs too. Was a good night to boil!
Good luck with your season! How is your sugar content?
Regards,
Chris

[HowardR]

I'm with you, Iby. I'm not going to spend much time in the woods while this wind is blowing! The current forecast calls for windy weather all day, so I'll walk the lines tomorrow with my little chainsaw to repair the damage.

[iby]

iby,
Your taps are running and producing real well! I may be dumber than brave!:) Sap collecting passion I guess. Started gathering at 55 deg F and sunshine, ending in a rain suit, blizzard conditions! My rented roadside maples are not the safest to be around in good weather. I probably should check the lines before next run, for down lines due to limbs too. Was a good night to boil!
Good luck with your season! How is your sugar content?
Regards,
Chris

I have to be honest, my refractometer is a 0-80 scale... anything under 5% is very difficult to see since it's way down at the bottom.. it appeared to be just a tad under 2% . After recirculating 30 gallons in my RO for 20-30 minutes, I was at 5%...

[Sugarmaker]

iby,
5% !!! Nice.
Regards,
Chris

[iby]

I must say... I am shocked at how strong 3/16" tubing is. First, when I was installing it, I was shocked that the T's would actually support as much force as I was putting on it... but yesterday when I went to check on lines after all the wind, I was shocked... an 18" dead ash tree had fallen on one of the lines and pinned it to the ground. But the line was completely fine and it wasn't a very long span... it just seemed to stretch it out a bit... none of the connections let go.. anyway...anything I should be concerned with there aside from the obvious checking for leaks that weren't visible while frozen?

on the line I mentioned early in this thread that died during the wind... that ended up being a limb that pulled a drop line off the tap

[Sugarmaker]

iby,
With your 300 ish taps and good fresh sloped 3/16 tubing. You should produce as much sap /syrup as I do on 5/16.
Regards,
Chris

[Sugarmaker]

Folks,
Cheryl and grand daughter Addi in the wood shed:
https://i.imgur.com/U0aOoPe.jpg

Marly and Addi getting warrmed up in front of the old King arch:
https://i.imgur.com/eAr8fs1.jpg

Fresh syrup for the french toast:
https://i.imgur.com/1Th2k8L.jpg


Thanks to Daughter Kelly and her girls for helping: Looks pretty yummy to me!
https://i.imgur.com/oSvvRlA.jpg

Regards,
Chris

[Gary R]

I’m at 17 gallons syrup. I’m going to try get enough sap Friday and Saturday to make a couple more. Should then be done. Iby, when it’s running right on good days you can get 3 gallons sap per tap in 24 hours. Clogging can be an issue. Cleaning at end of season is key. As you found out, one big leak kills it.

[HowardR]

Winter is returning. My trees barely woke up yesterday, despite a very cloudy high in the mid-40s. And now the highs for Thursday and Friday are being revised down into the 30s. This week's run is going to be a small one. And then the forecast for next week: lows on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of 1, 5 and 8 degrees. Looks like the next big run will start on March 10. Can anybody remember a low of 1 degree in March?

[Paddymountain]

HowardR: I can remember below zero days in March! But then again, maybe I'm admitting that I am getting old!!!!!

[sbedilion]

Nice pictures Sugarmaker! My friends have taken more of an interest this year besides the “can i have a bottle”. Had a couple hang out last wkend and showing 2 more tomorrow the whole process. I did offer up a bottle to anyone that comes and hangs out. Free syrup always works. :)

I’m sitting on 10 gallons of almost syrup. Another 50 gallons of 6% post RO sap and 185 gallons of sap waiting to be collected. Its going to be a busy few days. Thankfully Im off on fridays and can knock a bunch out this wkend. Then it looks to freeze up for a few days.

Im dreading the filtering process...so much syrup and only 2 cone filters. Next years upgrade will be a better filtering process.

HelpTheOld....let me know if u need help. I forget when you said your leaving for a few days. I can boil if you dont get it done.

[HowardR]

Maple producers in the Somerset County area will be having an open house as part of the Somerset Maple Producers Association Maple Weekend on March 9 and 10. For details go to:

http://somersetcountymaple.org/maple-weekend.html

By the way, Andy Kinter of 2440 Musser Rd, Indiana PA will also be participating with an open house from 1 to 4pm on both March 9 and 10.

My son and I will be visiting several maple producers on the afternoon of March 9 -- looking for ideas for the sugar shack we're planning to build this summer. Maybe we'll see some of you there!

