Draining a flat pan to finish

[Ryne]

Last year was my first year boiling on an actual evaporator setup - 16x30 flat pan StarCat from Smoky Lake. When I would get close, I would draw off the entire batch and finish it on the propane fryer base so I could better control the boil. To prevent the flat pan from scorching, I slid a piece of 3/4" plywood under the pan and did my draw. Before removing the wood, I flooded the pan with regular water and left it to cool overnight. That also gave me a nice way to rinse the pan before it sat for a week until I boiled again.

Would I be further ahead to manage the end of my burn better and just leave the near syrup in the pan overnight? Then I would be doing the draw when everything was cool. I'm curious to hear how others do it.




Edit: I found my own answer, but would still like to hear new input, if there is any. http://mapletrader.com/community/showthread.php?35103-how-to-stop-boiling

[CTguy923]

what i did was when i was getting close to finishing was to stop adding wood and let the fire die down, once i felt it was cool enough to not scorch the pan id draw off what syrup i add and then add water to the pan

[jdircksen]

Does the thickness of your pan play a role? I used buffet pans last year and they were probably 24 gauge. I would dump my boiling syrup into my finishing pan and set the buffet pan aside (off the heat). Those pans didn't seem to need any special attention.

This year I'm using an 18 gauge flat pan so I am curious what people say.

**edit: now I realize you are talking about draining your pan over a wood fire. I burn gas so I just shut it off when I want to stop, dump my pans, and don't have any issues with scorching the pans. But wood is different, so sorry I can't help.

[ir3333]

thin pans increase the boiling rate tremendously!
Letting the arch cool with sap in your pan will continue evaporation...a bonus!

[Ryne]

I may try letting it cool on the arch for the first run, see how it goes.

[Trapper2]

21734
I boil to 217.5 and then roll the pan off and filter into 5 gallon containers immediately while hot. I take the near syrup home and finish off on propane and filter again.

[Lanark]

I have a 4'x2' flat pan on a homemade brick arch inside a cinder block sugar shack with a pulley system connected to the rafters. I draw off after two days of boiling when there is about 1/2" to 3/4" in the pan. Lift the pan up high enough to slide a metal shield under the pan, remove one s bracket to I can tilt my pan and filter hot into 5 gallon food grade buckets. Re attached the s bracket and put about 10 gallons of water in pan with a 4 litre jug of vinegar. I give the pan a quick scrub with a nylon bbq brush then come back later once the water has cooled and clean the pan. Refill the pan with fresh sap so it's ready for the morning.

I finish my almost syrup in a 10 gallon brew kettle on an outside propane burner then filter again into another brew kettle with a spigot. I can now keep the syrup warm enough on the stove top while filling my bottles.

[Pdiamond]

Lanark, do you rinse the pan with clean water prior to putting sap in it after you do the quick scrub?

[Lanark]

I do rinse with clean water and I have old but clean dish towels that I wipe the pan down with to remove pretty much any of the clean water then fill with clean sap. I like to fill my pan with clean sap in the evening because I have no hydro at the shack and some mornings when it's -20C things are a little frozen. This way I just light a fire and walk back to the house.

[Pdiamond]

Lanark, just noticed you're from Ontario, and I was wondering your location. My Grandma was from Lakefield, Ont. which is just north of Peterbourgh. She passed away a few years ago. Sure do miss going up to the lake. Have a lot of good memories though.

[Lanark]

Pdiamond, I'm east of Peterborough and west of Ottawa. Just around the corner from the village of Lanark.

[Pdiamond]

Thank you for the reply. I envy you a lot, you really live in a beautiful place that God created. I am part french-canadian from my grandmothers side. Wish you nothing but the best for this year.

[jrm]

Last year was my first year boiling on an actual evaporator setup - 16x30 flat pan StarCat from Smoky Lake.

I just spent a few hours this afternoon and evening, checking out the StarCat, watching videos, etc. I didn't sugar last year, the prior two years I used propane, post-surgery, and before that, wood-fired in the barrel evaporator I made. Hoping the season will cooperate this year, and I have to say, I haven't decided which route to use this year with some physical limitations. But, the StarCat sure has caught my eye. Assuming you were wood fired previously. Love to hear your thoughts about transitioning, offline is fine.

Thanks.

[Ryne]

I was using a turkey fryer prior to this with only 3-4 taps. I decided if I was going to get into the hobby, I wanted something more traditional than a barrel. Also, for the price of a barrel and pan, the StarCat wasn't too much more. Getting all the free wood to burn as efficiently as possible is the biggest challenge over propane. But I do enjoy the art of it all much more than maximized productivity.

[donka]

What we do to draw off is use smaller and less wood to get it close to finished. Once it’s close I prop open the door and with a shovel, remove the coals and put outside in the snow, once snow is gone I use a 40 gallon metal trash barrel for coals. Doing it like this allows me to draw everything off without warping the pan. To get pan ready for next batch I dump a 5 gallon bucket of hot water into pan and scrub it clean. Sometimes I use less water and vinegar if needed.

[goose52]

Being on the lazy side, i finish in my 2x4' boiling pan. i try to boil between 200-250 gal of sap so i have a safe depth of syrup when it's time to draw off. It takes me 3 days to do this. so for 2 nights i power load my pans with sap and bank the fire when i go to bed. i never get a super light syrup as a result but medium amber with a lot of caramel notes which we prefer. other than being a lil darker i see no harm from leaving syrup in the pan overnight. after i draw off into 2.5 or 1 gal containers on day 3 i quickly throw in 10 gal of water in the pan while i clean up the mess. by then the water in the pan is warm and i scrub that out so it's ready for the next batch. you've got to be careful at crunch time but finishing in a bigger pan is way faster with less cleaning than finishing in a turkey fryer etc. my .02