Maple Season 2011
02-13-2011, 08:20 AM
Just a bit behind...did
some furry friend repairs yesterday, but kids and "sports saturdays"
makes it hard to get things done.
I will need all of this
afternoon for more repairs and need to clean tanks.
Can't tap until Monday or
Tuesday due to work schedule, but hopefully still in time for the
big run mid week.
Work schedule got me this
year...was supposed to be tapped yesterday, but now a day and a half
behind. Squirrels have been brutal this year.
Need to do more repairs
this AM, then start tapping after lunch. Dad is coming up, so we'll
have two crews. My kids love helping, so dad and I will have one
helper each.
Hope to be tapped by tomorrow, but we'll see.
460 +/- taps in as of 9
pm. Dad and Abby did 200, and Andrew and myself the other 260 (but
we didn't start till 4:30 pm).
The kids were helping all
day...so sleeping should be good tonight!!!
I'm still letting the
lines run to clear them out, then shutting the valves around 10 pm
and turning the vacuum back on.
Had my large vacuum
release valve on the releaser stick today after sitting for a year.
Hope to not have more problems.
Lots of chews and damage
to fix. The wind storms have taken their toll.
I’m wondering a bit about
the long range forecast. Hope I didn't tap too early.
Got home from a church
meeting and the tanks were running over. I have about 800 gallons
from the last 24 hours. Would have had a bit more, but didn't start
vacuum till this morning. I
spent 13 hours in the woods yesterday and had to get some sleep.
Got through 300 gallons
this evening after getting the evaporator cleaned. Still 1,000 gal
to go tomorrow.
Running at 1.5% as well.
Probably less by the time the little grubbies get done with the sap
at 55 degrees today. Oh well.
Vacuum pump ran for 36 hours. Oil temp stays around 120 degrees with the cooler. Used about 12 oz of oil...have to get a better reclaimer.
Unfortunately, after all
the pushing in the winter, I still don't have my new pan on the
rig...had to quit and start tapping this week.
Giving it up till next season.
Amazingly, I fired up the vacuum today and sucked up another 150 gallons. I am just shy of 1,500 gallons so far this year. I was running 25" at the releaser, so I was very happy with that.
Sap is at 1.5%. The lowest
I've ever seen is 1.6, and when I wrote that on the board of my
sugar house from 2008, I put a frowny face beside it!
My 1.5% sap made about 5 gallons of light/medium, then about 7 more gallons of medium. The super sweet I drew off looks like dark amber.
This early in the season,
since I'm still one of those rebels with cheap black mainline, my
mainlines thaw quick…but not the trees I guess. I had my vacuum
running for about one hour today...and had about 1 gallon of sap to
show for it....shut er down and will wait on better weather!
Wood pile has a
significant dent...and only about 20 gallons of syrup to show for
it. yeaow...
Not sure about the
forecast...might not be good for next week.
Only hit 37 degrees today
after about 15 degrees last night.
Still got about 100
gallons of sap, mainly between 3 and 6 pm.
If tonight does not get too cold, the rain and 40 degrees could allow somewhat of a run tomorrow.
Well, it's like a never
ending walk in the woods with tubing and vacuum. I discovered a line
off yesterday and a weird vacuum block...must have been ice, but it
kept the vacuum from getting upstream.
Boiled off 300 gallons
from the last two days. Sugar is up to 1.8%...making Dark Amber at
this point. You can tell by the smell of the steam that the trees
saw a nice warm up. Oh well, getting low temps tonight.
Looks like a really nice
run all night Sunday and into Monday.
I'm about
20% "soft" maples, and I watch them like a hawk. I pull and cap them towards the
end of the season.
Yes, the run has begun. I
boiled the 400 gallons that I had by 5 pm today. Since then, I have
around 250 gallons more (need to get sleeping and not checking
tanks)
Pump will be running all
night. It can go about 4 hours without needing a touch of oil.
Speaking of checking tanks...I was on my way to observe my closest 4 star ladder tonight when my releaser went off. With high vacuum this year, that 1" vacuum dump solenoid made me jump, and I was 50 yards away!!!! Too bad this isn't the fall when the bucks are in rut...I might have some antler holes in my tanks!
Wow, so much for the maple “snow” in February. Flood city after all the rain. Can’t imagine having buckets!!! (pics)
Ran about 800 gallons so
far today. Total for the year is 3500 gallons. Still running at a
normal 1.7%. I've gotten used to it over the years having swamp
trees.