[sbedilion]

Finally got around to finishing up a few batches. Ended w 7.5 gallons. Cleaned everything and prepped for the cold spell.

19570

[Icefisher]

The open house sounds interesting.
Would be nice to maybe go learn something. Any suggestions which farm (s?) to maybe visit?

[HowardR]

The open house sounds interesting.
Would be nice to maybe go learn something. Any suggestions which farm (s?) to maybe visit?

My only suggestion is that you make your choices after entering their addresses on Google Maps.

[Gary R]

Well global warming has got the best of me. Only had 25 gallons sap in the tank after two days of the pump on. I decided to dump the sap and finish my front pan. We filtered and bottled today another 10 gallons and a pint. That put us at 19 gallons and a pint for the season. Looks like I'm done. Giving my rear pan sweet to my coworker tomorrow. It was 18 gallons at 4.5%. Probably start looking for sheds and turkeys. Good luck to you guys!

[Sugarmaker]

GaryR,
We should have good weather this weekend. Hope you get up this way to stop in and visit.
Today was maple candy day. Cheryl and I made 1.75 gallons of Amber into some nice leaves and hearts!
Took it to 241 F
https://i.imgur.com/TzpnD42.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/t3fVrOG.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/3BPXwyI.jpg

Next will be crystal coating and then on to the secret process for visitors to our sugarhouse for the NW PA Maple Taste and Tour March 16th and 17th (www.pamaple.org)
Regards,
Chris

[HowardR]

I'm 2/3 of the way to my record syrup year. Here's the proportion of the syrup that I've made so far from each of this year's 4 runs:

1. 11% - Feb. 3-8 (I was tapping during the run.)
2. 20% - Feb. 12-15
3. 57% - Feb. 21-24
4. 12% - Feb. 27-March 2

I'm hoping that the run that starts on Saturday will be as big as the Feb. 21-24 run. If so, I'll set a new record. If not, then, given the forecast, it's because my taps are healing.

[Sugarmaker]

I think the forecast looks just great for making syrup starting about Saturday or Sunday (March 8,9th). Then looks favorable for the rest of March. We will see how the taps hold up. Hoping by changing the drops and spouts and the cold temps it will still be a good year.
Regards,
Chris

[Icefisher]

I agree, and hope we have a nice run sat. Planning to visit a couple Somerset area producers then collect in the afternoon and boil Saturday evening/ Sunday.
We shall see..

[helptheold]

Nice pictures Sugarmaker! My friends have taken more of an interest this year besides the “can i have a bottle”. Had a couple hang out last wkend and showing 2 more tomorrow the whole process. I did offer up a bottle to anyone that comes and hangs out. Free syrup always works. :)

I’m sitting on 10 gallons of almost syrup. Another 50 gallons of 6% post RO sap and 185 gallons of sap waiting to be collected. Its going to be a busy few days. Thankfully Im off on fridays and can knock a bunch out this wkend. Then it looks to freeze up for a few days.

Im dreading the filtering process...so much syrup and only 2 cone filters. Next years upgrade will be a better filtering process.

HelpTheOld....let me know if u need help. I forget when you said your leaving for a few days. I can boil if you dont get it done.

I managed to get it all boiled or concentrated and in the freezer before we left. I’ll be ready to go when we get back!

[helptheold]

I'm 2/3 of the way to my record syrup year. Here's the proportion of the syrup that I've made so far from each of this year's 4 runs:

1. 11% - Feb. 3-8 (I was tapping during the run.)
2. 20% - Feb. 12-15
3. 57% - Feb. 21-24
4. 12% - Feb. 27-March 2

I'm hoping that the run that starts on Saturday will be as big as the Feb. 21-24 run. If so, I'll set a new record. If not, then, given the forecast, it's because my taps are healing.

We get back from vacation on Saturday at 5:30 and you better believe that I’m going to get all my buckets put out that night! Even if I don’t get much in March, I’ve already got 4.5 gallons of almost syrup in the freezer which is more then I’ve ever gotten.

[HowardR]

Here's my reading of the current forecast: This season is going out with a bang! The sap will run hard starting Saturday, running all night Saturday night. Wednesday will be the last day of the run and, perhaps, the last day of the season.

