Red Roof Maples 2013

Russ, post-season please send me pics of the Bubblemaster 1.0. I think this will be a good addition to my evap. to lighten the grade back up to where it should be. Since we have a lot of taps on a 2.5x8, I don't see myself concentrating less to keep sap from caramelizing in the flue pan. I'm also not interested in burning more wood than we are this year...somewhere around 8 chord. Did you notice an evaporization rate increase w/ the Bubblemaster? What about swapping out the squirrel cage blower for the underfire air with a high pressure blower and directing some of that flow into the bubblemaster. It'd beat having to listen to a vacuum cleaner running, and would the high pressure blower work better for underfire air??

Josh do you think that you could make a field trip up to check it out in person? I've got some pics on my phone that I can send to you as picture messages. I'll do that as soon as I have a free minute. So far I am very impressed at the difference that the Bubblemaster 1.0 has made. I boiled again last night for the 8th or 9th time since I installed it and I am still making grade A syrup. It has changed to dark amber now and there is some discoloration in the flue pan but not as bad as before. As a comparison the second boil of the season was grade B and it stayed that way until St Patrick's weekend. The Bubblemaster 1.0 was added and the first boil was on 03/19. The last 3rd of my crop is all grade A from light to dark.

I dont know about swapping out my blower. It is pretty big and moves a lot of air. I am thinking of building a duct into it and then seeing if it will have enough pressure to blow the bubbles up through the sap in the flue pan. If it works it will be the birth of the Bubblemaster 2.0!

Got your pics and I can see why it cost so much...lotta copper. I didn't realize you put it in both pans. I'm sure I can make a trip to Loudon this summer. I'll probably wait until mid-Feb. before I remember to build it. You've gotten impressive results.

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Originally Posted by Amber Gold

Got your pics and I can see why it cost so much...lotta copper. I didn't realize you put it in both pans. I'm sure I can make a trip to Loudon this summer. I'll probably wait until mid-Feb. before I remember to build it. You've gotten impressive results.

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Yeah the price of copper is rediculous. The compression fittings that I soldered into the manifolds were almost $6 each at Lowes. I probably could have saved some money if I had the time to shop around but being the middle of sugaring season I just had to spend the money and get it done.

Just heated up 3 5 gallons containers and transferred them into a 15.5 gallon keg. It's that time in the season when syrup storage containers are getting scarce. A problem I don't mind having!

Russ, I just canned up 40 gallons of my syrup into jugs this morning for the same reason. Stayed below freezing all day and looks like sugar weather coming up. My trees have all been tapped less than 5 weeks so I'm hoping to break 100 gallons on the next boil.

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Originally Posted by Russell Lampron

Just heated up 3 5 gallons containers and transferred them into a 15.5 gallon keg. It's that time in the season when syrup storage containers are getting scarce. A problem I don't mind having!

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RUss, does all your syrup go into bulk containers at above 180 deg F?

I'm still trying to decide whether I should change my system because I've had an occasional fermented 5 gal drum over the years. I filter directly from the evaporator thru 24x36 flat filters and directly into 5 gal drums. I make every attempt to fill a drum completely with hot syrup and pack it chuck full (by tipping it) and sealing it, BUT, i'm sure it is less than 180 deg. most of the time when I screw the cap on. If the drum is not completely filled in a single session, it is labeled COLD and gets used up first. My syrup is stored in the basement which remains cool until these cold drums get used up.

My dilema is this: I have an aversion to heating and reheating syrup as I'm afraid it would affect taste. Syrup also just seems better right off the filter/canner sitting next to my evaporator! Not sure if this is true, or is people could actually taste a difference??? Any comments?

Also, what do you guys use to heat your syrup up? I have an electric stove in my canning room (in the basement of my house). I guess I would need to install some sort of propane stove to heat up my 12" x 20" filter canner?

I heat my syrup to 195* or higher and run it from my filter press into the drums. When I run it into my canner from the press it is usually still above 180*. If I don't have enough to completely fill a 5 gallon container I run it into the canner and jug it up in consumer size jugs. I have a 16"x16" canner with a propane burner under it for reheating to can and a finisher that I made out of a 3 burner Weber grill that I use to heat it for filtering. I had Bill Mason build me a pan for the finisher. It holds 22 gallons of syrup.

I used to have a 5 gallon jug or 2 go bad from not packing them hot enough. I haven't lost any since I started using the filter press. That includes last summer when it was hotter than normal for most of the summer. I store my syrup in my sugar house.

I agree that syrup taste best when it just comes out of the press but it still taste good when reheated to jug it up. I am more afraid of the syrup getting darker from reheating than losing flavor.

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Originally Posted by Russell Lampron

I am more afraid of the syrup getting darker from reheating than losing flavor.

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Thanks for the info Russ. I have the opposite problem this year (so far). Got lots of Dark Amber orders but mostly all Fancy so far.

I should consider getting a propane burner for my filter canner. I have two of the 12" x 20" units (one with a dial thermometer and a filter rack). I reheat the syrup in one, standardize the syrup and open the valve and filter it into the other one. I have to do all my canning when I'm not boiling because it's too hectic boiling and canning at the same time. Plus, my sugarhouse is more of a shack than a house (LOL) and I worry about sawdust blowing around and into the jugs.

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Originally Posted by PerryW

Thanks for the info Russ. I have the opposite problem this year (so far). Got lots of Dark Amber orders but mostly all Fancy so far.

I should consider getting a propane burner for my filter canner. I have two of the 12" x 20" units (one with a dial thermometer and a filter rack). I reheat the syrup in one, standardize the syrup and open the valve and filter it into the other one. I have to do all my canning when I'm not boiling because it's too hectic boiling and canning at the same time. Plus, my sugarhouse is more of a shack than a house (LOL) and I worry about sawdust blowing around and into the jugs.

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I don't can while I am boiling either. Too much ash and dust blowing around. I draw all of my syrup off into my finisher then correct the density and heat it to filtering temperature. Then I run it through the filter press and fill either bulk containers or the canner.