The sap WANTS to run, I can feel it in the sugarbush.
The sun is getting higher and hotter and it’s cold.
I think it is going to require some late nights in the saphouse when it does happen.
The sap WANTS to run, I can feel it in the sugarbush.
The sun is getting higher and hotter and it’s cold.
I think it is going to require some late nights in the saphouse when it does happen.
Here in Casco we put up 3 gallons today with a total of 5 for the season having fun learning a cont flow pan
Finally got the talked about trickle of syrup out of it today for almost 2 hours it was great big jump from batch boiling
Good luck all
Sunrise Farm maple syrup
1999-2002 10 taps 2x3 pan on two burner propane cook top with dad
2008-2010 back in maine dusted off equipment 20 taps 2x3 pan on two burner propane cook top
2011 50 taps homemade arch out of 275 oil drum
30 gravity 20 buckets
2011 working on temp sap house with straping and tarp
2012 larger sap house revamped boiler 75 grav 30 buckets
2013 upto 190 taps added a blower to arch
2014 new 16x24 shack new home made 2x6 with leader continous flow pan 286 taps
I'm not sure what will happen, but it isn't going to happen until April. At this time in 2012 we had no snow on the ground, very little frost, and the ice was off the pond I live next to. Right now we have 3+ feet of snow on the ground, a lot of frost since the soils were wet and froze earlier in the winter, and there is 3 feet of ice on the pond I live next to. Doesn't seem like all that is going away overnight, but you never know.
Brunswick we have has 125/150 taps in for about 2 weeks (some a bit less). Collected last week about 55 gallons, another 100 yesterday. Boiled and sweetened the pans, pulled maybe a gallon of finished syrup before the head tank was dry. Tough season boys, but remember this is agriculture just like planting corn or hay or growing veggies. some years are great others suck but good or bad they are controlled by mother nature, not us. I wish everyone a safe and prosperous season.
Revi, how you making out this year buddy?
MapleME
Brunswick, Maine
2x5.5 Lapierre Raised Flue, AUF
150 taps on gravity line
2011 John Deere Gator XUV, gonna be a great hauler
Wood Wolf Splitter
One VERY understanding wife
Had our best run yet collected today... But now that cold wind is coming thru to stop it all!
We are having fun, but all we have done so far is sweeten the pan. We may make some syrup next weekend, but the temps don't look too good until the end of the week for much sap flow around here.
Are you a half full, or half empty kind of guy?
My buckets will be more than half full!
Eric of the Greens... I Fly Solo...
2013-15 Block arch to having it all...
2016...320 on vacuum. 155 gravity, 90 buckets.
All homemade equipment except Smokey Lake pans.
2x6 arch, Electric releaser w/ Gast 1023 24" vacuum
2x4x40 RO w/ dual 265gph Procons
My PWS with webcam... https://www.wunderground.com/persona...READS2#history
Looking at the forecast starting this Thursday, it now shows only a couple of nights below freezing for all thru next week. I sure hope they're wrong on that. There looks to be the potential for an extremely short season for me. I've only boiled 3 times so far, and all 3 were very little sap. In normal times I get between 1500-2000 gal of sap on a good day, this year my total is barely 800 gal. This Friday and Saturday should be super, but then the warm spell forecast looks bad. I hope the deep frozen ground and the snow cover delays the end and we can get more freeze thaw cycles before tree budding. Worst case, all time record short season. That's a record no one wants.
Dave Klish, I recently ordered a 2x6 wood fired evaporator from A&A Sheet Metal which I will be converting to oil fired
Now have solar, 2x6 finish pan, 5 bank 7x7 filter press, large water jacketed bottler, and tankless water heater.
Recently bought another Gingerich RO, this one was a 125, but a second membrane was added thus is a 250, like I had.
After running a 2x3, a 2x6, 3x8 tapping from 79 taps up to 1320 all woodfired, now I'm going to a 2x6 oil fired and a 200-425 taps.
I was thinking about the season, and I guess what we will harvest this year is the people that visited and the good feeling emanating from them. There may not be much sap, but we'll boil for a few more weekends (and during the week as need be) and get what we can. We sold a bit this weekend and checked out other sugar houses, and that was fun. I try not to get too maudlin about it. We have been at this for over 12 years and every season is so different. There is still time for us to make at least some syrup for ourselves.
I have only boiled 3 times myself. I made 7 qts of light Saturday and boild off 70 gal of sap Sunday. I have more orders than I can fill. Once I saw the forcast for this weekend, I knew I was in trouble. I am sure we will make more, but not what we need. O well, not much we can do about it.
Last edited by Maple Ridge; 03-24-2014 at 02:32 PM.
Maple Ridge Sugar House
230 taps for 2016
12 X 16 Sugar House.
20 X 66 CDL Evaperator.
A good Wife that enjoys collecting and working in the sugar house.