Sweetening the pans

[bix]

What does sweetening the pans mean? I upgraded to a new evaporator, is there something I should do to the pans?

[3% Solution]

Hey bix,
The term means to have boiled just enough sap to make the liquid in the pans very sweet and almost ready to draw syrup. Usually it is the first boil.
If I had 75 gallons of sap for my first boil and boiled it all, I would be on the line to draw syrup.
Another term you may hear is "Left the pan sweet", which means you was almost ready to draw syrup when you shut down. So when you fire up the next time syrup is going to come quick, because you was almost there last time.
Just a term used by sugarmakers.
Hope this helps.

Dave

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

With an evaporator, you want to leave everything in the pans at the end of the boil. Sometimes, first boil, you don't get enough to draw off any syrup, so it is called sweetening the pans. Reason for leaving everything in at the end of the boil is so you have a gradient all thru the pans.

[DrTimPerkins]

What does sweetening the pans mean? I upgraded to a new evaporator, is there something I should do to the pans?

Good description of this in the new North American Maple Producers Manual.

[ejmaple]

just a quick question that relates to this, do you guys plug up the transfer port from flue pan to syrup pan while shutting down for the day so there's no mixing of diferent graidants, or should the concintrate remain in differant graidants with out plugging? thanks

ed

[3% Solution]

ej,
We shut off the flow into the syrup pan as soon as it looses it boil.
We don't want to mix with what's in the flue pan.
Like to keep it separated.
We do keep an eye on the syrup pan and if it needs a little sap, well, we add it.

Dave

[3rdgen.maple]

I do the same. Plug off the flue pan from the syrup pan so i do not get any backflow. Also I do not pull the plug until evaporator is boiling.

[Fred Henderson]

I do the same. Plug off the flue pan from the syrup pan so i do not get any backflow. Also I do not pull the plug until evaporator is boiling.

You really need to come up here someday to see what I did to mine so you don't have to use those silly Patrick plugs. I understand that he does not use them anymore. The night he delivered mine I commented to him about the plugs and he said that was the only way he could do it. Well you know I was born at night but it wasn't last night. I got me a real Fred Henderson drop, flue, reverse flow evap now.

[bix]

thanks guys

[3rdgen.maple]

Fred I would love to come up and take a peak at the Henderson improved evaporator. I am one of those guys that are always trying to work smarter and not harder. Thanks for the invite.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

In a raised flue, sap can't flow back into the flue pan, only in a drop flue. I have tried it both ways, blowing the back flow and not blocking it and it doesn't make much difference either way in the long run.

[Homestead Maple]

Wouldn't the "near syrup" that is nearer the draw off that you where using most recently, be dispersed throughout the whole front pan even though it couldn't get up into the raised flue pan when you shut down for the night, unless that partition of your front pan could be blocked?

[RileySugarbush]

It doesn't really seem to mix in the front pan or back flow in our drop flue either. We just stop loading wood for the night and 10 to 15 minutes later shut off the feed line.

In the morning, nothing special. Just light it and open the feed valve when it starts boiling.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

The closer to syrup, the higher the density and the heavier it is, so it has no desire to go backwards unless it has to or is pulled back in the syrup pan. The gradient should stay about the same as when you were finishing boiling and the dividers make this happen.