2010 shopping list

[vtsnowedin]

Well it's time to abuse the checkbook and get ready for this season. I know I'm already way late but what can you do. I'm setting up a new to me 3x8 raised flue in a new sugar house 20x14 and want to set 300 taps this season on sugar bush that I haven't tapped for twenty plus years. Except for the rig which is setting in pieces out in the snow right now with the pans in the cellar and a 600 gal. ss storage tank I have virtually no equipment on hand.
So here is my shopping list for your viewing pleasure. Please feel free to suggest additions and omissions based on your experience.
1. 300 health taps.
2. 300 Ts
3. 5000 ft. 5/16 blue line. 10 500 ft rolls.
4. 3000 ft. support wire
5. 500 ft. 3/4 line black poly
6. 2500 ft. 1/2 line black poly
7. 3000 bag ties
8. tie handle 1 ea.
9. wire grip clamp
10. tubing tool
11. 5 55 gal. food grade barrels
12. sap hydrometer
13. syrup hydrometer
14. SS draw off pail
15. 10 5 gallon drums
16. 25 gallons plastic jugs 1 gallon to 1 pint mixed.
17. labels and grade stickers.
18. SS coffee maker or similar for filling jugs.
19. 5 to 20 5 gal. plastic pails w covers for lone trees etc.
20. 300 ss hose clamps 1/2 to1"
21. 25 1/2" to 5/16 double Ys plus various other pipe fittings.
22. taper for arch smoke stack
23. 14" stack 4 3 ft. pcs.
24. pan gasket 25 feet
25. 6 felt cone filters
26. 25 filter liners.
Well there is the start. Have at it guys and gals.:cry:

[smitty76]

WOW, not a bad start. How long has it been sense you last ran this operation. your list sounds pretty good, but I,m sure it is not enough. I have been running the same rig for 17 years on and off and am always short some thing. Seems like my list never gets shorter even though I buy plenty every year.


Good luck and have fun.



Smitty

[danno]

That starter list just reminded of me how much $ we invest into this hobby/business. Hope nobody is giving their syrup away (except when gifting or bartering).

[smitty76]

NO, can't give it away. It supports the addiction. The wife would not give me the finances neeeded to get me were I am. This is better than a drug as it gives back to the addiction.

[KenWP]

Ouch. Man that's a list. Now translate it to french so I can see what D&G charges. LOL

[Bucket Head]

Your going to need a good gasoline engined sap pump! I have a nice one listed on the classifieds.

Yes, its a shameless plug, but I could'nt resist.

Good luck this season.

Steve

[3rdgen.maple]

Wow I am glad I never made a list like that it would scare the crap out of she who must be obeyed. Not to mention me. I might suggest looking into some used equipment to help out the checking account.

[forester1]

You forgot the beer.

[vtsnowedin]

You forgot the beer.

Nope didn't forget it just don't count it against sugarin as I would have bought it anyway. Best not to remind Her Royal Highness that beer is part of this by leaving it around on a list where see can see it. :)
Nice pictures in your album. I have the dipper and skimmer though the handles are pretty rough compared to yours. Why do you use two of each?

[vtsnowedin]

Your going to need a good gasoline engined sap pump! I have a nice one listed on the classifieds.

Yes, its a shameless plug, but I could'nt resist.

Good luck this season.

Steve
That's on next years list. There isn't enough checks in the checkbook for this year as it is.:( Howcome you have extra? Pumps that is.

[vtsnowedin]

WOW, not a bad start. How long has it been sense you last ran this operation. your list sounds pretty good, but I,m sure it is not enough. I have been running the same rig for 17 years on and off and am always short some thing. Seems like my list never gets shorter even though I buy plenty every year.


