1st Time Tapper, some questions

[Run Forest Run!]

If you do decide to freeze the sap today, make sure you take the jugs out of the freezer Friday night. Otherwise they'll still be solid blocks that you can't pour out of the jugs when you want to boil on Saturday. Have fun!!!!

[gaust024]

Thanks for the tip! I was wondering how long the thaw cycle would be. Can I just toss out all of the ice? From my research the ice is pretty much all water, and the sugar is on the bottom. And it would be more convenient to boil the more concentrated sap instead of all of it!

[Run Forest Run!]

There will always be sugar stuck in the ice. The more solid the ice, the more sugar is stuck in it. The best scenario is when you've got shards of ice versus solid chunks. The shards have the least amount of sugar in them. When I have chunks of ice I set them in a separate container and then use the melt-off until the remaining ice is slushy in texture. That's when most of the sugar has been released.

Five seasons ago I purchased a brix refractometer for $30 off ebay. That has taken all of the guesswork out of my ice/sugar content dilemmas. I highly recommend adding this inexpensive tool to your sugaring toolbox.

[gaust024]

Great tips, I will definitely consider adding a refractometer for next year's sap run. I collected all of the sap from the past 48 hours, and I estimate that I have about 9 gallons from my 10 taps. They're now in the fridge and freezer. I noticed that the sap freezes to shards first, and like you said, I tasted some of the shards, and they were almost all water, with no sweetness at all!

I've got a few questions, however... I noticed that my sap has a woody smell/taste to it. I figured that this is normal, as the sap itself is really clear. Is this pretty typical late in the season?

Also, I'll be using a turkey pot and fryer to boil my sap, with a propane tank. Does anyone have any insight as to how long it will take and how much fuel will be required to boil around 10-12 gallons of sap? I just want to get an idea of how much propane will be needed. But everything aside, so far so good!!

[Run Forest Run!]

My sap always seems to have a grassy, slightly woody, smell and taste to it. That's normal. So you're good!

As for boiling with propane, that's what I do. It takes me one 20lb propane tank to make a half gallon of syrup. If you've got 10-12 gallons of sap, expect to be boiling for about 6 hours and you'll go through a half tank of propane to make it.

[gaust024]

Perfect! Thanks for all the tips

[Run Forest Run!]

Another tip I was given when I started....

If you can set your propane tank in a plastic tote and then put some water in the tote, that will help to keep the propane tank from freezing up on the outside. You'll be able to keep a better boil going. Once your boiling session is done, take the tank out of the water.

[gaust024]

It's above freezing here so that shouldn't be an issue, but thanks! How high should I fill up the 30 quart pot? Right now I'm filled up about halfway. Got a good boil going and lots of steam, but it sure is taking a looooong time!!

[4010]

Yes it takes a long time. One think to watch for is when it gets closer to syrup it can boil over, you will need to turn down the heat. I start boiling 3 inchs deep and refill at about 2 inches.

Mike

[Run Forest Run!]

It's above freezing here so that shouldn't be an issue, but thanks! How high should I fill up the 30 quart pot? Right now I'm filled up about halfway. Got a good boil going and lots of steam, but it sure is taking a looooong time!!

The propane tanks will still frost up on the outside even if the air temperature is above freezing. It can do that in the summer.

It takes a while for your pot to get ripping. Once it does, and the sugar content of the liquid gets higher and higher, the whole process will really start to take off.