Category Archives Maple Syrup Production

I decided it was time to step up my reverse osmosis game and leave my home built version and get myself a professionally built, but still hobby, maple sap RO. I still have my personal version and it works great, but just too slow... I need to run it overnight most of the time and when I do, sometimes the pump will run dry. I'm pretty sure I ruined last seasons pump. I haven't tested it, but I recall it not working very well at the end of the season (if at all). This version will still get my sap up to 8 brix but at a blazing 50 gallons per hour versus my 50 gallons per day! I picked…

First and foremost I kept horrible track of everything this year. Was an odd year to say the least. While the sap is still running for some, I ended up pulling my taps due to the 0.5 sugar content coming out. Even with my Reverse Osmosis, that's not enough for me to keep going. So I called it. Pulled the taps, cleaned the gear - even had a neighbor want to keep going so he borrowed my pan and burner. So timing was perfect for him! Overall made ~ 7 gallons of finished product which is on par for what I normally do. I was hoping to get over 10 gallons this year and if I kept going I would…

Winter decided it wasn't over and a cold snap came back through issuing a cease and desist on all sap running for a time. It was nice to have the reprieve as work has kept me busy and the wife was out of town for a work conference. I did get another 35 gallons (only at 1% sugar content) which I ran through the RO to get it ~ 5% I hopped into Ghetto Sap House Version 3.0 ( 2.0 crashed and burned ) and fired up the burner! Sap house 3.0 12 x 12 make shift sap house In the Finisher Somewhere along the line I decided that it was the perfect time and temperature to light up a…

I constructed my sugar shack - Hobby Sugar Shack version 3.0 with the help of a pop-up Coleman tent from Target and tarps for side paneling. It is amazing how much heat it helps retain and cutting down on the wind. Hobbiest Sugar ShackSap ready to boilNow with Aluminum Foil Upgrade! I never did get around to fully upgrading my two burner propane stove with an insulated table to drop it into. I have an idea and plans to make this much more efficient, but this prior year I found myself concentrating on other issues and this fell to the back burner. I was able to boil down 12 gallons of concentrate to get close to 1 gallon of finished…

I tapped the first three this year Feb 2, 2020. About two week earlier than last year. It's running too! The next day I went out and collect 32 gallons of sap from my 50 buckets. The 2020 Maple Syrup season has officially begun! Buckets hung, now need to add the lids I honestly forgot how much work it always is. Had to get out all my gear and despite cleaning it before putting it away, some looked as if they needed to be cleaned again. So I did. Had to order all the new filters that I needed for both the filtration and also my reverse osmosis setup. Then I had to run water through the reverse osmosis to…

Cheers to another poor, but a well produced season. While it may not be over yet, the 20 gallons of sap I pulled yesterday evening was only at 1% sugar. Two more days of sap run left and then nothing but warm weather both day and night forecast so the season will officially be over! I'm back to boiling outside. I will make a post on my ghetto sugar shack 2.0 and it's short lived life. Time to build a physical shack and build a container for my sap pan.