The Official 2008 Maple Syrup Thread.

[MELOC]

Originally Posted by michiganfarmer

IM going to start spending weekends in the woods fixing tubing.

I want to buy an R.O. this year.

R.O. ?

[michiganfarmer]

Originally Posted by MELOC

R.O. ?

IM sorry.

Reverse osmosis.

Ive talked about it enough times, I sometimes forget there are people who dontknow what it is.

Sugar molecules are larger than water molecules. An RO uses pressure to force the water from the sap through a filter element that has microscopic holes in it. The water is forced through, and dumped. The sugar is held back, and concentrated.

If you run 40 gallons of 2% sap through an Ro you will get approxamately 12 gallons of concentrate. Instead of boiling 40 gallons, now you only have to boil 12.

They arent cheap though. New ones range in price from $7000 for a 50 gallon per hour RO, to $30,000 for a 600 galon per hour machine.

Im going to buy a used one. I have heard there are used 400 GPH ROs around here for around $4000

[michiganfarmer]

I dont want anyone thinking Im showing off.

I started out with a dozen buckets, and my grandfathers flat pan. I just loved doing it so much that i have expanded.

[MELOC]

ok, thanks for explaining the acronym, lol. i know about reverse osmosis, i just didn't put the pieces together.

i wonder how practical it would be to allow the sap to freeze at night while in storage and process the concentrated sap leaving the ice behind? maybe groups of those open, metal collection tubs would be good for that.

[Up North Louie]

You can pour off the liquid and leave the ice behind. The Natives did that. You don't lose enough to worry about. If you're using bags, it's best to pull the hanger apart and get the ice out. Makes holes if you don't.

Our bags that make it through the season without being punctured get washed with a mild soap solution, rinsed in a 2% bleach solution, and finally rinsed again in clear water. We hang them on the clothesline and prop them open to dry, and store them flat. Used to be, we got really good laminate bags, some of which are still going, but haven't seen those in years.

I didn't know you could process syrup with RO. But thinking about it, I guess that is a fine idea. I can't afford one-- we still cut wood.

Don

[ericjeeper]

I gathered about 14 gallons today and set up my pan . I got real fancy... LOL I used 8 8' concrete blocks and lined the sides with some old galvanized tin. Then got real fancy and used some old six inch flue pipe from my old boiler.. so no smoke in our faces,..
I ended up with exactly one quart of syrup today. I brought it in and finished it off on the stove.. Next time I am going to reduce it just a little bit further out over the free fire. Instead of the payfer propane.

[michiganfarmer]

Originally Posted by Up North Louie

You can pour off the liquid and leave the ice behind. The Natives did that. You don't lose enough to worry about. If you're using bags, it's best to pull the hanger apart and get the ice out. Makes holes if you don't.

Our bags that make it through the season without being punctured get washed with a mild soap solution, rinsed in a 2% bleach solution, and finally rinsed again in clear water. We hang them on the clothesline and prop them open to dry, and store them flat. Used to be, we got really good laminate bags, some of which are still going, but haven't seen those in years.

I didn't know you could process syrup with RO. But thinking about it, I guess that is a fine idea. I can't afford one-- we still cut wood.

Don

removing the ice removes water that would otherwise have to be boiled off. WHen I have buckets, I do the same thing, and it can increase the sugar from 2% up to 3%.

[MELOC]

well, bascom maple sent my gear and it all arrived today. i have 800 ft. of 1/2 mailine and 800 ft. of 5/16 tubing to install on what should be about 80 taps...give or take. it is a lot of tubing for so few trees, but my sugarbush is not very dense and i have a long run to get to where i will be cooking. i really didn't want to run buckets and jugs 200 yards down the hill this year. the downhill ain't so bad, but climbing back gets to ya after carrying buckets of sap. my goal is to use a 55 gallon plastic drum for collection and tube that directly to my evap setup. the pan holds 29 gallons and i should get about 50 gallons of collection from the drum on it's side.

i also splurged on a seemless wool felt cone fiter. i didn't buy the tank for it, but i should be able to use it with a large stock pot i have. that should really help with the nitre. i should pass on this tip while i ramble about filtration...i filtered the sap after boiling but before finishing inside. i used a clean cotton t-shirt. i think it really helped by removing a lot of the nitre before the sap became syrup. it filtered a lot easier and i think this method may help to preserve my new filter as well.