Good luck and have fun.
Smitty

Oh twenty five years ago or so I dusted off my fathers old drop flue 3x10which had sat in the old chicken house for thirty or more years and pipe lined 400 or so taps. managed to burn the pans beyond all use and they were tin to begin with. Got a lot of 1% sap and ran out of wood. Things were tight enough that I couldn't afford to lose any on trying to refit and carry on so I gave it up for then and just helped others in the area for years. I was good help as I bought my own beer and took any pay they felt was coming to me in grade B syrup. Now I'm early retired , sort of, and can look at the next twenty seasons as a reason to get up off the couch.

[Mark-NH]

Skip the 1/2" line and go all 3/4". Minimal price difference and fittings are easier to find with many more options. You put so hours laying in bed, dreaming to develop that extensive a list. Have fun.

[vtsnowedin]

Skip the 1/2" line and go all 3/4". Minimal price difference and fittings are easier to find with many more options. You put so hours laying in bed, dreaming to develop that extensive a list. Have fun.
I'm still on the fence on that one. I need to see a current price list of both the pipe and the fittings to see what minimal comes down too in dollars and cents. I have about 100 taps on my daughters land that drains away from the sugar house so is a separate storage tank and haul deal. It will never be in the main line so it's not a question of flow. Where in Sunapee are you? I used to work for the NHDOT so I know your area. Also I worked on the Granliden water main extension two falls ago.

[cncaboose]

The biggest omission I see is Time, lots of it.
For this size operation I would recommend a flat filter canner unit for filtering and canning.
More jugs. Can it while it's hot and you handle it less.
Sap pump, electric or gas.
Extra syrup hydrometer **Super important** You will break one, or more.
Hydrometer cup
Feed tank and connections to pump and evaporator
Ash can, shovel, and underside flue brush if burning wood
Ceramic blanket for in between the pans
Topside fluebrush for cleaning fluepan
Sap filter

Don't get overextended and remember this is supposed to be fun.
Best of luck to you.

[vtsnowedin]

The biggest omission I see is Time, lots of it.
For this size operation I would recommend a flat filter canner unit for filtering and canning.
More jugs. Can it while it's hot and you handle it less.
Sap pump, electric or gas.
Extra syrup hydrometer **Super important** You will break one, or more.
Hydrometer cup
Feed tank and connections to pump and evaporator
Ash can, shovel, and underside flue brush if burning wood
Ceramic blanket for in between the pans
Topside fluebrush for cleaning fluepan
Sap filter

Don't get overextended and remember this is supposed to be fun.
Best of luck to you.

Time I have.(just not enough) No work away from home until May.
Sap pump? want it but will have to wait at least a year.
Extra syrup hydrometer? Hardware store ten miles away carries them in the season.
Hydrometer cup. Bingo that's what I totally forgot. I knew there was something small but important.
Have the flue brush underside. ayup need the topside brush.
Feed tank? 600 gal ss tank will set 20 feet from the arch with its bottom level with the eves of the sugar house. I do need one valve to not rely on the flue pan float when not boiling.
ceramic blanket? There wasn't any in between them where it was. Maybe?
Sap filter? I've seen it done several ways mostly mickymoused but a bed sheet folded in quarters stapled to a frame over the last tank in the line under the outfall of the main line seems to be the most effective for the time and money and doesn't get clogged. Just stand it up and hose it off from the underside to clean as needed and remove from the frame and to the laundry final.
Thank you for the suggestions.

[red maples]

I had a list something like that this year...lots o money. saved a little money by skipping the stainless draw off bucket and going with a used 22 quart stainless pot for 15 bucks . and skip the 1/2 inch poly tubing and go to all 3/4 inch it will be better when you get that vacuum pump for the 2011 season. don't forget to order jugs.!!!! and lots of them!!

[Father & Son]

You can get nice stainless drawoff buckets reasonable at Tractor Supply.

Jim

[NH Maplemaker]

vtsnowedin, Here is a source for food grade druns on vt craigslist, $10.00 for 55 gal and $7.00 for 15 gal! 802-393-9075 (Highgate VT) They were used in dairy for teat dip and stuff. Jim L.

