25gph sounds just good enough for me, but 30 would be even better. Perhaps a blower is on the list for next year!
25gph sounds just good enough for me, but 30 would be even better. Perhaps a blower is on the list for next year!
yeah I have a two vane blower for over fire air hope to install next year.thanks
2015 New sugarhouse 14x24 looking at 200 taps and 10 buckets,added auf to evaporator
2014 102 taps on gravity 10 buckets new 2x6 custom evaporator 12"x20" homemade finisher. And one old 8x10 shed
A better plan in place
2013 10 taps 1x2 flat pan needed a better plan
A family that loves pure maple syrup
One awesome helper ( my son)
That will speed things up a bit. I'm sugaring off the grid so a blower isn't really an option for me. Perhaps i could build a perpetual motion bellow hahah.
Maybe blow up balloons and let the air out into the door?Originally Posted by NhShaun
first year 2012 50 taps late season made 2 1/2 gals.
2013 2x6 homemade arch 180 taps. 20 Gals.
2014 40 on 3/16 gravity 160 on buckets.
http://omasranch.wix.com/omasmaple
Giant balloons! With a slow release valve. I have seen people use Gas powered leaf blowers, but i would rather not listen to that all day. Maybe a bicycle powered blower would speed things up just for like a half hour or so.
If you've got dry small split wood that would help a lot. And feeding often.
first year 2012 50 taps late season made 2 1/2 gals.
2013 2x6 homemade arch 180 taps. 20 Gals.
2014 40 on 3/16 gravity 160 on buckets.
http://omasranch.wix.com/omasmaple
I actually know a guy in town who has all the cut offs from his saw mill. Maybe ill swing by there this weekend and see if he has any up for grabs Thanks for the idea!
you know where i need to be but ive been tending to my wife in the hospital, lots of fluid retention..... Doctors wont let me tap her legs even though i point out that they havent had much success in the last 3 weeks. seriously though, they have a game plan and should be outta here next wednesday! gonna add around 100 taps, final clean on the pans and shack, test the vaccum and be ready to tap after Christmas!
first year at the market 2015!
I don't act my age so why should i act like i have any sense?
2014 added a 40"x12' king
239 taps on my little 3 1/2 acres
Looking for a sugarbush lease!
2015 350 taps total
60 gallons made in spite of learning curve and leaks!
Good year at the market with all the confections too!
2016 delaval 76 & with a 6.5 Hp engine gives me 16hg! I think it made my trees 10' shorter.
I started making maple in 2003, and built my sugarhouse in the time leading up to the 2004 season. I did not have grid power until 2012. In the first several years all power came from a generator (loud and expensive to run long term) For the noise I moved the genny about 75' away, ran an overhead entrance line to a panel box and built a plywood sound wall between the gen. and the sugarhouse (only a few feet from the gen.). That was better, but not great. I then started getting into solar, 300 watts at first, then grew to 1480 watts and now to 6.32 KW. The jump between 1.48 and 6.32 KW happened when I also invested to get grid power to the sugarhouse.
I was able to use blowers from the 2004 season on. My first solar was able to keep up in sunlight, but the battery bank got low in 2-3 hrs. after dusk, then I had to start the gen., run the blower, lights and recharge the battery bank.
If you have any possibility to get grid power to the sugar house, do it, solar is nice but very expensive. I foolishly wanted to remain off grid, but once deciding to tie to the grid I'm totally glad I did. I still have the 1.48 KW portion on a battery bank in case the grid goes down, but that inverter also send excess to the grid that I don't need. Since my sugarhouse is about 3 i. from my home, I now send the excess to my residential meter. At the sugarhouse I have only paid $8.40 for power in the last 6 mos. total (it is not because I used more than I produced, but because any month that I net use any of their power, they charge me $22.93/mo delivery fee. The fee is then reduced by what I sent them, that month, thus 1 month at $8.40).
If possible to get, grid power is the cheapest power option, unless you have a year round water/wind or such generator that never needs to be fueled.
How far from you house is your sugar house? If possible. run a line, even if only 1- 20A circuit, you'll be glad you did (and a 240V 20A is even far better and won't double the cost.)
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.
Interesting stuff Mapleflats! I have a small battery bank running my 12v lights and charging my gadgets in my cabin. So i will be stuck using generators for any big power that i need(Which hopefully is minimal). Battery powered lights and oil lanterns should be sufficient in the lighting department. Where i plan to build my shack in the next couple years will be very close to the grid power, So i will surely get tied in. But for this season ahead, i will be roughing it with my block arch out in the open. I hope someday i can invest in decent solar setup on this property, nothing close to 6kw though hahah. My 6000 generator is much to large to be running all day just to power a blower, so i guess im going blowerless this season as well.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
