Niter problem

[peterjd89]

Anyone else struggling with niter I know late season it gets worse but seems like I run 800 gallons of sap and it loses its boil last week I could run bout 3000 gallons b4 cleaning I even started burning locust posts to make syrup faster its frustrating saps 2% non ro thought if I got one it wouldn't be as much of a probelm

[Smokeshow]

Wish I could say something uplifting but....niter for me is always horrible! I can barely filter 2 gallons without an issue.

[peterjd89]

It goes great for a while then a straight down hill reversing don't make a big difference either

[ecolbeck]

saps 2% non ro thought if I got one it wouldn't be as much of a probelm

Unfortunately, RO will not remove any niter from sap so it won’t really help.

[Russell Lampron]

I built an air injector for my evaporator and it made a world of difference. It keeps the nitre suspended so that it doesn't burn onto the bottom of the flues or front pan. It doesn't make filtering any easier because the nitre is still there but the nitre is a much lighter color and so is the syrup.

[DrTimPerkins]

Unfortunately, RO will not remove any niter from sap so it won’t really help.

That is correct. RO has no effect on the AMOUNT of niter formation, and will actually increase the RATE at which niter forms, since the minerals in the sap end up concentrated along with the sugar.

[maple flats]

I'm not sure why or how, but my niter is the best it has ever been this year. This morning I will be cleaning my pan for the first time this season. Normally in an average year I need to after every other boil, some years every boil and rarely but sometimes I need to shut down and clean while I still have sap to boil.
As the season progresses I usually need to clean more often too.

[Sunnyacres]

Yeah this is the worst year for niter build up for us too. Had to scrape the pans after 600 gallons and the last channel in the syrup pan was brutal it was very thick. The filters are just black and we are using ten pre filters and they all look like mud.

[tcross]

i'm having horrible nitre this year too. i've never had it like this before. it's making it pretty much impossible to have a consistent draw!

[Trapper2]

After reading your problems this year I feel so very lucky. I usually start with 4-5 prefilters and a Orlon for doing 3-4 gallons and I barely get it all filtered. This year I did a 180 gallon boil which yielded 5 gallons plus a pint. I took a prefilter out at about 3.5 gallon mark and then filtered the rest with the next prefilter. I swear I could've done another 2. Weird! Counting my blessings in Wisconsin. Flat pan and I should say, first boil of the year.

[maple flats]

I guess the honeymoon is over here. I now need to clean the pan again today and after just 1 day boiling. I made about 65-70 gal of syrup yesterday (still in finisher, will heat it and put it in barrels today and get an accurate total, while I boil again). Late yesterday 1200 gal of sap came in so I have sap to start with. It looks like the sap will start to flow about 11-12 today thru maybe 7:00 tonight.
Since last Wednesday I have gotten more sap than any other 6 day period since I started 17 seasons ago. The good part for me is that my sugar is back to averaging 2.0, the last two years it was 1.25% and 1.7%.

[highway]

How do you all clean your pans? remove them and pressure wash? leave them in place and scrub? Nitre this year is really aggressive up our way. Do you do an acid wash in place?

Ed

[tcross]

i use cleaning vinegar and water to clean mine. bring it to a simmer, let it sit for an hour or two and it tends to come right off. if time permits, i'll bring it to a boil and let it set over night. Usually no scrubbing after that!

[GeneralStark]

I soak with vinegar at least overnight and then scrape away any remaining burnt on niter with a scraper made with a copper pipe and or a copper scrubby.

[eustis22]

I've seen copper referenced before.....are you saying a copper scrubby won't scratch stainless?

[BCPP]

I've seen copper referenced before.....are you saying a copper scrubby won't scratch stainless?
That is correct
. Copper scrubby or scraper made by taking a short piece of copper pipe and flattening the end and grinding it square will not scratch stainless steel. Copper is a much softer metal compared to stainless.