Hydrometer

[Fyreaway]

Hi folks, thanks for taking the time to help out here.

I'm using a coffee maker to heat and bottle syrup. Can I float my hydrometer in the urn or is it required to use the matching cup? I've boiled a bit heavy in the past and then thinned to spec. It sure would be easier to just stir in a bit of water and watch the hydrometer than to mix and then draw off into the cup.

I've got 20 taps out this year and am boiling with an electric evaporator. It sounds weird but quick calculations show it not much more expensive than the propane I've used for years. If anyone's interested I'll share my kitchen sugar shack.

Hope everyone's having a great run this week.

~Eric~

[tuckermtn]

key thing would be to make sure you know what the temp of the syrup is when you float the hydrometer (that is why we use the acc-u-cup from the mapleguys) ...other than that, I don't see why you couldn't just float it in the open urn top...

[PerryW]

It does not matter what size of the vessel you use as long as your hydrometer does NOT touch the bottom. I routinely use my hydrometer in my 10 gallon rectangular filter/canner and it reads the same as in a hydrometer test cup.


And as Tuckermtn said, you MUST take into account the temperature when using a hydrometer.

I keep a chart on the wall of my canning room which gives the correct Baume Density for all temperatures from 60F - 210F

1) Measure the syrup temp and use the chart to determine the correct density for that temp (In Baume).

2) Measure the density with your hydrometer (in Baume)

3) SUbtract the two to determint the number of TENTHS (Baume) that your syrup is too dense.

4) Use the formula to determine the correct volume of tap water to add.


Formula for adding water to correct syrup density.


Add 3/5 of an Ounce of water (per gallon) for each tenth of a point (Baume) that your syrup is high.

FOR EXAMPLE:

If you have a 5 gallon batch (HOT TEST) that reads 32.6 Baume (instead of 32.0) you are:

6 TENTHS Too Thick

3/5 X 6 x 5 = 18 OZ

I.e. add 18 ounces of water to correct the density.

[Amber Gold]

Thanks Perry. I was going to post this as a question. I've been making syrup now for the past week and usually make it heavy so I can adjust it in the canner. I've been guessing and getting it pretty close, but figured there's got to be a table out there to use as a quick reference.

Do most of you guys bottle your syrup slightly heavy, say within 0.5 or do you try to get it spot on. I'm wondering if I should be more particular...not sure how much "free" sugar I'm giving away.

[KenWP]

Now you see why I don't buy a hydrometer. The ones I looked at are in Brix and the red line is at 60 for some reason and you guys talk in baume and the directions are in french so I am going to use a thermometer this year at least its the same in any language and I don't have to adjust for temp and all that stuff.

[Amber Gold]

Ken, I go by Brix and have hot test and cold test lines. If you do three draws and dumps off the evap you can test to the hot test line accurately.

I found that the hydrometer needs to be kept clean, even from syrup because it has a significant effect on setting density. Mine had a bit of syrup on it and was reading over a point heavier than after I cleaned it.

[PerryW]

While in the Sugarhouse, I fill 5 gallon plastic drums from the output of the filter canner, and I always make sure that I am a little bit high on the density.

THen I reheat the syrup in my canning room (in my house) and add water as necessary to be "spot-on" with maybe a slight tendency to be too thick, but not more than a tenth or two Baume.

[Fyreaway]

Thanks, all, for the input. I think what I'll try is this...

Boil the syrup a bit heavy. Allow it to cool to room temperature. Measure the density and thin it to meet spec for 70 degrees. Apparently it doesn't matter whether I use Brix or Baume as long as it's corrected for temp. Reheat in the coffee maker until it reaches 190ish and then bottle from there. Sound right?

Thanks,
~Eric~

[Russell Lampron]

I do my thinning when the syrup is hot. It's a whole lot easier than when the syrup is cold. I adjust the density as close to spot on as possible but stay to the heavy side.

Perry does the formula for thinning work for Brix as well or do you have a formula for Brix? The hydrometer that I use for canning only has a Brix scale.

[markct]

so i have often wondered with this talk of being slightly over to be safe, how much under do ya have to be to have syrup spoil? i mean 66 is like this magic number, but there must be some sorta tolerance when they came up with 66, at 65 does it spoil, or 65.9? just was curious

[MapleME]

I guess I am confused now. 1/2 way through last season I switched from using just the thermometer to using the hydrometer as well. The way I used it was I kept boiling until the hydrometer was in the correct range for the syrup I was finishing- I didnt really pay attention to the final temps etc. Did I miss something? The transition to hydrometer worked well for me- I went from thin syrup the first few batches to syrup that was much thicker and dense by the end of the season. I didnt have an accu-cup- just a syrup hydrometer and leader cup. Seemed to work ok.