Fortunately, the flood,
the water has receeded! LOL...canoe
for collecting, that would be a photo opportunity.
Well, another 1000 gal
collected today. West, south, north...east....at 26" of vacuum at
the releaser, it doesn't seem to much matter which way the wind
blows.
The only problem is that I will probably run out of seasoned, dry wood this week if we get good sap weather. Figure I have enough to clear 7,000 gallons of sap. Oh well...I will be ready for it to end.
Well, no warped pan for me (yet)...but have two mishaphs to fess up.
1. Two nights ago, I was
adjusting the position of my releaser on the top of my tanks and
unknowingly loosened the connection between my top and bottom
releaser tank. Basically what that does is make it a one tank system
with no chance of dumping vacuum. So....next MORNING...I discovered
the moisture trap full and ball blocking the vacuum and almost no
sap in the tanks. Yup...missed vacuum on the tubing all night.
Fortunately, the moisture trap saved my vacuum pump from sucking in
water all night and making junk out of it.
2. Starting the fire and
getting things going this evening and did the unpardonable....doing
one too many things in the sugarhouse. The one too many was starting
a bucket of syrup filling from my canner tank. Forgot about it and
found, to my horror, about 5 gallons of medium amber syrup making
it's way from my over full bucket to the floor and drifting slowly
to the back door of the sugarhouse. Quickly shut the valve and got
the hot water hose...crying as I rinsed all that out the back. I
would have got the shop vac, but all you folks would have turned me
in! ;-)
Up to 55 gallons of syrup
plus what's in the evaporator and sweet. I think I'm running about a
65 gallon ratio this year :-(
03-07-2011, 08:43 PM
Well, got 2/3 of a cord of tinder dry wood
tonight.
The man who got me into
sugaring has since gone on to be with the Lord (died of lymphoma),
but his wife remarried and volunteered wood if I needed it. It has
been split and in a dry shed for probably 8 years.
Just picked it up
tonight...packed the trailer and got it kind of stuck in the
yard...so we'll have to do some wheel barrowing to the sugarhouse.
There is probably 2 more cords there left, but the yard is getting soft, so may not be able to get more.
Got another 1,000 gal today@1.6 percent. Releaser is still dumping every 10 min. I'm over 5,000 for the year, and I'm pooped.
Got just over 200 gal
boiled tonight. Just too beat to get out there and stay up late.
I have around 1000 gal in
the tanks left to boil. I think after that I'm done for the season.
Trees only running 1.4 to 1.5 percent. I'll be at 6200 gallons
total.
Weather looks like another good run or two next week then no freeze for a while. Usually, I'm scrambling and loose a run or two at the beginning of the season. This year, I'll be missing the last two.
Ya know...I would have
been ok with ending this season WITHOUT burning my pan.
Got talking to dad and forgot to remove the
plug. ARGH.
The pan is soaking in acid for the night...at least it was the puckered one that I burnt the last time.
Well, I'm not sure I'm
getting less % on vacuum. My trees are 2 percent or less, even on
gravity tubing. I have kept track for several years. Small crowns
and great access to water seem to be the key.
Also, I've ready that high
percent sugar can mean the tree is stressed.
Anyway, last year had disaster written for folks without vacuum. For me, vacuum has many benefits, including helping collect for those of us who can't spend the time collecting or pumping sap. My sap is pulled from everywhere, uphill or whatever, to my central collection tanks.
I was over getting wood
yesterday at a friend’s and while we were talking noticed the buds
popped on several silver maples in the yard.
My tally is 6125 gallons
for the year. My last boil is this evening. Too many meetings and
work this week and the wood pile is short. The weather will be too
warm for sap to keep 4 days until I can boil next.
Last sap collected was 1.4 percent. A short season...not even a month long!
ha ha...well, I said I was
done...but I got a little too close to the evaporator today and
accidentially lit a fire! LOL
I had 220 gallons of nasty
sap at 1.2+ percent sitting in the woods, so pumped it up to the
head tank and boiled.
It smells between buddy
and yeast...unless we were in for commercial, our season is done
according to the trees. I'm sure the mountains and latitude make a
big difference for those who would still be boiling.
I will use this batch for
Vinegar (should make about 20 gallons)...that is my next market
ploy. We have about 3 gallons that is just getting done from last
year, some of which was aged in a small oak barrel. It is excellent
stuff...makes great marinade and dressing. Awesome on fries if that
is your fancy (which it is mine).
The vinegar will combine
well with some fresh garden veggies. We are planning some nice glass
bottles to combine the vinegar and vegetables to sell.