Help - burnt my pan and my syrup!

[GraniteStater]

:confused: Have only boiled a few times, with decent results, but last weekend was a disaster. We have a low-tech backyard operation. Cinder blocks, 2 stainless steel pans (1 is 18x24", the other 24x24"), and a 6' pipe.

During a "nature was calling" 5-minute break, the sap on the finishing pan boiled/foamed over and got a nasty burnt flavor which stayed with it through the end, even after adding a lot of additional pre-heated sap. Pretty much ruined the batch.

Also, the finishing pan ended up with a thick cake of black stuff on the bottom (niter?). About 20% of it came off after being sprayed with a stream of hot water, but can't get the rest of it off no matter how hard I scrub with the brush. Any suggestions for what this stuff is, and how to get it off?

Also, should I have just poured out the entire finishing pan after it scorched and started over?

Thanks for the advice.

[oneoldsap]

Stainless steel wool and elbow grease. You can get it from restaurant supply dealers. Good Luck !!

[RileySugarbush]

Muriatic acid will clean it without damaging a welded stainless pan. You need to be very careful when working with it. Follow directions on diluting and wear rubber gloves and goggles. You can get it at any hardware store. No elbow grease required, just give it some soak time where kids and animals can't get at it. If it is a soldered pan, I'd be hesitant to use it.

[Peepers]

I've used copper scrubbing pads before to get all sorts of burnt on stuff off of stainless pans. First used em on KP duty back as a kid and used em a few weeks back when the wife drained a pan while I was stuck on a conference call and didn't flood it afterwards. Amazing what a weird burnt foamy mess a little syrup can make.
last time I picked them up they were in the cleaning aisle at the grocery store.
good luck!

[Russell Lampron]

Fill the pan with a mixture of white vinegar and water and bring it up to a boil. Let it sit until it is cool enough to get in there and scrub with a non abrasive brush. Most of it should lift right off without scrubbing. Good luck.

[mapleack]

:
Also, should I have just poured out the entire finishing pan after it scorched and started over?

Thanks for the advice.

Yep, once there's anything burnt in the pan you've got to get it all out or everything you put in after is going to taste burnt too.

[325abn]

If they are steam table pans, junk em and buy new ones.

I think its a lessen we all learn at some point! Never ever leave the pan for any amount of time. Things change very quickly when we gets near syrup.

Good luck!

[danno]

I 2nd the suggestion for muriatic acid. I've done vinegar for a few years and switched over to muriatic acid - no comparison and cheaper. 1 gallon of acid at $5 is more then enough for my 3'x3' syrup pan - as opposed to several gallons of vinegar. Will require virtually NO scrubbing.

Wear gloves and glasses and rinse WELL.

[Jeff E]

Who new you could make lava stone of of syrup?

Good acid soak and some work with a rotary cleaning pad on my cordless worked good for me.

My poor kid was watching the pan at the time. kept adding wood but forgot about adding sap. When I came home I saw him running with a bucket of water, open the fire box door and throw the water in there, not in the pan!!!

What a rodeo!

[GraniteStater]

Thanks for the advice. I'm going to try vinegar first and see how it goes. Muriatic acid will come next, if vinegar doesn't work.

Much appreciated.

[Whitfield]

I would be very hesitant to use muriatic (hydrochloric acid) to clean a stainless steel pan. It will definitely dissolve calcium deposits, but depending on the concentration hydrochloric acid will eat through stainless steel in a relatively short period of time. Stainless steel is also prone to chloride stress corrosion cracking. Phosphoric acid is a much better choice. It is available from at least some maple equipment dealers.

[JohnM]

I have used a brass wire wheel on a cordless drill to get the tough carbon deposits off.

Scotchbrite pads or scotchbrite buffing wheel work well too.

Will take some time to get the carbon off, you can leave some of it on and it will flake off eventually.

Hope your season improves soon!

[maple flats]

I got a burn mark about 6" down one devider and 4" along the rear on my pan today. I will clean it with vinegar later tonight. I tasted the syrup and detect no burnt taste but seperated it for finishing seperately just in case. I have used pan acid (pipeline acid for dairy) but prefer the vinegar. I may need a different dilution than what is used for dairy but I find the white vinegar is faster. I drain the pan completely, add 1 gal vinegar (3x2 syrup pan) and use my fire starter to warm it (a 500,000 btu weed torch, propane fired). I get it to maybe 100-120 and let it set a half hour, scrub a little with a scotch bright and rinse well. Sometimes i need to scrape a little near solder seams and inside corners. For that I use a teflon safe plastic spatula as a scraper. Do not use copper pads, ss pads not any metal type scrub pad, it will slightly scratch the surface and things will forever stick there and make for harder cleaning forever.