[Happy7Farm]

We never did get to boil last night, circumstances beyond our control detained me and I didn't feel like being up until 2:00am. We started to boil this morning at 6:30 and boiled 30 + gallons and ended up with about 3/4 of a gallon. We still have about 20 gallons to boil. I am hoping to set up another evaporator so we can cut our time in half.

[ericjeeper]

it was 55 at supper time. Now it is 13 at 10:18 pm. and windy oh my...

[Up North Louie]

That's the best. Cold nights and warm days is what makes the sap run. You should be hootin' and hollerin' and giving thanks

Don

[ericjeeper]

Originally Posted by Up North Louie

That's the best. Cold nights and warm days is what makes the sap run. You should be hootin' and hollerin' and giving thanks

Don

But cold nights and cold days the sap won't flow.

[Sharon]

I did my first batch ever. It wasn't a lot; I got about 4 ounces after boiling it down. Being it was such a small amount I cooked it down on our wood cook stove and finished it off on our electric stove. I'm in S. Central VA and was quite happy it worked. Only have 1 spout; expecting more in the mail in the next day or two. Hopefully it isn't getting too warm here to continue; if so, I'll be ready next year. I just wanted to see if I could do it. Still trying to find out info on tapping tulip poplars; we have lots of them, but not too many maples. If anyone has any info on tapping poplars vs. using bark, I'd sure appreciate your input. Thanks. I've enjoyed all the pictures; very inspiring!

[michiganfarmer]

Originally Posted by Sharon

We live a bit south for tapping trees, but are giving it a try just for fun. Tapped a red maple today, as that is what we have. This is the first time we've done this. Seems to be working so far. We have a lot of poplars and I know you can make poplar syrup, but does anyone know if you are supposed to tap a poplar or use the bark. All the info I can find on poplar syrup talks about using the bark. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks.

you can tap poplars, but they arte onlu about 1% sugar, and require 100 gallons of sap to make a gallon of syrup

[Sharon]

Thanks Michiganfarmer. Eegads 100 gallons--I have enough poplars, but that's a bit too labor intensive. Thanks for letting me know; I'll stick to our few red maples.

[Sparticle]

Originally Posted by stanb999

I'd plant 150.
50 for the deer.
50 for the storm.
50 to make syrup.
To make good runs the trees will need to be 40 or so years old. I hope your a young man.

well wish i had seen that before i ordered the sugar maple trees. Guess someone else will get use out of them.

[shellyr44]

I don't have access or can afford the little plastic bottles for our syrup. What my question is, can you successfully can the syrup? Before I put all the canning jars full of syrup in the freezer, but now we have a much smaller freezer and not alot of room. We only tap for our own use so fancy containers are not an issue. I just want to do it right.

[MELOC]

i have been using canning jars for syrup since i started making it two years ago. they work great. you just have to take a few things into consideration and maybe make some concessions.

the only thing you need to do is to pack the syrup while it is hot...180 F +. tip the jar upside down for a second to heat the lid, then wait for it to seal like anything else. just be dang sure the lid is screwed on tight as hot syrup will scald you really good! i like to have my jars heated to @ 200 F in the oven.

that sounds easy enough...until you consider the fact that the syrup needs filtered. when i first started, i tried really hard to filter and pack the syrup into jars right out of the pan when it was ready. i filtered with a small kitchen sieve and cotton cloth and/or felt. i would have that supported over a funnel right above the jar. the filter was not big enough to accomodate all of the syrup before it cooled. i ended up with sediment too.

making a long story short, i decided to let the syrup settle in quart jars and then open them, syphon the clear syrup off the top, reheat the syrup and repack it. so maybe a good option is to put the entire days run into a gallon (or several) jars, allow the sediment to settle and repack it at a later date. just be sure the larger vessel is sealed so the syrup stays fresh until you repack it.

[michiganfarmer]

Originally Posted by shellyr44

I don't have access or can afford the little plastic bottles for our syrup. What my question is, can you successfully can the syrup? Before I put all the canning jars full of syrup in the freezer, but now we have a much smaller freezer and not alot of room. We only tap for our own use so fancy containers are not an issue. I just want to do it right.

you can can it in anything that wil seal

[Up North Louie]

Depending upon how much you're trying to store, if it's a gallon or less, just keep it in the fridge. Syrup is invert sugar; if there's a little mold that forms, just skim it off, bring the syrup to a boil and put it back in a clean jar. In theory, you could leave it on the shelf, like glucose, and just do that every time.

I don't, though.

Don