how much sap before you boil?

[MainelyMaple]

This year i have 180 taps and will be boiling on a 40"x6' flat syrup pan that sits on a modified arch. in the past i have only made batch syrup. but this year we will try to have a continuous flow. we will have sap coming in on one end and we will draw off the other end. my first question is will this continuous flow work with only a syrup pan, or will we have to help it along? also how much sap would you want to have before you boil it? we have about 65 gallons right now, is it enough to sweeten the pans or should i just hold off? thanks for any help in advance

[RileySugarbush]

The main thing is that you need to put channels in the pan. With a big flat pan it will mix as you boil and no density gradient will be set up. You need to force the syrup through a long narrow path by adding partitions so the flow zigs and zags through channels with a long distance between in and out.

If you have a good way to store your sap cold you could wait a bit, but that 65 gallons would fill your pan to 5" so you could start to sweeten it by running at 1.5 inches deep until you run out then cover and wait for more. Boiled sap gets sterilized so it should keep for quite a while.

[MainelyMaple]

sorry i should have clarified, there are partitions in the pan.

my buddy that is doing it with me doesnt understand the continuous flow and thinks we should just boil it down and draw it all off at once. manually pushing the sap through with a scoop and chasing it with fresh sap at each boil.

would it be much more beneficial to get the pans sweetened at the begining of the season and keep it that way all season? instead of starting fresh each day

[RileySugarbush]

Absolutely! The only downside is you probably won't get any syrup the first boil. After that it will be much better!

[MainelyMaple]

alright im glad i was on the right track thanks. i wasnt expecting any syrup the first boil just wondering if it would be worth it to start sweeting the pans with only 65 gallons. also will i have any problems with the sap continuously flowing naturally? or am i worried about nothing?

[Bill'sSugarShack]

I boil on a 2x3 flat syrup pan that has 3 sections...you can sweetin the pan n leave it sweet till end of season (I do)..I normally draw off slowly into turkey fryer to finish. Tho on my pan i can close/plug off one section n finish off on the evaporater if need be.

[maple flats]

I start boiling when I have enough to boil for 3 hrs or more the first time. That is what my dealer said back when I started doing this. I've just stuck with it. The reason was that in 3 hrs of hard boil you get enough sugar in the pans to protect them from all but a real hard freeze. If you have an RO, start anytime, you at 8 or 10% are concentrated enough to keep from freezing. But then if you have an RO you likely have some experience and wouldn't need to ask.