got sap??

[VT maple maker]

Does anyone have any sap yet?? I have heard of a few places already boiling in my area and i still havent gathered more than 50 or so gallons of sap. Not even enough to fire up for the first time. Just curious.

Kyle

[Valley View Sugarhouse]

its off to a slow start, my bush is in west topshamhas only run 800 gal so far..

[maple flats]

Been slow here too. Yesterday was the best to date and that only gave 2/3 gal sap/tap. My sugar usually runsb 2.25-2.75%, this year it is just under 2%. I am on about 95% sugar maples and 5% reds.

[musicfreak46290]

Here in north central ohio we have sap. The past few days have been good runs. A few days ago we had close to 80 gallon off 60 taps. It's nice to see full buckets when collection time rolls around towards the end of the day. So far this season we've collected about 400 gallons.

[Breezy Lane Sugarworks]

Have made 110 gallons so far off of somewhere around 12-13 hundred taps. of that 110, roughly 90-100 of it has been fancy grade. Lower elevation Addison County. A guy I buy sap from has 215 buckets and the last 2 days his sap was 3.1-2.9% our sap has been running around 2.3-2.6 ish.

[Hal]

I boiled yesterday for the first time, and made about fifteen gallons. This is just a hair early for me. If you check the writing on my sugarhouse wall it runs March 20th plus or minus a couple days, year after year. I will boil again today, there isn't much sap, but I want to get it boiled, don't expect it to run tomorrow, and I like to keep it cleaned up.

[VT maple maker]

Still waiting on the sweet stuff. While i was waiting i decided to hang another 40 or so buckets today. About 60 or so to go tomorrow and i will be all done tapping. I cant wait to get a good run, i have been busting my rear all year this last year getting the barn fixed up and turned into a sugar shack and and everything else that goes with it, im sure you guys know all about it. I know its coming but i hate the waiting game.

[VtSugarhouse]

We haven't boiled yet but with 45 degree weather coming on tue we are planning to boil on tue night. Had to dump a few hundred gallons of sap since it was just too old. This weekend we have probably 1,000 + gallons of sap so far testing about 2.5 to 2.6 , not bad compared to last year.
Our lines seem to be good as we are running 24- 25 inches of vaccum at the realeasers and about 21 in the farr end of the bush. I like this vaccum pump as it only has to run about 250- 300 rpm to get this vaccum.
Hoping for a moderate day on Monday and a better day on Tue.

Are we having fun yet?

[VT maple maker]

I thought for sure today was gonna be the day. Mother nature sure is stubborn sometimes. I hope tomorrow brings some better luck.

Kyle

[Valley View Sugarhouse]

These morning we are having are killing us around here, I had 11 this am when I got up, It takes the trees too long to thaw out.. Maybe tomorrow with the rain and we will have something...

Andy

[VT maple maker]

I know. Today was really nice out at about noon but the mornings are so cold the trees just are not coming up to temp. After about 2 or 3 the cloud cover really killed all hope for me. I am also hoping the rain tomorrow will speed them up. Pray for a warm rain.

Kyle

[Justin Turco]

Sap ran a little in Rutland today. Collected around 150 gallons tonight. Will boil tomorrow. Looks like it may be a good day to hide from the Rainy/Snowy weather in the sugarhouse.

[ibby458]

I haven't even tapped yet! Snow too deep in the woods and banks are too high on the road trees. Hoping for Thursday of Friday.

This unseasonably cold temps and deep snow are giving me more time to set up and revamp a few things. I spent all day yesterday with tin snips and box brake to build transition pieces to adapt a 8x12 verticle blower output to a 3x18 horizontal input to my arch. It was kinda fun in a challenging way to build all the pieces (I ended up building 4 different pieces due to the size of the sheet metal I had to work with), but I had to get #2 Son to install it in that cramped location under the arch.

With the additional layer of brick under the flue pan, I was worried about not having enough draft this year. Now I'll be able to blow the pans off the arch, If I want to. (But I put a damper on the suction side so I don't).