[forester1]

Nice pictures in your album. I have the dipper and skimmer though the handles are pretty rough compared to yours. Why do you use two of each?

I can only use one at a time. Mostly just so I could have the guy make the handles out of birdseye maple. If I have extra money to burn, it goes towards maple stuff usually. I just can't help it.

[maple man-iac]

Nice list. I would say you need that three hundred dollar pump previously mentioned, not sure how you would get sap into that storage tank without it. I stand behind the idea of all 3/4 tubing, this way you can get rid of the 300 ss hose clamps, use the saddle fittings on the 3/4 to attach your 5/16 laterals. The saddles use a 5/16 hole drilled into the 3/4 and clamp onto it with a rubber seal no splicing and best of all no leaks. I would also recommend the newer rapid main line (hope this is the name of it) i believe it is made by D&G. No support wire needed, now you can get rid of the 3000 ties and tie handle. This line is more money but by time you were to purchase wire and ties you are about the same money. I think you went a little overboard on filters. I filtered and bottled 227 gallons with 2 cone filters and 4 prefilters. Double what i really needed however nice to have an extra set to wash and dry while still processing syrup. Don't forget a small finishing pan. Enjoy!!!

[KenWP]

How pray tell did you get that much syrup through two filters. I have problems getting a gallon thru with out it hanging up and stopping and I end up scraping syrup out of the bottom of the filter and storeing it untill I had a gallon saved up and then re boiled and filtered it again.

[maple man-iac]

Ken, I am a one man band. I bottle all my syrup at the end of the season, 5 gallons to a batch. I take my syrup off the evaporator a tad light. I finish 5 gallons at a time on a small pan. Bring to proper brix and dump directly into the filter tank / bottler. After the pan is empty the bottler goes back onto the stove to maintain my 190 temperature and commence to bottling while the next batch is warming up. I usually get about 25-30 gallons through a set of filters before exchanging them for fresh, sometimes all i need is a clean prefilter. Hot filtering is key.

[smitty76]

We only use 2 cone filters all season as well, 1 at draw off and 1 drying. At draw off we collect 5 gallons and then the 5 gals go thru filter press and bottles and it is all done hot.

[vtsnowedin]

Nice list. I would say you need that three hundred dollar pump previously mentioned, not sure how you would get sap into that storage tank without it. I stand behind the idea of all 3/4 tubing, this way you can get rid of the 300 ss hose clamps, use the saddle fittings on the 3/4 to attach your 5/16 laterals. The saddles use a 5/16 hole drilled into the 3/4 and clamp onto it with a rubber seal no splicing and best of all no leaks. I would also recommend the newer rapid main line (hope this is the name of it) i believe it is made by D&G. No support wire needed, now you can get rid of the 3000 ties and tie handle. This line is more money but by time you were to purchase wire and ties you are about the same money. I think you went a little overboard on filters. I filtered and bottled 227 gallons with 2 cone filters and 4 prefilters. Double what i really needed however nice to have an extra set to wash and dry while still processing syrup. Don't forget a small finishing pan. Enjoy!!!

Nope ain't going to buy a pump this year. I'm going to start mainline one foot over the top of the tank and go up hill from there branching off after crossing the brook and the tote road high enough to get the tractor under it then spreading out left and right and straight up to the top. About twenty acres of rock maple with a hundred feet of pitch in a thousand feet. The trees below the tank will have to wait a year or two.
I have never seen one of those saddle connections up close. What do they cost per unit and who sells them? That rapid line seems pricey from what little I have read about it and I don't know of a distributor that carries it here as yet. I haven't really looked for it as the first I heard of it was on this site just yesterday. I'm used to finishing syrup on the main arch and drawing it off into the draw off pail with the hydrometer floating in the pail and letting in enough thin syrup at the end of the draw to just let the hydrometer come down to the line so the whole pail is right.
Went to Tractor Supply tonight and bought the track and hardware for the sliding door for the sugarhouse. Not even on the list and it set me back $155 bucks. Also stopped at Sam Daniels inc. and ordered the smoke stack or at least started the process. Was surprised to find that they sub the tapers out to an outfit in New Hampshire. I Have to check back with them tomorrow to get there price and firm up the order as I got there after there office hours. One problem I am finding is that nobody posts there prices so that you cant easily shop around. I'm going to have to waste a lot of my time and theirs finding out what suppliers want for stuff and comparing it to their competitors. You would think the guy with the lowest price would be proud of it and list it for all to see.
Ya nevah have enough filters.

