Syrup not thickening

[Old Shady Lane]

Anyone ever have syrup that doesn't thicken. Usually when my thermometer reads 215, I'm at about 50 brix. However, last night it was reading 215 and the hydrometer wasn't even floating. Very strange! I tested the thermometer and hydrometer on a batch I was finishing and everything worked properly. The sap was clear and looked good and smelled fine I thought.

Thanks, Old Shady Lane

[Ausable]

That is strange - Like there is no Sugar in solution in the syrup even though you have boiled it normally. Any color to the syrup? Does it taste sweet? If the hydrometer is ok and the sap had 1 to 3 plus sugar in solution when you started the boil - we have a mystery ...... Mike

[PerryW]

215 is still pretty far from syrup, the hydrometer would be barely floating, especially on a high-pressure day. I would trust the hydrometer.

[Old Shady Lane]

Color looks good and it tastes fine. The sap in the back pan is very dark which tells me the sugar isn't traveling forward for some reason. Everything is level and looks good. I might try adding water and see if that will start pushing it forward.

Thanks,
Old Shady Lane

[PerryW]

This time of year, the sap in the back pan always looks dark,( not to mention the nitre buildup make it look even darker.)

I would avoid putting water in your backpan unless you are done for the season and just trying to push out a final take-off.

Not sure what state you are in, but in my area, we will get at least one more sap run today-tomorrow when we thaw out.

[Old Shady Lane]

Thanks for the help! I'm in Morristown, Vermont. We probably have one more run coming up here as well. We'll see what happens. I'll just finish out the season and see if it thickens up.

Thanks,
Old Shady Lane

100 taps
2X4 Leader w/ drop flues
(This year 50 taps w/ new twins in the house)

[Haynes Forest Products]

Shady First test the sap in the flue to see what you have. Quit with the thermometers and use the hydrometer. When it is to the line its done. I dont understand why so many people keep trying everthing but the tried and TRUE method of syrup making. Boil the sap till the HYDROMETER says its done. If you boil .01% sap that is dark and it turns darker in the flue pan and its thin what does diluting with water do for you?

[KenWP]

It's obvious it has sugar in it as it's boiling at 215. Not sure why your worried as it has to be close to 219 to be syrup. Just boil away till the hydrometer says 59 and then pour it off.

[red maples]

this late in the season you need to go by hydrometer. I made that mistake a few weeks ago I was drawing at 220 like I usually do to find the syrup to be just 1 or 2 brix over but was 5-6 brix under had to finish it and everything else after that I was drawing off at 222-223 coincidentally that was when I went from a light/medium to dark and borderline dark to Gr B.

alway trust the hydro!!!

[wcproctor]

I Agree Quit with the thermometers and use the hydrometer. So many people think this is a science lab. Red means stop.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Likely your thermometer isn't very accurate. After you do this a while, you will be able to tell when it is close to syrup by how it bubbles and trust the hydromoter, it won't fail you like a thermometer if it is calibrated correctly.

[Old Shady Lane]

Obviously, I use a hydrometer. Every sugaring operation I've worked at uses thermometers to determine the temperature and then hydrometers are used to double check density before drawing off. Also, I believe most scientist believe determining density is just as scientific as determining temperature. So, the "science lab" comment is pretty stupid. At my sugarhouse sap boils at 210. 215 is usually 50 brix. I found it interesting that less then 24 hours later it was completely different. No harm done boys! We were just having a nice conversation about sugaring. I've read just about every thread on this blog and I thought this situation was interesting enough to start a thread about it.

[johnallin]

Anyone ever have syrup that doesn't thicken. Usually when my thermometer reads 215, I'm at about 50 brix. However, last night it was reading 215 and the hydrometer wasn't even floating. Very strange!


So, the "science lab" comment is pretty stupid.... Plus, sugaring for four years doesn't give you enough experience to act like you're King of all Sugaring!

Hey Shady...it's ok man, no need to get personal...and no one's hydro will float at 215. You're still a good 4° from syrup temps at 215, and even that doesn't matter until the hydrometer floats and says you're there.
Listen to Haynes and some of the others who have been there and done that and you'll be fine. You asked a question, be ready for some answers...that's what this place is for, no need for nit pickin'...c'mon bro relax and enjoy the ride.

[Buckshot]

I used hydrometer for the first time this year and it worked great. I mixed syrup with different brixs to reach the disired brix.Calculated amount of sap to add to syrup to reduce to proper brixs.I only use the thermometer for the temp of packaging now.

[Haynes Forest Products]

I have dial thermometers on my syrup pan and my finisher. I use them to get me close and then draw off into the hydro cup. When the RED line is even with the syrup level then its syrup. I have read with intrest the amount of tempeture fluctuations people get when drawing off due to their thermometer placement and how hot the fire was at draw off and how fast the sap came in to replace the syrup and how the temp shoots up 4 degrees higher than when they started..YIKES....BUT I never hear anyone say they get a false hydro reading due to high temps:emb: ITS ALL GOOD SUGAR ON

[tapper]

Draw off temps will vary from day to day and will change during the period of a few hours. I never realized the amount of variation or how quick the change until I started using an auto draw a few yrs ago. I have seen as much as a 4 degree variation thru the season and been within 2 degrees and still not floating the hydrometer. Every aspect of making syrup is full of variables. Thats what keeps it interesting.

[PerryW]

I also have a dial thermometer at my drawoff and use it to know when to start checking with my hydrometer. While Drawing off, I repeatedly fill the cup and keep taking hydrometer readings throughout the whole take-off. One thing I have noticed is that the Dial Thermometer is much slower to react than the hydrometer. For example, at the end of the take-off, the dial will still be reading 7 and my hydrometer has dropped waaaay below syrup,

[abbott]

tapper hit it on the nose. I also have a thermometer in my last channel - the type that you have calibrated to 0 for boiling water. I have started the day with the thermometer reading 8 when the hydrometer said syrup and ended the day with the thermometer reading 5 when the hydrometer said syrup. As you might guess, it was on a day that started with clear skies (high pressure) then clouded in and started raining (low pressure.) The lower the atmospheric pressure the lower the boiling point for a liquid. Its the same reason the boiling point is lower at a higher atlitude.

I have noticed that at the end of the season, the sap seems to take longer to thicken, then go really fast right at the end. I don't have a good scientific explanation for this, but i suspect that it has something to do with the quality of the sugars and other dissolved solids in late season sap.

[Old Shady Lane]

Thanks for all the tips. I appreciate the help.

[Three Saps Sugar Shack]

may be a stupid question... but are your pans "reverse flow"?

[bearair]

This past Saturday everything was going great drawing off at 220 and making a lot of syrup. Sunday morning pancakes the "syrup" was not even close. After a little investigation we realized that the temp probe was laying on the bottom of the pan and taking the temp of the hot pan and not the sap. So after refinishing all day Sunday - Lesson Learned...Always, always, always use the hydrometer!!!