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Thread: Green county '18

  1. #1
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    South Durham, NY. Sap house in Acra
    Posts
    81

    Default Greene County '18

    Back after an annoying year last year of taking care of unpleasantries! No fun running out of syrup! Anyway, we started tapping today, put new 3/16 lines on a steep, treaturous hillside. More lines tomorrow, also on a new hillside. Then the 235 buckets on proven trees. Made some evaporator changes, again, as the sap pan i had built didnt perform to expectations. Rebricked the arch, and have a new driveway and brick sidewalk to keep the mud down. 100 gallons this year? That's the goal!
    Last edited by ponderingjunkman; 02-16-2018 at 06:47 AM.
    Scrap pile built 2.5 by 8, induced draft, preheater, separate finishing pan
    brick sap house

  2. #2
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    South Durham, NY. Sap house in Acra
    Posts
    81

    Default

    Put another 59 taps in on a steep hillside yesterday. Lots of effort stringing new lines, and it was slippery! Used up the dominion and grimm tubing, and started in on leader tubing, which is much stiffer and harder to assemble by hand. Need to make a tool! Not much running today.
    Scrap pile built 2.5 by 8, induced draft, preheater, separate finishing pan
    brick sap house

  3. #3
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    South Durham, NY. Sap house in Acra
    Posts
    81

    Default

    Well, there are a few hundred gallons waiting this morning, ran well last couple days. Test boil revealed some weaknesses in the new hardware, and the need for better steam evacuation! Thrash time!
    Scrap pile built 2.5 by 8, induced draft, preheater, separate finishing pan
    brick sap house

  4. #4
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    South Durham, NY. Sap house in Acra
    Posts
    81

    Wink

    Averaging about 50 gallons an hour, which means boiling into the night. Seems like the trees are slowing down, but not much! So warm and pleasant out! Drew off, and it is dark! Sure tastes good tho!
    Attached Images Attached Images
    Scrap pile built 2.5 by 8, induced draft, preheater, separate finishing pan
    brick sap house

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
    Location
    Dutchess County NY
    Posts
    71

    Default

    Cool shack
    2014 - 6 Taps (and some borrowed sap) - Barrel evaporator - 1 1/2 Gallons syrup
    2015 - 30 taps - block arch -7.5 gallons syrup
    2016 - 20 taps- fire bricked arch - 5 gallons syrup
    2017 - 20 Taps- still boiling outside - 5 gallons of syrup
    2018 - 30 Taps - Mason 2x4 XL inside Garage - 10 gal. syrup
    2019 - 2 Taps - Propane stove and pot - 1 pint syrup
    2020 - 4 Taps - Propane Stove and pot - 3 Pints syrup
    2021 - 6 Taps - Stove/Smokey Lake Star Cat evaporator - 8 Pints syrup

  6. #6
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    South Durham, NY. Sap house in Acra
    Posts
    81

    Default

    Thanks Jonnie! We tried to model it after old industrial buildings, but mostly, we had extra material laying around, and used what we had!

    Finished boiling at 9pm last night, 550 gallons, and got almost 6 gallons of syrup. Probably could have drawn off another couple gallons, but didn't want to wait on the finishing pan. The preheater wasn't warming the incoming sap as much as previous years. I removed some baffling from the hoods to make assembly easier, and the new steam stack may be pulling the heat out too quick, have to ponder that
    Scrap pile built 2.5 by 8, induced draft, preheater, separate finishing pan
    brick sap house

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    Caledon, Ontario
    Posts
    1,930

    Default

    I love the look of your brick sap house. How unique. Best of luck this season!
    ~ Karen ~

    2012 - 10 taps, 1 turkey fryer - 169.5L sap 4.2 L syrup
    2013 - 23 taps, 2 turkey fryers - 748.5 L sap 17.56 L syrup

    2014 - 22 taps, 509 L sap 12.5 L syrup
    2015 - 28 taps, 1093.75 L sap 25.1 L syrup
    2016 - 25 taps, 1223.5 L sap 28.25 L syrup
    2017 - 21 taps, 518.5 L sap 12.7 L syrup
    2018 - 28 taps, 2 turkey fryers & Denali 3 burner propane stove - 798L sap 16.9 L syrup
    2019 - 28 taps, 1409.5L sap 40.12L syrup

    Sugar, Norway, Manitoba, Silver and Freeman Maples



  8. #8
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    South Durham, NY. Sap house in Acra
    Posts
    81

    Default

    Thanks Karen, right back at ya! My wife hails from Quebec, but she isn't french-thank goodness! Ha! Just kidding! Anyway we hung all the rest of our buckets today in the snow! Also had some crusty plastic buckets that we were able to use our extra taps with, so we now have 266 buckets. Not alot running today, but the new taps dripped, leading to that delightful sound of sap hitting the bottom of the buckets- delightful music! About 3 inches of wet sticky snow fell as we tapped. Nothing like being in the woods- so peaceful and relaxing- except for the wet feet, cold fingers.... still have to count the line taps
    Scrap pile built 2.5 by 8, induced draft, preheater, separate finishing pan
    brick sap house

  9. #9
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    South Durham, NY. Sap house in Acra
    Posts
    81

    Default

    Finishing up another 550 gallon run. This sub 1% sap is a pain!
    Scrap pile built 2.5 by 8, induced draft, preheater, separate finishing pan
    brick sap house

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    Caledon, Ontario
    Posts
    1,930

    Default

    Junkman, I can't imagine running 550 gallons in an entire season! That would be a dream. But, I'll take today's 3.5% soft maple sap any day! Hope your % gets better.
    ~ Karen ~

    2012 - 10 taps, 1 turkey fryer - 169.5L sap 4.2 L syrup
    2013 - 23 taps, 2 turkey fryers - 748.5 L sap 17.56 L syrup

    2014 - 22 taps, 509 L sap 12.5 L syrup
    2015 - 28 taps, 1093.75 L sap 25.1 L syrup
    2016 - 25 taps, 1223.5 L sap 28.25 L syrup
    2017 - 21 taps, 518.5 L sap 12.7 L syrup
    2018 - 28 taps, 2 turkey fryers & Denali 3 burner propane stove - 798L sap 16.9 L syrup
    2019 - 28 taps, 1409.5L sap 40.12L syrup

    Sugar, Norway, Manitoba, Silver and Freeman Maples



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