Eastern Ontario 2023

[paulslund]

Thanks Bruce, Yeah that was my main concern, even though the corners of my pans are rounded. BTW you still have yet to taste all my award-winning syrup!


Bricklayer, yeah I guessed that anything CDL sells is just rebranded Parlour Brite. Do you get yours from the Co-op in Spencerville? Down near the HH? Do they sell it only in 5g containers?

Hey Susan. What I do to clean my pan is just pour in vinegar and water (about 25% vinegar/75 water) and let it sit for a few days (even a few hours does wonders).. seems to clean everything off.. if very stubborn I increase the vinegar content, and get it hot when you pour in (doesn't matter if it cools off over the day.. although you could actually boil it in the pan too.. that's supposed to be even more efficient at cleaning a pan).

Paul.

[Galena]

Hey Susan. What I do to clean my pan is just pour in vinegar and water (about 25% vinegar/75 water) and let it sit for a few days (even a few hours does wonders).. seems to clean everything off.. if very stubborn I increase the vinegar content, and get it hot when you pour in (doesn't matter if it cools off over the day.. although you could actually boil it in the pan too.. that's supposed to be even more efficient at cleaning a pan).

Paul.

Thanks Paul, I have heard of that and tried it in the past with mixed results. Not with my sugaring pans though. Do you use regular white vinegar or the so-called 'cleaning' vinegar? And what ratio do you use? Thanks!

[ir3333]

I also clean with a 25/75 solution using regular white vinegar. I bring it to a boil and the scale just lifts off the stainless pans. I drain it
and store it until next year. For the bottom i leave them outside upside down through a few frost and rain cycles. When the hot sun finally
hits the bottom the black just lifts / flakes off after a few weeks.

[Galena]

I also clean with a 25/75 solution using regular white vinegar. I bring it to a boil and the scale just lifts off the stainless pans. I drain it
and store it until next year. For the bottom i leave them outside upside down through a few frost and rain cycles. When the hot sun finally
hits the bottom the black just lifts / flakes off after a few weeks.

Thanks much, the good ol water and vinegar solution much more affordable than that Parlor Brite :-) I love that people help each other out so much on this site!

[Lanark]

I also use regular vinegar in my flat pan for cleaning between boils. Once I take the almost syrup off I put about 15 gallons of clean water in with a 4 litre jug of vinegar scrub down the sides while it's still cool then walk away. What's left in the firebox reheats the water and vinegar and by morning all the pan needs is a quick scrub, empty the pan wipe it dry and refill with fresh sap.

[Galena]

Colour graded my first 2 batches today. 56 (Amber( and 40 (Dark) respectively. Batch #3 is underway.

[paulslund]

Thanks Paul, I have heard of that and tried it in the past with mixed results. Not with my sugaring pans though. Do you use regular white vinegar or the so-called 'cleaning' vinegar? And what ratio do you use? Thanks!

Sorry Susan I missed your response.. Yes I just use regular white vinegar like others have posted. Heating it up is supposed to be especially effective, but by the time I clean mine there is no heat left to do that with. So a good soak is usually enough to get it clean enough for boil.

[paulslund]

Uh oh.. this week is looking good but next week could shut things down pretty quickly at my end, especially if those temps rise a bit more...

2023-03-28 08_08_05-North Gower, Ontario 14 Day Weather Forecast - The Weather Network .jpg

[4Walls]

I use vinegar too to clean my pans but with a twist.. I make my own maple vinegar. We call it maple cider vinegar. Almost identical to apple cider vinegar but the good stuff. I don't pasteurize it so it is a live vinegar.
I make about 20 gallons a year. Keep 5 for cooking and pickles and salad dressing. Anywhere you want to have a unique vinegar. Its really really good.
What I do is use my late late season syrup. The stuff that tastes a bit like molasses. Draw it off when it is hot and about 15% sugar content. That will make a product that is about 8% abv. From there I let it cool and toss in some activated bread yeast and let it ferment. Once it is done fermenting I add a "mother" from a live apple cider vinegar. Or just dump some non pasteurized live cider vinegar into it and let it go. The secondary process converts the alcohol to vinegar.
I wind up with 20 gallons of amazingly flavourful maple cider vinegar. The final product is about 6% acetic acid. Ideal for pickling. I give bottles of it away. I add about 50ml or mid season syrup to a 500ml bottle of vinegar. It is a crowd favourite. Keep 5 gallons for myself and use the rest to clean pans. Cost pennies.

[Galena]

I use vinegar too to clean my pans but with a twist.. I make my own maple vinegar. We call it maple cider vinegar. Almost identical to apple cider vinegar but the good stuff. I don't pasteurize it so it is a live vinegar.
I make about 20 gallons a year. Keep 5 for cooking and pickles and salad dressing. Anywhere you want to have a unique vinegar. Its really really good.
What I do is use my late late season syrup. The stuff that tastes a bit like molasses. Draw it off when it is hot and about 15% sugar content. That will make a product that is about 8% abv. From there I let it cool and toss in some activated bread yeast and let it ferment. Once it is done fermenting I add a "mother" from a live apple cider vinegar. Or just dump some non pasteurized live cider vinegar into it and let it go. The secondary process converts the alcohol to vinegar.
I wind up with 20 gallons of amazingly flavourful maple cider vinegar. The final product is about 6% acetic acid. Ideal for pickling. I give bottles of it away. I add about 50ml or mid season syrup to a 500ml bottle of vinegar. It is a crowd favourite. Keep 5 gallons for myself and use the rest to clean pans. Cost pennies.

Oh wow! That sounds like an awesome idea! If I do get a late season batch it usually is pretty small. Often I get 5 batches for sure, 6 if I'm very lucky. Sadly my dark is really popular as syrup. Still I can try to set a litre or so aside and give it a try :-)