Tapped in Chester... sorta

[berkshires]

I also have a Mason 2x3 XL and I typically average 8 GPH without AUF. A lot has to do with how deep you run the pan and what you use for wood. Bill Mason recommended wrist sized hemlock as the best fuel, which is what I use. Actually I use wrist size and smaller, usually without bark, very dry, and it really burns hot. Hardwood does not burn as hot and fast enough and the greater coals would tend to block the grate (limit air). Also firing about every 6 minutes. I run a 1 inch pan depth which boils a lot harder than the 2 inch depth some people use, but does require more attention. Of course AUF will improve your boil rate, but also consider the above if you are not already following those practices.

Thanks for the suggestions. I am always looking for ways to improve.

I run my pan right at the edge of safety. Typically just covering the thermometer, or even a bit of the thermometer out. I'd estimate about 3/4 inch to one inch. Good dry wood this year, split pretty small. It is pretty much all hardwood (mostly ash, with a little aspen mixed in), and the coals do tend to build up. I think the AUF ought to help with that. I do have a hemlock I took down this fall, but a pine that the wind took down last spring will be ready before that. I have a lot of bucking and splitting to do before next spring!

I did have to run to collect sap near the end of the boil, and had noone to help, so I brought the level up to an inch and a half or so. It definitely boiled slower until I got the sap back down to the usual level, and of course the fire had died down. So that probably accounts for some of the slow boil too.

[berkshires]

How do you have the back of your Mason bricked? I have seen some versions where there is a wall in the middle and then it's all open again right to the back, and other versions where the wall starts in the middle and extends all the way to near the entrance of the stack. I did the former last season, and I'm trying the latter this season. I do get a full boil all the way to the back, but it is not nearly as hard a boil as in the front. I assume the AUF will help with that too.

GO

[berkshires]

Are you done, or are you coming back out next weekend?

I usually wrap up the first week of April. Should be at least one good freeze this week, (Monday or Tuesday night) so I'll have a boil this weekend. I hope to have another the week after that, but Mother Nature will have her own say.

GO

[RedMapleCreek]

How do you have the back of your Mason bricked? I have seen some versions where there is a wall in the middle and then it's all open again right to the back, and other versions where the wall starts in the middle and extends all the way to near the entrance of the stack. I did the former last season, and I'm trying the latter this season. I do get a full boil all the way to the back, but it is not nearly as hard a boil as in the front. I assume the AUF will help with that too.

GO

I have the wall right after the back of the grate, two flat bricks wide up to about 2 inches to the bottom of the pan and then there is a void space after the wall before the outlet to the stack. You want to force the flame and flue gas up tight to the pan, but without restricting it too much.

Regarding the wood, that hemlock that you took down in the fall would be perfectly dry for next season, if you split it soon and let it dry under cover but well ventilated this summer. Hemlock dries quite fast. Also it is easily debarked once split and without bark it is rocket fuel for the evaporator. Bark on all wood except birch does not really burn very hot. If you do all this and add AUF, be sure not to melt your stack!

I'm expecting a hard freeze tonight (Monday) and tomorrow night and then possibly early next week as well. Have not had any really great runs this year. We usually last until the first or second week of April, but not sure we'll make it this year, our snow pack is going fast.

[berkshires]

Collected and boiled 27 gallons today. Plenty of moths, and some of it was a bit cloudy, but it made a great tasting extra-dark.

Got my AUF attached and turned on today. All I can say is WOW! I went from about 7.2 GPH to 9.5 GPH, with a very hard boil all the way to the back of the pan. Here's what I bought: https://www.surpluscenter.com/Electr...er-16-1548.axd It's only 160 CFM, but I still closed off the air intake about 30-50%, and it was amazing.

I definitely did not feel comfortable running the evaporator as low as I had in the past. Boil was so hard, foam was approaching the tops of the rails, even with plenty of defoamer. And if I got behind on anything, and the inflow didn't keep up, I was in the red zone in no time. Also almost no coals, so shut-down was a breeze.

And it ran off my deep cycle battery for three hours with no problem.

Drew off a bit over a half gallon of nearup.

I'm probably not going to reach my goal of 6 gallons for the season, but I'm closing in on beating my previous record of 4.5

Looking good for another run this week. Some of my taps are definitely drying up, but many still have some life in them. We'll see what a good hard freeze can do.

GO

[berkshires]

Planning to head out Saturday for my final boil and cleanup. Aaron (or anyone else) if you're done and feel like swinging by to see my setup, I'd love to meet other folks. Drop me a note and I'll send directions.

Gabe

[berkshires]

Cooked off the last 41 gallons and pulled my taps. Aaron and his son came to visit too. Great to meet you Aaron! Hope to check out your operation some day.

Now I have so many buckets to wash. Yeesh.

Gabe

[bill m]

We are not done yet. brought in about 2000 gallons for tomorrow. We are at .4 gallons per tap as of today.

[Aaron Stack]

Cooked off the last 41 gallons and pulled my taps. Aaron and his son came to visit too. Great to meet you Aaron! Hope to check out your operation some day.

Now I have so many buckets to wash. Yeesh.

Gabe

Also Gabe. Good to put a face to a name. Bottling 3 gallons of dark today using a bottler instead of the stovetop. I'll report back any excitement.

[eustis22]

Berkshires, I have questions about boiling on your Mason 2X3. A) What kind of maples are you tapping? 2) When you draw off, are you doing it by temp or density? c) What depth do you keep in yours? I try to maintain depth to just over the thermometer stem. I ask because I always produce a dark, heavy syrup (that tastes very good) but I am wondering if that's a function of my sap (mostly silvers/norways at -2%) or my boiling technique. I have never produced a golden and only rarely an amber. I usually draw off when the gauge says 219-220 and then fine finish on the stovetop to density.