25 overnight. Sunny and up to 42 today. While the trees were dripping, it was not a big run. That’s unusual. Could mean we are getting toward the end already. We will see what happens tomorrow when we collect. Upper 20s tonight and 40’s tomorrow. But rain is forecast for the afternoon. Longer range, next week it gets colder again.
Boiling sap with the evaporator is a well choreographed dance. You have to get into a rhythm to push the sap through. Bring in wood. Saw or split if necessary. Fire (add wood to the fire.) Check the sap level in the pans. Adjust the flow if necessary. Watch the boil. When it starts to loose its intensity, open the damper fully to allow more air flow. In between, bring in more wood because the fire is always hungry. When the boil looses its intensity the second time, fire again. Repeat until the tanks are empty. In between all of this we have to skim the foam when needed from the evaporator. And check the levels in the tanks. Sometimes we have to pump out a tank too which involves setting up the pump then breaking it down when finished.
You can tell from bubbles in the boil when a batch of syrup is getting close to done. The bubbles are small and golden in color. Then we monitor with the hydrometer. It comes off the evaporator at 29. (Finished syrup is 32.) We have to monitor the fire and sap levels closely when a batch is almost ready. Don’t want the fire too hot, yet we can’t let it die down completely. And the sap level in the big pan has to increase so there is enough to replenish the syrup pan after drawing off.
The draw off is very will rehearsed. Use the fire gloves to take out the siphon out. Its filled with hot sap and you will burn your hands unless using the fire gloves. The fire gloves are then set on a near by chair. The gloves need to be handy and positioned so we can grab them as we walk past to replace the siphon. The milk can goes under the valve on the syrup pan. Before opening the values, close the damper completely to keep the fire intensity down. Also stir the syrup in the pan to bleed off excess heat. When the valve is opened, keep stirring the syrup in the pan to keep a liquid layer on the pan bottom so it does not burn. When the flow from the valve gets low, reach for the brick on a ledge on the wall. Pick up the pan on the side opposite the valve and place the brick under it so it tilts toward the value. While doing this maneuver you have to move fast because you have stopped stirring and a portion of the pan will lack liquid and could burn if not covered quickly with liquid. As the pan empties into the milk can you have to increase stirring. You have less and less liquid to keep the pan covered. At some point you can no longer keep the pan covered with liquid because its just been emptied. Then you reach over with the scoop to add sap to the pan. Two scoops then close the valve. Four or five more scoops then take out the brick to level the pan. The brick goes back on the ledge on the wall so you know where it is next time. Now move the milk can away from valve and replace its cover. Change gloves. Regular gloves off, then pick up the fire gloves (positioned on the nearby chair earlier) as we walk around the smoke stack to the other side of the evaporator to replace the siphon. Back to the front of the evaporator so we can fire again. The fire has gone down and needs more wood to get the intense boils back. Open the damper. Then its back to the regular fire, watch and monitor cycle.
You have to be agile, mobile and have stamina because you do this for 8, 10, 12, or 14 hours at a time when boiling.
