Been an odd year, Too cold for many runs and too late of a thaw when it did run. Higher then normal sugar content made up of it a little. Time to get the taps all cleaned up and get the camp ready...
Type: Posts; User: Maple Hobo
Been an odd year, Too cold for many runs and too late of a thaw when it did run. Higher then normal sugar content made up of it a little. Time to get the taps all cleaned up and get the camp ready...
How about bcarbon 14 test that show differnt results on soloar radiation... over a longer period then NASA covers....
There are a number of places to get the glass at. Glass is very expensive right now though.
Make sure its approved for maple syrup use though. A lot of the people around here like to use Mason...
There is a new lapierre drill bit for frozen trees. It works pretty good.
You need to change back to a reguar bit like the tree saver though once it warms up or it makes slightly ratty holes.
How long you been tapped? Might be the bacteria of the trees trying to heal? Even cold the trees might not be frozen and trying to heal.
On rain days or some overcast days it can run cloudy too.
Keep in mind that the boiling point changes with the barometeric pressure. If the pressure changes, so does the boiling point.
We have the digital meter that gives the pressure and boiling point. We...
Invest in the POP bag filter.... Its quicker to change then zip tieing on a sock or cotton pillow case.
They used to use the "clean" sock method at the old style camp up the cove from us, they are...
Be careful how many times you have to heat the syrup up. It will evap and you might overshoot the brix level and end up with chrystals in your bottles.
Figure out how many points your set up moves...
Personal experience here after 3 years of use... Says that it makes it lighter, not darker.
Our syrup has been consistantly lighter after the RO and UV were introduced.
Some systems are designed to do that in one pass but have a series of membraines to get high concentrations.
Lapierre sells a rack for multipule or single stand alone membrain vessles with thier own...
Looks like your using copper water plumbing (don't like the lead solider myself)
Cut in a tee that you can put a hose barb fitting into a length of sap line or milk line?
Wire the other end to the...
Getting ready for another canning session tomorrow...lol
Been a great start to the season, even if some people think it was too early.
Already produced about a third of what we did last year and...
With buckets or gravity only system you'll see a lot more stops and starts in your tree flow.
Temperature, percipitation (snow or rain), barometeric pressure and even the wind can influence if they...
Some old timers around used to use things like tube socks as a fill tank filter.
I used a cotton pillow case.
Now we have the pop filters. Used them last year without the ring they pop onto. ...
We have an industrial/inline UV light. It kills organic organisms in the raw sap. It will help the sap, especially the concentrate, hold a little longer.
More important to us, it also seems to make...
Pretty consistant, a little lighter then the lightest fancy grade on the vermont scale kit.
I'd like to get some tubing with real-tree color pattern...
Tap trees and no one would know you were there..lol
Mini-guilli suits for buckets...
I save one for washing (only needed to WASH at the end of the season though.)
I do run about 10-15 min. on filtate to push my remaining sugar out of the system into the concentrate tank.
After...
I have 3/4" lateral lines (2-6 deg slope) so they keep the air bubble over the running sap. The vacuume needs to pass the sap, if you have a 1/2" line its harder to keep it from running solid and...
Semi rigid be it 30p or Lapierre's semi rigid for sap lines.
Max flex is OK for drops, SUCKS for sap lines... For drops it can still kink and doesn't shape well.
I also use it for the pig tail...
I can make due with a lot of differnet ways to make syrup.... NONE of it matters without a few good Maple trees.
Take me back to wooden spiles and bark buckets... I still need Maple trees to do...
If your starting on the cheap and are using plastic bottles... try to use at least something like a 1 gallon or 2 liter containers.
I would find a source for new milk style jugs....
We had to install a feed tank, used a sump pump with a float in the feed tank to regulate it.
Then added a pop filter bag to the sump discharge pipe over the feed tank.
Works like a champ and...
Our work horse tool is this one: We refer to it as the "Two MAN tool" because its easier to use with two people.
https://leaderevaporator.com/p-210-two-hand-tubing-fitting-assembly-tool.aspx
For...
Be careful... If you run too shallow the syrup will foam too much and jump off the bottom of the pan.
If you are running RO'd water that is 6-7 brix or more it will move a LOT faster then you are...