[smitty76]

your right on the filters vtsnowedin. I buy them by the box. Just so happened that I only used 2 last year.

[syrupkid]

vtsnowedin, Here is a source for food grade druns on vt craigslist, $10.00 for 55 gal and $7.00 for 15 gal! 802-393-9075 (Highgate VT) They were used in dairy for teat dip and stuff. Jim L.

DO NOT I REPEAT DO NOT USE BARRLES THAT CONTIANED TEAT DIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! they will be iodine stained and have iodine residue in them this will be in the syrup and it is not good to ingest. only use the barrles that contained pipeline cleaners but make sure to rinse them out good.

[KenWP]

Okay why is iodine not to be ingested. It's in the milk we drink already from the teat dip and it's also in our salt. When you have a catscan they actually inject it into your blood stream for contrast material.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Bascom's sells a manifold for 1/2" mainline that looks like it would work great.

[vtsnowedin]

DO NOT I REPEAT DO NOT USE BARRLES THAT CONTIAANED TEAT DIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! they will bi iodine stained and have iodine residue in them this will be in the syrup and it is not good to ingest. only use the barrles that contained pipeline cleaners but make sure to rinse them out good.
I hear you. Thanks!!

[vtsnowedin]

:o It was well below zero here today. all day so I spent some time shopping the web for prices for the list. I've found at least one price for everything on it. It adds up to almost 3500 bucks. Not much competition out there, at least not on what they choose to post on the net. I learned a few new things along the way such as there are at least two grades of 5/16 line , ridged and semi ridged plus blue green and white/clear from one manufacturer. Leader has mainline in blue but every blue line I have worked with was brittle and was being discarded. That was twenty year old stuff so I suppose that today's production has solved whatever problem that old stuff had. For every answer I got today two new questions came up.Of course every source says their stuff is the best and the other guy's is less then crap and people that have bought a lot of one kind don't want to admit to themselves that they made a poor choice so sorting out which way to go means looking past the promo literature and testimonials but that doesn't leave us with much to work with.

[3rdgen.maple]

Yeah the funny thing is is it is probably the same stuff coming down the same factory line. I just gotta say sometimes I am willing to pay a little to the guy that provides better customer service and seems more honest than the others. I cannot stand it when a dealer bashes anothers product in hopes of getting a sale. I get this BS from other printing equipment dealers and we all order them from the same manufacturers. You want real answers on what is best just ask here where the guys are actually using the stuff. 3500 is alot less than I thought by the looks of that list not that bad at all.

[vtsnowedin]

Yeah the funny thing is is it is probably the same stuff coming down the same factory line. I just gotta say sometimes I am willing to pay a little to the guy that provides better customer service and seems more honest than the others. I cannot stand it when a dealer bashes anothers product in hopes of getting a sale. I get this BS from other printing equipment dealers and we all order them from the same manufacturers. You want real answers on what is best just ask here where the guys are actually using the stuff. 3500 is alot less than I thought by the looks of that list not that bad at all.

Absolutely. I am all ears. If you are setting up a new section of woods what do you buy for pipe tubing and fittings. In other words what is the state of the art today?

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

The new blue mainline that Leader sells in the same as the 30p tubing, just thicker walls. I put up about 1300' feet of it this year and was very impressed with it. It is close to clear and will be easy to see the sap inside of it.