[sbedilion]

idk.....weather channel site is showing below freezing temps at night all the way out to March 20th. i'm just south of pittsburgh. it's looking like i'm going to be overwhelmed with sap. i'm probably pulling the plug in 2 weeks no matter what....time to get ready for the next hobby :)

[HowardR]

idk.....weather channel site is showing below freezing temps at night all the way out to March 20th. i'm just south of pittsburgh. it's looking like i'm going to be overwhelmed with sap. i'm probably pulling the plug in 2 weeks no matter what....time to get ready for the next hobby :)

Getting overwhelmed with sap is a real possibility. This season could end like 2014. The big run of that season was huge. I tried processing the oldest sap first, but I ended up dumping hundreds of gallons that were starting to ferment in the warm weather. I pulled my taps while the sap was still running and built my first RO that summer.

I've started freezing gallon-sap-cubes in my deep freezer (using plastic ice cream containers). I drop them into my sap barrels on warm days to keep the collected-sap cool. I've got 14 sap cubes in my freezer that I plan to drop into Sunday's sap. That day I will refill them for dropping into Wednesday's sap.

[Sugarmaker]

Humm? Last days of the season?? Guess I better look at the forecast for our area! I was planning to make syrup till the first of April!:) We just finished packing 48 pints of maple peanut butter.

Checked AccuWeather (Albion PA 16401) and if you can believe them we will have a good sugaring season right up till April 1. (No joke there either!) You couldn't dream of a forecast that looked better! If it happens lots of folks will be much tired of making syrup by April fools day! What I dont see is very warm spell like 70 degrees! F! That is usually what kills it for us. Lake Erie is still mostly frozen and should provide a nice cool breeze for us too!
Regards,
Chris

[HowardR]

Humm? Last days of the season?? Guess I better look at the forecast for our area! I was planning to make syrup till the first of April!:) We just finished packing 48 pints of maple peanut butter.

Chris,

My season could end without yours ending. I tapped the first week of February and the highs in the 50s from Wednesday through Friday, predicted by Accuweather, could cause my tap holes to heal.

[Sugarmaker]

Howard,
Highs in the 50's! Your going to be overloaded with quality sap. Especially if you have a freeze at night in there. Understand your farther south. Next week should be a prime time for you. Our forecast temps are starting to drop off a little. Better that, than going too high too quick! Happy boiling!
Regards,
Chris

[HowardR]

Chris,

If the forecast is correct (a big if!), there won't be a freeze Wednesday, Thursday or Friday night, so the sap would keep coming in Thursday but would tail off sharply on Friday and Saturday. But the forecast keeps changing. A few days ago it wasn't going to freeze on Tuesday night, but now it is supposed to. Long range forecasts are inaccurate!

[Sugarmaker]

Howard,
Guidelines just guidelines! If you get that freeze your right back in business! Might warm to thaw things here today???
Good luck! Keep boiling!
Regards,
Chris

[Gary R]

Quiet on here. Kind of missing boiling, but works been tough anyway. I visited Dave Yeany on Friday. He hadn't boiled yet because of the cold weather. On Sunday everyone was boiling! We visited my coworker and his 4 burner propane rig. He also built a RO in a bucket. It's quite a contraption. Next was Sugarmaker. Got to taste some great syrup and catch up with my mentor. After was Triple Creek Maple. I needed a spare hydrometer. They have a great high tech operation. Syrup was really coming off and at 80Tc. Good luck to you guys on the taste and tour!

[helptheold]

Ack. I just had to dump a whole bunch of sap and concentrate, everything was ropy and smelled awful when I boiled it. Think I'm going to have to clean like mad if I want to do anything else this week. Any suggestions on how to clean my RO easily? I do have about 30 gallons of the permeate from the RO in a large trash can.

[Icefisher]

Ack. I just had to dump a whole bunch of sap and concentrate, everything was ropy and smelled awful when I boiled it. Think I'm going to have to clean like mad if I want to do anything else this week. Any suggestions on how to clean my RO easily? I do have about 30 gallons of the permeate from the RO in a large trash can.
Wow! Old Sap?

[helptheold]

Wow! Old Sap?

Nope. 100% dirty RO, I forgot to change the filter before we went on vacation *facepalm* I was close to closing up shop anyway as I'm having eye surgery in two weeks and wanted to get everything cleaned up before then. I'll do some more boiling without running the RO but I'm done for the year.

Live and learn.

