He knows what saw to grab when work needs to get done!Quote:
Originally Posted by buckeye gold
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He knows what saw to grab when work needs to get done!Quote:
Originally Posted by buckeye gold
Last spring I decided not only to swap spouts every year but to swap out tees every third year. Out of 750, one .225 spout was constricted with wood chips but all 250 tees were clean as a whistle. Also replaced an old 1/2" mainline section with 3/16 setup. Since I was going to replace the 1/2", I didn't flush it last spring and when I took it down in November the mold build up was impressive. I had always wondered if flushing the lines was worth the effort and now I know. That leaves one orchard left to convert to 3/16. The former operator had abandoned it in 2009, saying the trees had stopped producing. I took it over in 2013 and could not believe the over tapping and cluster tapping. In 7 years of better care the bark is looking better and the sap production has risen from 50% of the average for my all trees to 70%, even though its average tree diameter is higher. Not only do the trees not produce as much sap per tap on a daily basis but they don't run as many days each season as the other orchards.
It took awhile to thaw the trees yesterday even with the warm temps. Looks like this the run started late in the afternoon and ran all night.
Got 1,000 gal Monday overnight. Some pretty good flows. Had to fix one cranky 2" valve and the chewed through most of it and the grade stayed at 60% and favor was excellent. Going to pump Tuesday's flow this morning. Won't be as much. Windy today and no freeze until Thursday night.
Well, wrong, it didn't slow down. 1100 gal of 2.3% and it was still flowing at 4PM. Cranked down the RO so the 2nd pass was coming off at 11.5%. Couple minor glitches. Grade stayed steady at 60%+ and very clean thru the filter press. Slight freeze over night so it ain't going to stop.
Give it hell Bruce!
Got everything cleaned up last night. Had to fill a 15 gal drum to do it. The RO, concentrate and feed tanks, finisher are all clean. Simmer the evaporator down low and drained the syrup pan. Last bit came off at 55% but it was more than 24 hours from the first crunch. Going to pump yesterday's sap this morning. Got plenty of wood, RO soap and defoamer so away we go.
I'm going to do a good cleaning here tomorrow too. It's amazing how fast things get dirty.
Still coming in gtp/day and one of the tanks didn't get hooked up after pumping! Grade is staying steady and the weather is beautiful. Still haven't got my head around the shurflo controller. Did clean out the screen and here's a pic. I've never had a problem with my 3/16 tees plugging in 4 seasons. It appears because the tap hole residue from the drill bit for the .225 spouts is too small plug a tee?Attachment 21147
Processed 900 gal yesterday and left 200 in the coldest orchard tank. Grade dropped briefly to 51% then climbed back to 54% as the fresh sap got into the system. Filter press has still been amazingly clean. Soaked the syrup pan overnight. Looks like one more good freeze next weekend if the evaporator doesn't ferment first.
I'm a little worried about the extended forecast too Bruce. It looks like we might make it to Maple Weekend and then it will be done. In the meantime the sap keeps running although it was a bit cloudy yesterday. So far this season most of my boils have been in the 1100 gallon range, almost double what they were last year.