[VtSugarhouse]

We boiled last night till midnight and emptied one tank. We have about 2,000 gallons of sap in the next tank, but the sap stopped last night early.
Hopefully if it gets back up too 35-36 degrees it will start running again.
We were pulling 29 inches of vaccum at the realeasers last night but the sap just wasnt there. Sure did pull the ice thru though.

Only running about 2.6 sugar content...better than last year, but would like to see it higher.

[hookhill]

We boiled around 500 gallons of sap on the 15th and 16th. Got another 300 gallons on the 18th. It may run today if the temp goes up.

Jim

[HAHA I 1]

We are already finished down here. I have about 20 gallons to boil today if it hasn't gone bad. I ended up with almost 5 gallons of syrup on only 12 taps. Not bad for my first time I guess.

[VT maple maker]

Not to bad at all. So do you think you will be back at it again next year? Are you hooked like the rest of us?

Kyle

[HAHA I 1]

Absolutely. Like the rest of us, I got totally hooked and will be expanding next year. I started off really small-scaled to see if I was interested. It was so exciting wlaking to the woods to see how much sap had run each day/night. Kinda like Christmas.

We plan on building a wood shed this summer (I have 22acres of woods - plenty of wood - just no good way to keep it dry). I am also planning on building a new evaporator, but my wife noticed the prices of some of the smaller ones that are on the Maple Trader website and mentioned buying one to save the work. Lastly, we want to build a sugar shed, but the other 2 things come first. We plan to tap 30-40 trees this year instead of just 12.

Perhaps most importantly, we need a real filtering system.

[Mike]

HaHA, If you have 22 acres of woods and you have some spruce or hemlock Id cut them down and hire a portale saw mill to come in to make you some boards for your sugar house....Welcome to the site......Mike

[Fred Henderson]

I haven't even tapped yet! Snow too deep in the woods and banks are too high on the road trees. Hoping for Thursday of Friday.

This unseasonably cold temps and deep snow are giving me more time to set up and revamp a few things. I spent all day yesterday with tin snips and box brake to build transition pieces to adapt a 8x12 verticle blower output to a 3x18 horizontal input to my arch. It was kinda fun in a challenging way to build all the pieces (I ended up building 4 different pieces due to the size of the sheet metal I had to work with), but I had to get #2 Son to install it in that cramped location under the arch.

With the additional layer of brick under the flue pan, I was worried about not having enough draft this year. Now I'll be able to blow the pans off the arch, If I want to. (But I put a damper on the suction side so I don't).




If you tap now while the snow is frozen you won't have to wade in that kroch deep snow.

[OGDENS SUGAR BUSH]

HAHA

if need be buy a cheap blue tarp for your wood pile. its temporary but get you thru 1 or 2 years

RICH

[Brent]

Northern Tool Supply has 4 foot wide tarps made special to cover chord wood.

You can get varying length. Prices for the ones I got were 6 to 8 bucks I think.

[Fred Henderson]

Find someone that has an old swimming pool liner they want to get rid of. They are heavy and will last a long time. Cut them up any way that you like.

[HAHA I 1]

I was using a new tarp that I bought locally, but, to be honest, I kinda underestimated the amount of wood my inefficient evaporator would use. We have had so much rain (record levels in fact) here in Southern Indiana this year that the wood was just soaked. I would line it up against the firebox to dry it out, but there was only so much room for that. I guess I learned a lesson!

Mike - we have no hemlocks or spruces, but I have a TON of oaks, hickories, and (gasp) maples. I have 2 very large oaks that I plan to have milled to build the wood shed and get a start on my sugar shed. You guys are very helpful.

[VT maple maker]

Im going out of my mind waiting for sap. Today i cut down 2 big dead maples,a cherry and ash. I hauled them all out of the woods with my snowmobile and sled and bucked them up at the shack. Hand Split and stacked inside next to the evaporator. I ended up with about an extra cord (just in case we ever get sap) of nice dry seasoned firewood by the time i was finished. Id say im up to about 6 cords. Unfortunately that is how bored i am waiting for a good run. Not to mention my back is smoked. I think ill relax tomorrow. Hope someone out there is having some good luck!!!

