how to stop boiling?

[TonyMo]

Greetings,
I am a complete rookie and this is my first year. I have been reading and learning a great deal here. THANK YOU!
I am recently retired and jumping into this with both feet. I have 47 acres and with probably 1/3 of that sugar maples. Since its my first year probably 50 taps max....probably won't get bigger than that in the future...right????:)
I am building myself and oil tank evaporator, insulated and bricked. I'm having local supplier build me a 2x4 flat open pan with draw off valve.

So, I will be boiling a batch to near syrup and drawing off to finish and pack in mason jars on propane stove inside.
My question is how to not burn the bottom of my pan when I draw off?
Do I have to somehow remove the pan from the top of the evaporator and then draw off?
How about lifting the pan up off the top rail of the evaporator and slide some 3 inch angle iron to prop it up off the heat?
As I get down to a certain depth....1 inch??? +/-??? Do I just stop feeding the fire and let it cool down and hope it doesn't evaporate too much more? I realize I will have to "learn" the rate at which my evaporator burns.

[buckeye gold]

Some batch evaporators have a frame on the side that your pan slides onto, you could build one like that. You can also stop firing when at near syrup and finish on a propane burner. If it were me i'd get a divided pan then you can draw syrup and still have sap in your pan.

[TonyMo]

^^^the guy making my pan builds evaporators and pans of all different types. He tells me I don't have enough taps (50)/sap to run a divided pan.

I was thinking of ways to weld in some removable brackets that I could slide the pan onto

[cbhansen]

I originally had a 2 x 3 divided pan, similar to the leader half pint pan (do a search for a pic). It was the CDL version with a drainage tap (actually 2). Have one made similar to the half pint. Shutting down is as simple as opening the drainage tap and pushing the sweet forward by adding sap (or water) to the opposite side. Shut he tap, add water to the pan (and vinegar if you wish) and let the pan sit over night. Check the pan later in the evening and add additional water if needed. I would boil 7 - 8 gal an hour. Made for a long day.

Have fun.

[Jim Foster]

On my 2 by 5 pan, I welded handles on both sides. When it comes time to empty it me and a buddy lift the pan up, another guy slides a wet slab of plywood under it. We drain the pan, pour a little fresh sap in, pull out the plywood and start all over again. Works like a charm and you aren't rushed in the process.

Jim

[Sugarmaker]

Be very careful lifting and moving/ tilting the pan. Your dealing with syrup that can burn/scald you! Batch processing can be tricky. Your chances of scorching the pan as you draw off is increased. I have seen pans lifted off the arch as mentioned. Slid off as mentioned and hinged to allow the syrup to run out the port. I think the least dangerous may be a good hinged system. Get to syrup cover the fire with some tin. carefully and safely lift the pan wit a rope/ pulley system to allow the syrup to run out the drain. lower the pan and immediately flood the pan with fresh sap or water if your sap is gone.
Good luck with your sugaring operation, it can be addictive.
Regards,
Chris

[donka]

Tony,
We tried lifting the pan off when we first started and it ended badly, lol. I have a home made barrel evaporator with flat pan and what I do now is prop door open and shovel out coals into a 30 gallon metal barrel, then cover. Let arch cool down for a couple minutes and then run the near syrup through pre filters and into stock pot which is finished on propane (works slick). I just cut the around the barrel end and welded hinges near the top. I prop door open to control draft and it makes it easy to shovel out coals. Not the prettiest but works well. 20738



Greetings,
I am a complete rookie and this is my first year. I have been reading and learning a great deal here. THANK YOU!
I am recently retired and jumping into this with both feet. I have 47 acres and with probably 1/3 of that sugar maples. Since its my first year probably 50 taps max....probably won't get bigger than that in the future...right????:)
I am building myself and oil tank evaporator, insulated and bricked. I'm having local supplier build me a 2x4 flat open pan with draw off valve.

So, I will be boiling a batch to near syrup and drawing off to finish and pack in mason jars on propane stove inside.
My question is how to not burn the bottom of my pan when I draw off?
Do I have to somehow remove the pan from the top of the evaporator and then draw off?
How about lifting the pan up off the top rail of the evaporator and slide some 3 inch angle iron to prop it up off the heat?
As I get down to a certain depth....1 inch??? +/-??? Do I just stop feeding the fire and let it cool down and hope it doesn't evaporate too much more? I realize I will have to "learn" the rate at which my evaporator burns.

[Trapper2]

2075120752
For me, the best way to end my boil has been a roller conveyor. At 217 degrees I pull off and immediately filter before I take it home to finish on propane. As you know hot filtering is much better than trying to cold filter. I see conveyors all the time on CL. Good luck to you.

[TonyMo]

Thanks for the ideas. I'm thinking I will try and slide the pan off. I like the conveyor roller idea!

[Sugarmaker]

Tony, Good luck with your season. We are here for you. With 10-15 acres of woods you may get a lot bigger. Have fun!
be safe! Keep boiling!
Regards,
Chris

[berkshires]

I found this thread very useful: http://mapletrader.com/community/showthread.php?34740-First-Evaporator-End-of-Boil-Techniques

With 45 acres, if 1/3 of the trees are sugar maples, how many potential taps is that? Wow! A lot!

Gabe

[maple flats]

Tony, your fabricator is wrong. Back when I first started I had 27 taps on a 4 section 2x3 pan, it worked very well, that year I made a judgement error and after each early season sap flow I added more taps until I had 70, that 2x3 ran 72 hrs non stop and after the 72 hrs I had more sap left than the first night when I decided between my wife and me we had to boil around the clock. On your 2x4 just don't grow too big too fast.
On mine it had 4 sections and I drew off very slowly as it reached 219F and then finished it off inside which did,'t take very long.