[skillet]

i have used 80 grit sand paper before works great
skillet

[Goggleeye]

Well, I've now fallen into the category of those who have burnt their pan. I was hoping a little more time would pass before such an event. Fortunately only one section of my flat pan burnt, and not much warping. I've done some research, and read that nitric acid 10% can be used to clean the carbon deposits off the stainless without damaging it. Any thoughts/experiences with nitric acid?

[Big_Eddy]

Stainless wire brush on a 4 1/2" grinder. Takes it off every time and shines up the pans at the same time.

[RileySugarbush]

You can probably find muriatic acid at the local hardware store and it works fine on stainless. I've done that many times on my old steam table pans that had burnt sugar along the sides.

Be careful with strong acids. Wear gloves and goggles.

[Goggleeye]

When researching how to clean the pan, what I read backed up what Whitfield said about the chloride interaction. Or is this negligible considering the low concentration and exposure time on the stainless? Also, my pans are 14 gauge, so would that also make the amount of reaction with the stainless insignificant? Or am I thinking way to hard about this?

[C.Wilcox]

When researching how to clean the pan, what I read backed up what Whitfield said about the chloride interaction. Or is this negligible considering the low concentration and exposure time on the stainless? Also, my pans are 14 gauge, so would that also make the amount of reaction with the stainless insignificant? Or am I thinking way to hard about this?

Whitfield is right that muriatic acid is a pretty potent substance and can do some damage if used incorrectly. So if you fill your pan with a concentrated solution and then decide to go inside, watch a few soaps, eat dinner, hit the hay early, and then wander back outside the next morning you may find some damage to your pan. If you start with a dilute solution, stay put and monitor its progress, and rinse your pan thoroughly when done you likely won't have any trouble. Like Riley says though, use gloves and safety glasses and make sure you have sufficient air flow wherever you are. It can be just as hard on the lungs as it is on the eyes and skin if you breath it in.

If you want to try phosphoric acid check out some of the deck wash solutions at the local hardware store. Some of them are phosphoric acid based. I believe that naval jelly is also a phosphoric based product, but I'm not sure if that would be very effective in your situation.

[Haynes Forest Products]

Are you telling me that when I set fire to my pans and had 1/4" coal stuck to the bottom and sides I didnt have to have a Hill Billy with a rock throwing sand blaster cut thru the carbon:mad: :cry: Aint shiny no more.

[PerryW]

Actually, if you come back to the sugarhouse see that your pan is burnt and dry, it's probably better NOT to throw water or sap in it. The cold water will instantly warp it.

[Farmboy]

Now is your chance to scrap those pans and get yourself a real evaporator. Get a half pint or 2X4.

[Haynes Forest Products]

I do recall that when I sprayed the pans down with the hose to put the fire out it sounded like I was sitting on a bag of aluminum cans:mad:

[paul]

stainless steel wool and some elbow grease will take it off. you can find it in any restaurantsupply store.

[3rdgen.maple]

Welcome aboard the burnt pan club...

[Goggleeye]

The nitric acid didn't do much of anything, so I just got out the old trusty angle grinder and stiff wire cup. Took a little doing, but saps a cookin' in a clean pan as I type this.

[paul]

I was told by an old time sugar maker that your not a sugar maker until you have burnt your pans, so I guess now you can consider your self a real sugar maker
Paul

[flooder]

you keep typing and boiling at the same time your gonna burn it again,lol

[brightstar3]

We burned our evaporator pans this morning in the dark, badly-we use a leader 3-part pan.---- we used oxalic acid (Barkeepers Friend) under $2.00 You can purchase it at Ace hardware and many groceries have it in the cleaning department----all the burnt syrup came right off--with a little non abrasive scrubbing... we were back to boiling in an hour...hope this helps!!

[sugardaddy's]

I joined the burnt pan club yesterday. Burned the front pan. Must have been my best GPH yet. All ready back together and ready to run. It only took 4 HOURS with a wire wheel, wire cup, and dremel tool (for the corners and seams).

[Tweegs]

Heh,
Just wanted to toss my name into the burnt pan club, did a right nice job of it, too.

Plenty of tips in this thread already...we'll get her cleaned up.

[PerryW]

I burnt my front pan about 10 years ago and it had a shallow spot in the middle two compartments. But last year, I burnt it again and the shallow spot went away!