[Sugarmaker]

Sap today! Should be a couple good runs prior to the Tour. Was great to have Gary R and Laura stop in and keep me straight!
Keep boiling folks! another 2 weeks at least!
You can have any syrup grade you want this year as long as its Amber! Maybe it will go darker later? But the 60 gallons so far is only a couple points different in the mid Amber range.
Regards,
Chris

[HowardR]

I'll do some more boiling without running the RO but I'm done for the year.
I'm planning to pull my taps later this week.

[HowardR]

Nope. 100% dirty RO, I forgot to change the filter before we went on vacation *facepalm*.

Help,

If the new sap you boil today also has a bad smell, then there is another explanation. Your trees may be starting to bud. Budded sap has a dirty socks smell similar to what you describe. Some people call it "stringy" but I have never noticed that. The dirty socks smell of budded sap can contaminate and ruin an entire batch.

At the end of the season, I try to keep my batches separate to avoid mixing bad with good. I'm about 50 miles north of you, and usually about a week or two behind you, but this season is unusual. With the high for tomorrow forecast to be 70, I may just be a day or two behind you this year. So, I'm going to finish making today's sap before I start boiling tomorrow's sap. And I'll be ready to pitch tomorrow's sap if I don't like the smell.

Best wishes for your eye surgery! I hope it goes well and that your vision improves dramatically as a result.

[HowardR]

At about 5pm yesterday, both of my RO filters got clogged with stringy-slimy slightly off-smelling sap. This morning I bottled my last batch. I ended up with 81% as much syrup as my record year.

[sbedilion]

At about 5pm yesterday, both of my RO filters got clogged with stringy-slimy slightly off-smelling sap. This morning I bottled my last batch. I ended up with 81% as much syrup as my record year.

I haven't collected since Sunday evening. It's 73 out now,plus the previous warm days.....I'm assuming I'll be dumping it. Collecting/Boiling tonight if its still good. If I dump it, I most likely will be calling it a season. My goal was 10 gallons and I'm at that now....same as last season but with a much bigger setup and RO. Everything was much more enjoyable this year.

[sbedilion]

I haven't collected since Sunday evening. It's 73 out now,plus the previous warm days.....I'm assuming I'll be dumping it. Collecting/Boiling tonight if its still good. If I dump it, I most likely will be calling it a season. My goal was 10 gallons and I'm at that now....same as last season but with a much bigger setup and RO. Everything was much more enjoyable this year.

sap taste fine....top layer of sap looks funky. im pumping from the bottom...so ill collect most of it and when im closing in on the funky stuff i’ll turn the pump off and dump it. boiling tonight. keeping it seperate from the rest of my almost finished syrup...just in case.

[HowardR]

sbdelion,

My problems could simply be due to bacteria building up during the long gravity-powered journey through the bush to my RO's. So do judge for yourself. My situation may not indicate that your maple season is coming to an end.

[sbedilion]

sbdelion,

My problems could simply be due to bacteria building up during the long gravity-powered journey through the bush to my RO's. So do judge for yourself. My situation may not indicate that your maple season is coming to an end.

I was more or less saying I was worried my sap from the week was bad because of the hot weather. Buds on my trees are still tight. I may or may not wrap things up this wkend. We might have 1 more week but other hobbies are starting up.

[DRoseum]

Based in Murrysville and most of my red maples have slowed considerably at this point (tapped on 2/4). Sugar Maples were still running OK as of yesterday. We will see what the next week brings, but might be wrapping it up soon. Had a great year on 34 taps making 6 gallons. Used a new custom evaporator and RO I built.

https://www.sugartree.run/2019/03/custom-hobby-maple-syrup-evaporator.html

[sbedilion]

Done. :) This week's weather looks great for sap runs but after finishing up a few batches yesterday and cleaning up I decided to call it. Finished off the season with around 13 gallons.

This years improvements made things very enjoyable again. Bigger evaporator, RO, 3 lines ran to 1 collection tank verse 3 tanks, NEW TRUCK (my little tacoma maxed out at around 100gallons of sap).

My biggest bottleneck is finishing. Since I batch boil....and my smallest pan is 2x3, I'm pulling my pan off the fire with about 5 gallons of near syrup that will still need boiled down to about 2-3 gallons of syrup. This part takes hours since I'm doing it on a stove. I might make a smaller pan w/ propane burners for next season.

Hope the sap gushes for everyone this week. Enjoy.

