January Journal

[waysidemaple]

Got home from school tonight and decided it was time to bite the bullet. Filled the head tank with water and started the new evap. Spent 4 hours watching water boil and it was so much fun. New sap pump worked great as well to fill the head tank. Only problem I ran into was a leaking preheater, Ill just take that out for this year and mess with it this summer. To much left to do to tinker with that. It did just fine without it tonight. Im so excited to get tapping now and draw off my first syrup on it.

[PATheron]

Wayside- We should be in the sugarhouse most of the day tomarrow. Were thinking may be firing up the evaperator around lunch time maybe. Tomarrows the big day, Operation Mushroom Cloud. Then next week Im putting out releasers and its go time. Then its going to be "operation destroy Brians Averages". Theron

[Monster Maples]

Were thinking may be firing up the evaperator around lunch time maybe. Tomarrows the big day, Operation Mushroom Cloud. Theron

Good information to know. I will keep my eye to the sky in that direction. I will throw the wife in the bomb shelter around 11 or so to be safe, wait, the closest thing to a bomb shelter I have is the septic tank! Oh well. Maybe she will come out smellin like a rose

[waysidemaple]

Theron. Sounds good to me I'm going to work in the sugar house in the morning and shoot for stopping in over your way early afternoonish. Can't wait to see the reactor.

[maple flats]

Got home from school tonight and decided it was time to bite the bullet. Filled the head tank with water and started the new evap. Spent 4 hours watching water boil and it was so much fun. New sap pump worked great as well to fill the head tank. Only problem I ran into was a leaking preheater, Ill just take that out for this year and mess with it this summer. To much left to do to tinker with that. It did just fine without it tonight. Im so excited to get tapping now and draw off my first syrup on it.

Are you sure it was leaking? They sweat like crazy once you have steam. Was it a leak or just condensation?

[maple flats]

Heading into the bush again, about 8:00 am. The mad rush is on. Still trying to be ready to tap 3 weeks from today. Lots left to do, still adding laterals, need to build 2 sap ladders, make a motor mount for gas engine on vac pump, plumb tank, reclean tanks and evaporator, get truck checked at mechanics for any issues, etc., etc., etc. I better get going NOW!

[waysidemaple]

Yeah I'm sure it was leaking. Water was coming out of it as I filled the pans.

[twobears1224]

i,ve been in my little woods stringing wire for mains..i,am half done.i also started setting up my main storage tank at the sugarhouse.i hope to finish the wire tomorrow and start putting up tubing to the trees.

delbert

[Dennis H.]

I finally got the chance to scrub down the evap. I picked up some brushes at Lowes yesterday and turn them into a flue pan brush.
I found some long skinny brushes that you would use for cleaning the grills under your frig. They are about 18" long. So I bent them into a triangle shape and went to town on the evap. worked good for only $3.50

I also found a brush there that had a nice wood handle on it that I think will work good for getting the under side of the flue pan.

Besides that I started to work on my TAXES! Oh yeah!
Trying to get them finished because it looks like I may be tapping down here with in a week no more than 2 weeks.

So it is "Go Baby Go" time..

[maple flats]

I was setting level on a new branch line while adding side ties and then I added about 40 new taps on new laterals, that section is very steep, like 45-55% incline, wears on these old legs with all the snow, too steep for snowshoes but toomuch snow without. After that I was reworking a section where the new branch line was run to reduce the tap/line. I will finish that tomorrow and then hope to do my sap ladders.