OT Maple Taps

[Keychain]

First timer here! I put out 15 taps Sunday afternoon and collected 15 gallons of sap Monday. I think that is good.

Welcome to the addiction! Put my first 20 buckets out Sunday as well and had almost 8 gals last night.  Forecast for the next 10 days looks pretty sappy!

[fmm1991]

So sap has reduced dramatically. Is this due to warm overnight temps?

[gamefisher]

So sap has reduced dramatically. Is this due to warm overnight temps?

Yes, ideally you would like in the order of 25 at night 45 in day, raw winds can be a factor also.  I'm near you, don't believe it got to freezing last night.  Hang tight, you'll get it when Mother Nature wants you to have it.

[fmm1991]

Thanks. I am just anxious to boil. I guess I will do a small boil this weekend to test out the new evaporator.

[gamefisher]

Thanks. I am just anxious to boil. I guess I will do a small boil this weekend to test out the new evaporator.

Don't blame you, boughten or homemade?

[dvn4flags]

First post of the season for me, with both boys playing hockey I spend all my time in rinks these days, only got on the ice three times this season.  Just discovered that my new Wi-Fi reaches the sugar shack, wohoo!!  Finishing up first batch of the season tonight.

[fmm1991]

Well it is homemade and I bought it. Got it from a kid that built in a high school program.

[Keychain]

First batch of the season.  Not as good a haul as I expected but for me the sap pretty much shut down on Tuesday.

[Raquettedacker]

Very nice.  I didnt do any this year and sure miss the smell....

[gamefisher]

I brought a small batch to 219 this afternoon, still have to check density, filter, and bottle.  Going to stockpile my small batches and do it all at once because filtering is the part that sucks!   Looks nice and light however.

Keychain- did you get the taps in right this year?

[Keychain]

I brought a small batch to 219 this afternoon, still have to check density, filter, and bottle.  Going to stockpile my small batches and do it all at once because filtering is the part that sucks!   Looks nice and light however.

Keychain- did you get the taps in right this year?

Affirmative!  They have been properly installed this year.  But if my yield is lower I’m going to claim the “wrong” way works better...

[fmm1991]

My first boil

[fmm1991]

The evaporator! Need to boil another 70 gallons this weekend!

[Keychain]

Pretty good haul for your first batch and it sounds like you've got plenty more to go.  I was really hoping this snowstorm would shut things down for a few days so I could get caught up, but I'm sitting on 50 gallons right now and it just keeps coming.  I grew up in Winslow so it's nice to see a "neighbor" joining in the fun...

[fmm1991]

I have a similar problem. I have no storage containers left. Supposed to stay cold for a few days hopefully that will slow it down.

[gamefisher]

Good job fmm, see if you can scrounge up one more length of stove pipe and some sort of cap, an old license plate or anything.  You could even take a big can and poke a nail hole in it for a sap drixxler into the pan.

[Keychain]

Did a “pre-boil” boil tonight on propane trying to get a head start on the 50+ gals that I need to boil tomorrow before I go collect another 20+ gallons sitting out in the woods.  The point of the pre-boil was so that I wouldn’t be finishing in the dark tomorrow night, but there I was tonight, in the dark.  Something just didn’t add up...

[Keychain]

Boil #2 done, just about a cup shy of 12 pints.  Now once again really hoping for a few days of cold to shut things down for a bit of a break...

[fmm1991]

Nice haul Keychain! I am boiling today assuming my sap isn’t solid state.

[Fish Wayniac]

Looking good all Sugar’s. You can get caught up on boiling now that its to cold for the sap to flow. I like this thread , I had many great memories doing the same growing up in Huntington VT.

[Keychain]

This one is primarily for gamefisher since he seems to enjoy my "exploits" with sapping/syrup.  Was sitting on about 60 gallons of sap with no time to boil in the past couple of weeks.  Finally made some time on Fri-Sat to get it done.  Did half of it on Friday afternoon and finished it up on Saturday.  I wanted to finish what I had left on Saturday in two batches to make it more manageable.  So I had two pots on propane just about ready to take inside to finish, filter and jar.  Turned off the burners and took one inside to finish.  With two quarts jarred, I headed back out to warm up the other pot and bring it in to finish.  This is what I saw.  Apparently I did NOT turn both burners off.  Looked like a gradeschool science experiment gone bad.  Lost a half gallon of syrup with that mistake, but hey, I ended up making 3.5 gallons this year, which is way more than we'll ever use anyway.  Live and learn, hopefully...

[gamefisher]

You always keep me entertained with your sapping adventures keychain!  We are hanging in there atleast through this week and have made the lightest syrup ever.

[Keychain]

You always keep me entertained with your sapping adventures keychain!  We are hanging in there atleast through this week and have made the lightest syrup ever.

Looks like good stuff!  I am done.  Buckets are still out but if anything is in them, it's getting dumped in the woods when I finally get around to pulling them.  I can't afford to keep buying new pots... 

[gamefisher]

Looks like good stuff!  I am done.  Buckets are still out but if anything is in them, it's getting dumped in the woods when I finally get around to pulling them.  I can't afford to keep buying new pots... 

Super sweet, super light this year.  You are not going to believe your buckets when you get home, today is the biggest run yet, 36 degrees and cloudy, makes no sense but not much of this crazy hobby does!   Stay the course this week, lots of sap on the way!

[Keychain]

Super sweet, super light this year.  You are not going to believe your buckets when you get home, today is the biggest run yet, 36 degrees and cloudy, makes no sense but not much of this crazy hobby does!   Stay the course this week, lots of sap on the way!

Yes, I will stay the course this week.  The course is, I'm done!  Anything that is in my buckets today will be hitting the forest floor at some point in the next few days.

[gamefisher]

Yes, I will stay the course this week.  The course is, I'm done!  Anything that is in my buckets today will be hitting the forest floor at some point in the next few days.

Quitter.

[Keychain]

Quitter.

Normally I would not classify myself as a quitter.  But in this case, you are dead right.  I'm done for the year... 

[gamefisher]

Normally I would not classify myself as a quitter.  But in this case, you are dead right.  I'm done for the year... 

Ya, just teasing, I don't blame you, I am an hour north of you and have noticed some trees in the neighborhood with their buds starting to swell.  I suspect another big run today in central Maine.

[SHaRPS]

A shot in the dark here -

I love all things home made and am wondering if anyone is willing to sell a jar so I can have pancakes with the youngster. Ill pay shipping. Not sure what the cost of a jar is but id even be willing to trade a jar of my backyard honey for some maple. Used to work with a lady and her parents lived in Vermont. Every time she would go up for Thanksgiving she would bring me back a jar, boy do I miss that! used the last 2 teaspoons of it to cook some bacon maple brussel sprouts months ago.

From early to late season honey the color is amazing.
 

[Keychain]

Hard to believe, but it might be time to give this thread a bump for 2019!  A friend of mine has already started tapping.  I hadn't even considered it yet, but it's probably time to start watching the 10-day forecast for temps...