19738

[helptheold]

I'm done as well, now I just have to get the energy up to clean everything. Still have a bunch of near syrup in the freezer that I need to finish, I'll probably put that off until I'm finished cleaning so that I have the motivation :)

[helptheold]

Done. :) This week's weather looks great for sap runs but after finishing up a few batches yesterday and cleaning up I decided to call it. Finished off the season with around 13 gallons.

This years improvements made things very enjoyable again. Bigger evaporator, RO, 3 lines ran to 1 collection tank verse 3 tanks, NEW TRUCK (my little tacoma maxed out at around 100gallons of sap).

My biggest bottleneck is finishing. Since I batch boil....and my smallest pan is 2x3, I'm pulling my pan off the fire with about 5 gallons of near syrup that will still need boiled down to about 2-3 gallons of syrup. This part takes hours since I'm doing it on a stove. I might make a smaller pan w/ propane burners for next season.

Hope the sap gushes for everyone this week. Enjoy.

19738

That is a super cute bottle, where did you get it?

[sbedilion]

There is a brewing supply store (South Hills Brewing) near my office. I only bought a case (12) of these to make into nice gifts..they are 16oz. I did the rest of my syrup in normal bottles. Still playing around with label designs.

19761

[Sugarmaker]

Hopping for a couple more runs this week. in PA's great white north land!
Regards,
Chris

[Hoppy]

There is a brewing supply store (South Hills Brewing) near my office. I only bought a case (12) of these to make into nice gifts..they are 16oz. I did the rest of my syrup in normal bottles. Still playing around with label designs.

19761

Those bottles look great. I didn't do any sugaring this year as I've been too busy with extra work. I kinda miss the long boils and bottling though. I still have a bunch of last years syrup so I'm good there. I did put a single tap out the other day so I could make my favorite drink: sap and Jameson Black Barrel. Sap is clear and delicious.

[Psucar248]

The new homemade R.O. I built for this year works great and took 525 gallons of sap at 2% down to 100 gallons of 11%. End of the season for me. Boiling off this concentrate this weekend. Hope to get a little over ten gallons of syrup

[DRoseum]

I am based in Murrysville and officially ended my season today. Sap hasn't been running much and red maples are starting to show signs of budding (most of my trees are reds). I pulled down all my buckets and cleaned all my equipment. Was a good season, lots of fun and a little over 6.25 gallons of syrup on 36 taps.

https://www.sugartree.run/2019/03/Indicators-maple-syrup-season-is-over.html

https://www.sugartree.run/2019/03/2019-maple-syrup-season-recap.html

[Sugarmaker]

Folks,
Gathered everything this morning and made 6 more gallons of Amber Rich. Checked containers and they have about the same out there again. So will be making syrup again tomorrow if every thing holds together!
Regards,
Chris

[iby]

haven't had time to read the forums much since the start of march... I'll be pulling taps and sanitizing the lines later this week... I need to catch up on sleep... too many nights up til 3am...

I have a question regarding RO.... and I should post in the other forum... but when you guys RO say 300 gallons, how long does it take? I have a single 4x40, that I'm running at 190 PSI and roughly 200 GPH... just wondering how long it takes you guys to cut it by 50% . I'm only pulling about 15 gallons of perm / hour... I know I have a messed up bypass valve in the mix, but was too late to change it when I noticed it... but still, 15gallon / hour seems awfully slow I would think.. but maybe I am just over hopeful.. For next year, I envision a wall of like 20 RO 4x40 canisters all running in sequence LOL

50 gallons of syrup so far...

[Sugarmaker]

I looked around and it was April! Where did the season go? Still hanging on up north but it looks like we will be done this week. supposed to be 54 today, so it should run, taps are beyond a normal length of 6 weeks. I am keeping my sap quantity expectations low for the next several days. My wood shed had to be restocked with some split wood that was for the house when we had a wood stove in there. Might have enough wood to make another 10 gallons of syrup?
I havent heard the peepers, but some others have.
Regards,
Chris

[Sugarmaker]

iby,
Good job getting 50 gallons of syrup made!
I believe today maybe the last day of the 2019 season in the great white north. Sap run was a drizzle yesterday. collected, boiled for a hour and made 2 gallons of Very Dark great tasting syrup. Will consider starting clean up in next day or so. It's been good. Lots of friends and family visiting during boiling events.
Regards,
Chris