Hey everyone, I'm Chris, from Vermont (ha, the username, get it) Anyways, I'm a graduate of Paul Smiths college with a Forest tech degree. I work for Glenn Goodrich at Goodrich's maple farm. I head up the woods crew there, installations, vacuum checking, maintenance, tapping, everything in the woods. Know plenty about repairing and running chainsaws, I enjoy canoe tripping, hiking, hunting and fishing. Just love being in the woods!
New Maple Addict
Hi Folks. From Northern NY. Joined the forum a few years back because a buddy has the maple bug and put me up to it. Great place for information and research.
This is the first year I tapped trees. I have 15 large sugar maples in my yard - ran 20 taps, 8 on 3/16 gravity tube and 12 on buckets. I didn't keep real close info on amounts, but did get 6 gal. of syrup. I did the first gallon on a propane fired candy cooker I have ($50 of propane later) and I was hauling my sap to my buddy's place. We measured the sugar content and I worked in his sugar house (tending the fire) and took my calculated syrup home. Not a bad deal,but I wanted my own setup after it was all done this year.
A few weeks ago a local fella advertised a shack (10X12) with a Leader half-pint evaporator (he is upsizing) and I bought it. Got it moved, all cleaned up and ready to go for next season. Did a test boil yesterday, with water, and got ~ 8 gal./hour evap rate using forced AUF. One way to make the warmer weather and the winter months pass slowly!
A few pics:
shack-1.jpgshack-2.jpgshack-3.jpgshack-4.jpg
Hey all...
I live in Bruno MN which is about 30 miles south of Duluth. This is my 1st year with 36 taps and a 55 gal evaporator. Ended up with 5 1/2 gal of syrup and it was so much fun. I have already ordered a 2x4 XL from Mason and increased my taps to 80. I have 120 acres about 3.5 miles from home that has about 100 red maples. Building a shack this summer next to my cabin. I knew this would be a contagious hobby!!
Hello everyone,
Figured I'd throw out my intro post now. Just starting up with our first year on the new property making syrup. 320 taps on 3/16" gravity with plans to expand to 600 for next year. Boiled on a homemade 2x6 this year and moving up to a from scratch 2x8 evaporator and a small 2 post RO. Love the site, always something to learn from.
Other than that we raise pigs, chickens, (meat and layers) and sheep on the farm. The animals were probably more popular than the maple syrup during Maine Maple Sunday!
Road's End Farm - Starting small with no end in sight!
hello all, I am in Minnesota, south of the metro area, last year was the first year that i collected and cooked sap, and now i am addicted. i used a pan that my father in law had made years ago, it is not really designed well, but it worked. i use propane to cook it down, and even though it took forever, i.e. was a blast. i have since fabricated a new pan, need to make the stand for it, but i have a few months yet to go.
we have chickens, and horses on the property as well, a nice creek running through the property as well, nice little place to call home.
Hello from Middletown, Ohio
I'm a 37 year old special education teacher. My family recently built a house on 20 acres of mostly wooded land. This summer I started making ATV paths in my woods when I discovered all that I have a decent amount of sugar maple trees (probably close to 100 sugar maple or so trees I could tap). I started to do a little research, read a couple of books, looked at all the incredible information everyone has shared on this forum, and now I'm heading into my rookie year of hopefully making some maple syrup. I have a 5 year old and many students excited to eat maple syrup from our trees. I would like try to work with the cooking teacher at my school to see if they would be interested in learning about it (Maybe after year one or two.....). It would be a great learning experience. I'm unsure how many trees I should tap my first season. I have read about some do-it-yourself RO systems and I have a couple of 55 gallon barrels I can use for an evaporator. Probably going to use a combination of one gallon recycled milk jugs, 5 gallon buckets, and some traditional bucks for the experience and to show off to friends and family. I'm really excited about this experience and any help or guidance from the veterans is much appreciate in advance.
Welcome, be prepared to come down with a case of maple fever in the spring. 100 taps is manageable on a homemade barrel set up as long as you can keep up with the buckets. I wouldn't worry about an RO at this point. First see how you like it and how much spare time you have. Thats a great idea to team up with a home ec teacher. Many recipes out there. Try making some maple sugar that you can use in several other items. Good luck
Thanks! Haha Yes, right after I get over buck fever! I stared my barrel this weekend. I'm hoping I'm going to be somewhat prepared. We'll see! Thanks for your reply!
What is the topography like on your land? If you have enough elevation changes from point A to point B you can use 3/16 tubing. To be of much help you need at least 15' of drop, to get best results you need 30+ feet. With 3/16 tubing you can get free vacuum by using gravity, it runs for free and never needs repair or fuel. Read up on some 3/16 studies to find out if you can make use of it.
By the way, welcome aboard, glad to have you here.
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.
The topography of the land is perfect for a gravity tubing network. Most of the land it on a huge plateau that is about 100' above my flat land and has a ravine that runs right through the middle of it and funnels into my backyard. I have thought about, but unsure of how to run the lines and the clean up part of of it. I have put most of my research and prep into my evaporator and the process. I'm just hesitate to "go all in" on my rookie year. How hard is it to do? I have around 130-40 trees marked for tapping many that can have 2 to 3 taps. How cost effective is it rather than 5 gallon buckets and milk jugs? Is there every a problem with deer running into them or squirrels chewing into the lines? Thanks I'm glad I happy to be here and glad to have found this sight with so many people willing to help. I'm so excited for sap season and my wife thinks I'm crazy! lol Thanks for the comment!
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