Kyle

[Valley View Sugarhouse]

Is your place on rt 302?? I drove through there today and saw a barn with a nice new cupalo on it.. If thats you I figured you had sap, I saw the cupalo doors open this evening (closed this am).. If you want I am only 20 min away and I should have enough to boil by thirsday evening, you are more then welcome to make the 20 min treck here and hang out... Bring Your Own Boiling Sodas... give me a shout on Thur if you want to come (802-431-3539) and I will give you directions and times..

Andy

[VtSugarhouse]

No sap here today. Had vacuum pump on pulling 29 inches in the woods and not a drop. Everything is frozen. Hope we get some sap for open house weekend or we will be boiling nothing. The wind today as was yesterday very cold.

Looking for warmer days

[VT maple maker]

Andy,

Yes thats me on 302. I thought for sure i would have some sap today but it barely ran. I had the cupalo doors open this afternoon because i got up on the roof to put some heat tape around the joints on my stack. They leaked a bit the last time i test fired it. I would love to come up and hang out and see your operation if you don't mind a visitor. I always like seeing how other people do things and i always learn something new or a better way to do something when i see other people doing it. Hopefully with the warm weather through tonight and a high of 48 tomorrow it will finally get things running. I'm ready to go!!

Kyle

[220 maple]

Kyle,
I believe you as well as others in the northern maple woods will be flooded by Maple sap, The wave left West Virginia about three weeks ago, and from what I'm reading on the posts from Southern and Central Pa. the crest is there. When it gets to Vermont grab your life Jacket, if your trees run like ours did this season, you will be very - very happy. You have moisture, the warm days will come. Good Luck

Mark 220 Maple, Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia

[Brent]

Kyle

HEAT TAPE ... on the stack ... I've got leaks up there ... what is heat tape and where to you get it ????

[VT maple maker]

Brent,

The heat tape i used is just a kind of foil tape with an adhesive backing. It is something my dad had left over from when we redid some of his duct work in his house. I'm not sure where he got it but I'm sure any hardware store or stove shop has it in stock. I put it up there because i could see smoke leaking out of it when i test fired it. I'm not sure how much it will help but I'm hoping it will improve the draft, i don't know how much draft could be lost like that but i want to be as efficient as possible. Good Luck!

Kyle

[VT maple maker]

Mark,

I hope your right. Ive got plenty of wood and lots of ambition. Bring on the sap I've got plenty of life jackets!!!

Kyle

[Valley View Sugarhouse]

You have my cell # call anytime to see if I am boiling... If you want I could meet you on 25 in west topsham and show you the bush then you can fallow me here to see the boiling...

Andy

[VT maple maker]

Andy,

Sounds like a plan. Ill give you a call tomorrow and as long as nothing comes up on thursday id be interested in coming up. Thanks!

Kyle

[maple flats]

I'VE GOT SAP. Maple weekend is Sat and Sun and I have every tank full. This is the first time ever. I will not need to boil slowly to make the sap last this year. Before the weekend is over I should be at near 100 gal of syrup, heading to over 125 I think, maybe even 150+

[danno]

We've got Big SAP. Embarassed to admit that I shut the vacuum down Tuesday due to sap overload. Blew through all my wood but got 8 face of seasoned black locust delivered today. As the driver was pulling out, I had my wife switch the vacuum back on.

This is the first time I've ever purchased wood and I'm not happy about it but I'm not ready ready to quit on this season. Too much syrup to be made to quit now. I'm excited to see what that locust will do. It's supposed to burn slow and hot. Never burnt it before.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Highest btu wood on the chart, it will make that evaporator dance if it is good dry seasoned locust.

[VT maple maker]

I boiled last night and pretty much got the pans sweetened right as we had to shut down. I was half a degree from drawing off my first syrup. I haven't had the "BIG SAP" yet but i think its coming. My trees still have a lot of snow around the base. Right up the road i helped a buddy gather some yesterday and many of his buckets were just about full. Kind of depressing how just a couple miles makes such a big difference, but its good to see its finally starting around here.

Kyle