Oops

[mapleman3]

Well my mind must have been somewhere else, by mistake I must have thought I canned up the last of my syrup, ...well I didn't, I started cleaning stuff in the sugarhouse and noticed that I have about 3 gallons in my finisher, most likely at density... been in there 1.5 weeks? boil it check density and package??? it hasn't been that warm here to much, think it's ok?????

[MaineMapleDave]

I bet it's fine, especially if it was at, or very close to, density. I'd say go for it, boil it, check the density, filter and package. You worked too hard to let it go to waste............

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Jim,

It would probably keep like that for 3 or 4 months. I have seen people store it opened at room temp for several months and it still tasted good.

I wouldn't recommend it, but have seen people do it that were too stubborn to put it in the fridge. :?

[Salmoneye]

When I was a kid no one refrigerated or 'canned' their personal syrup...Was usually in a stoneware crock with a lid in the root-cellar...

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Jim,

Did that syrup that you found in the finisher put you up to 60 gallons??

If so, pretty good for the first year on the big machine! :D :D

[mapleman3]

no that was included in the 57 gals.. I just thought I had canned it up :)

[michaelh05478]

Jim!!! Its understable how you would of done something like that!! I think its caused by a high dose of sugar particles to the brain!! I think you should be back to normal in a few weeks! :lol: ...But beware, there isnt any know cure for it... Id keep an eye on it because it will start to hit you again next feb, march time frame!!!!!! :wink: ........Mike......

[mapleman3]

I canned it up last Sat, it ended up as grade B, not bad though, had some accumulation of sugar on the bottom so I just refiltered when hot. How many years do you all go on flat filters before you buy new ones, I am still using the ones you(mike) provided with the finisher, should I buy new ones next year?

when I clean mine I through them in the washing machine with a little baking soda and hot water, then I run it 2 more times with hot water.. so a total of 3 washes....
how does everyone else clean theirs.... I made sure to clean the real well this year with so much sugar sand...whew!!!

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Jim,

I just run mine through the washing machine one warm cycle with cold rinse with no detergent or anything else but water. If they are really bad, I turn on the extra rinse cycle and rinse them one more time.

I have done this for years and never had any problem with getting any sand in the syrup after washing them! :D :D Sounds like you are overwashing them a tad, but maybe you need to wash yours more than I do mine. :? :?

[mapleman3]

I know this year they were extra dirty, but then again I went from 15 gallons to almost 60.... plus more sugarsand this year, but all in all I like the flat style so much better, the cones are way too slow. and like Brandon and I talked to each other about, the filter press seems too much for our size operations so I'll stick with filtering in the canner.

just can't wait to have water in the sugarhouse someday.

[gearpump]

I have found that a dishwasher works the best. No chance of any soap getting onto the filters and with the sanitary wash cycle they come out cleaner then new. I don't add any dishwashing soap or anything, just good hot water. I put my filters in the dishwasher everyother nite during the season and let miss maytag wash them while I went to bed. As for the filter press, once you have one you will wonder how you ever got along without one! The wes fab short bank is perfert for the small producer. I finished off a little as 2 gallons and the most was 15 gallons. Well worth the investment if you want to package in glass.

Marty

[MaineMapleDave]

Ooooh, using empty dishwashers or washing machines scares me, so I encourage you to please be careful.

The possibility of residual soap is very real. I use the dishwasher to sterilize canning jars for tomato sauce, and there is always some residual soap--I don't add any, just rely on the "High Temp Pots & Pans" cycle using only water. There is ALWAYS some sudsing, although it is minmal. Rinses out of the glass jars in the rinse cycle, but I wouldn't want to risk any of it in my maple filters.

Granted, I have an old machine, but try it-there probably is some. Run an empty dishwasher with no added soap, open up about 2/3 of the way through the wash cycle and look for suds and smell.

Washing machine, too--I tried the same experiment specifically thinking I had thought of a great way to wash maple filters. Mister Paranoid, I ran a test. Empty machine, no added soap, ran it and got a bit of sudsing. Plus the possibility of residual dried bleach leaching into the water.

Not worth the risk to your hard-earned syrup, in my opinion.

I have had great luck with SOAKING dirty filters overnight in simple cold water, then rinsing the bejeebers out of them, then give them a good dunk and soak in a pot of boiling water. The soaking loosens up the goop from the pre-filters and leaches most of it out of the felts.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Well,

I started making syrup about 13 or 14 years ago and I have used the wash machine for years and years with cone filters and flat filters and also, all the prefilters every time and the filters come out smelling clean and still have a syrup smell to them.

As far as bleach, I don't worry about that because I am always sanitizing stuff with bleach. Years ago, I made a batch of syrup that had quite a bit of clorox in the sap to keep it from going bad just to try it and the syrup turned as great. I think the clorox always evaporates in the air. I don't know for sure and I don't plan any adding any clorox to sap in the future, but I sanitize stuff with it all the time and never have any off flavored syrup. May be one of the reasons I have never made any grade B syrup, I dunno. :? :?

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Jeremy,

I have used the temp Grade set in the past. I don't have one now, but I have made syrup long enough that I can usually tell by looking at it. As far as Grades go down here, probably 90 to 95 percent of the people don't even know what maple syrup is, and 99.99999 percent don't know what a Grade is, so I don't even bother labeling the Grade when I sell it. If I get more into wholesaling it for retail, then I guess I will have to start putting Grade stickers on it and Grading each batch precisely.

There are no Grade stanards down here other than the Federal Grading stanards.