[StewieSugar]

This is my first year, and I was struggling to work through the various calculations between Baume, Brix, and temperature. All these calculations were too much for me to think about, so I went in Excel and plotted some graphs. Same data, but they're handier for me to use.

The first two charts convert between Baume and Brix. My Hydro reads in Baume, but most things I've been reading about are in Brix, so I wanted a way to easily convert between the two.

The third chart is the one I have next to my evaporator. It tells me what Baume reading I should have depending on the syrup temperature. As the syrup temperature increases, the syrup becomes "thinner" in viscosity, so the Hydro sinks a bit more, which looks like a lower Baume/Brix reading. So, when I am reading hot/boiling syrup , I look for a Baume reading of about 32. Later, when I'm in my kitchen with cool syrup, I look for a Baume reading of about 35.5.

P.S. I extracted the conversion data from Ohio State's book "North American Maple Syrup Producers Manual."

[MapleME]

Bump to the top here- See my post 2 down. This is the way I was taught to use the hydrometer. Did I miss something critical?

MapleME

[mnguy]

This may be obvious to many on here but is not to me. If my water boiling point is 190 (that is what it was today) would I then add the 7 degrees to this to be 197. If this is true what should my brix number be for a hot test at that temp? My hydrometer is marked at 59 at 211 degrees. The baume is marked at 32 at 211 degrees.

Thanks for any info you can share.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

If your water boiled at 190 today, not to be unkind, but throw that thermometer in the trash and get a new thermometer. It is off by 20 degrees and I wouldn't trust it by adding 7 degrees to it.

[StewieSugar]

Hydrometers measure the sugar content by measuring the "thickness" of the liquid. As most of us are aware, a liquid like syrup, motor oil, etc. gets thicker when it gets cold. So, when the temperature goes down, the syrup will get thicker, and the hydrometer will read a higher Brix/Baume level. In contrast, when the syrup temp goes up, the hydrometer will read a lower Brix/Baume level.

All hydrometers are calibrated to read exactly at a specific temperature. It seems like most are calibrated around 60 degrees, so when your syrup is 60 degrees, the hydrometer reading will be accurate.

However, if you take the same exact syrup and make a reading at around boiling (210 degrees), the hydrometer will read lower (-7.5 Brix; -4 Baume), because the higher temps make the syrup thinner. Bring the temp back down, and the hydro will again read correctly.

If you are using a hydrometer that is calibrated at 60 degrees, using it on boiling sap, and evaporating until you read 66 Brix, then you'll actually be getting sap that's closer to 73 to 74 Brix.

If you're shooting for 66.5% sugar content (which equates to 66.5 Brix), then at boiling you should be shooting for something that reads about 59 Brix (32 Baume).

The "calculations" I refer to are:
- 0.05 Brix for every 1 degree F above 60 Degrees
- 0.0265 Baume for every 1 degree F above 60 Degrees

I got tired of having a calculator out, so I created the charts I posted below.

So far, I have not been all that concerned about getting the exact sugar content, so I have not been measuring the syrup temp. Instead, I scoop the syrup out of the pot while it's boiling, measure it quickly, assume the temp is close to 210, and adjust accordingly. I suspect my readings are off a bit, but that's okay for my backyard operation (wife, kids, and me).


P.S. Ohio State's book has a much better explanation than my jibberish; check out Chapter 8 under the heading Measuring Syrup Density.

[Z/MAN]

Why is the hydrometer hot test mark at 210 degrees when our syrup is usually checked much higher (217-220)? Do I just check the boiling syrup right out of the pan or do I have to let it cool to 210 or do I have to calculate a different brix? I started using a hydrometer this year and check it right out of the pan and my syrup seems a lot heavier then when I do it with a thermometer. I keep my hydrometer cup in my pot of boiling syrup on the stove so the temperature of the cup does not affect the temp of the syrup. What is the correct method to read the hyrometer?

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

If it is boiling at 217 which is about as high as it is going to be, it won't still be that when you drop a hydrometer in, but much closer to 211. In that thin cup, syrup can cool fast.

[KenWP]

I got to quit reading this thread I am so confused I might just pour sap on my pancakes and call it syrup. To make syrup we have to adjust for the barometric pressure at the time sap boils and then adjust for the temp the syrup is at to test if for sugar content. No wonder people buy the stuff from people who make it. Takes a degree in science and physics at the same time.I am glad I don't plan on selling anything I make this year would be so worried that it would not be correct. I am doing this for the experience.