Making small batch maple syrup: second harvest + boil!

[@peterboroughpete4007]

that was hilarious and the sap looks good turning color., bet it will be great

[@simplewoodslife]

I think it will be, but who knows? Our biggest concern at the moment is volume, considering how little is flowing and how little we're getting. That said it's still early in the season, so I'm hoping spring catches up with whatever this is and we get our regular March of drippy drip. Thanks for watching!

[@CTHuntnFish]

Pure water freezes before water containing sugar, so when it’s partially frozen it essentially separates out the pure water. There will always be some sugar in the ice, but very little. I used to save all the ice until I melted some down, tested the difference with a sap hydrometer and did the math. if it’s frozen solid, let it thaw till it’s about half water, then chuck the ice.

[@simplewoodslife]

Thank you for the knowledge! Sure is a trip how nature and science can get so crazy! 🤪 In all honesty though, in the time it would take me to thaw half that pail I likely could've melted the ice in a pan and evaporated the water too 😂 weather this year has been nuts.

[@RedFowl9492]

Two 👍 folks had a good laugh a few times during that video. No matter how much ice or how ever many liters you get you guys are having fun and that to me is the best part about making syrup from start to finish, its family oriented.

[@simplewoodslife]

One hundred percent! I just love that she likes hanging out with me - I'm sure when I build a sugar shack down the way and there's a consistent warmth I'll see way more of her 🤣. We just keep reminding ourselves the operation is "small batch" heh... Mind you, I haven't stopped telling people about your haul last night. Our butcher was dutifully impressed when I threw those numbers at him. Less so when he asked what we pulled in... but "small batch" so. 😗🎵😂

[@RedFowl9492]

@@simplewoodslife ahh thanks theres still way bigger guys than me but they arent doing it on a barrel stove im through 1 55 gal drum as we speak and i have a little over half of the other one to go this cold weather has sped up the burn rate im not sure how but thank the Lord.

[@simplewoodslife]

Still impressive!! Do you have a blower or fan or anything on the fire? Sounds like you're getting a great boil.

[@RedFowl9492]

@@simplewoodslife no blower just the filler cap on the drum on the bottom might be a 3" hole that air draws naturally through and i keep the coals away from it so it draws good air and i have a damper on the chimney pipe.

[@simplewoodslife]

@@RedFowl9492 Have the same. Notice a few folks with blowers, but I've never had the need (or the volume to move) so far.

[@Mike-cc2eu]

Well good morning and thanks for the light side of maple season really love your videos and by the way I use all my sap even when it’s frozen 😮 have a great day

[@simplewoodslife]

Morning! Having a coffee and checking the online stuff before I head outside for boil #3. Glad to have you along Mike, appreciate all the thumbs up and comments and subs. Let's be honest here, as of the moment I don't have a sugar shack and I'm operating with a small number of trees, many of which are within a forest vs. super exposed to the sunny-goodness... so if I didn't find the light side of this nonsense it might drive me mad 😜😂 I'm with you on evaporating it all!!!!

[@JasonHall-w9b]

love the channel. Love the edits. Keep up the great work!

[@simplewoodslife]

Thanks so much, happy to hear you're digging the content! New video up 9:30 tonight, the third boil and some weather in the woods!

[@eltrippers]

Looks like a great fun day.

[@simplewoodslife]

It was indeed! Weather though - just bonkers. Speaking with another fella who's totally killing it this year (instagram.com/red_fowler_outdoors/) and he's around 2 1/2 to 3 hours from me, and his sap is flowing like gangbusters.. Tomorrow is supposed to warm up, so we'll see then!

[@NatureInspiredSnipsnSnaps]

😆enjoyed the video, glad you didn't use a bowling ball on the frozen bucket 😂, maple hugs remember, both of you enjoy the weekend.

[@simplewoodslife]

🎳🧊 Could you imagine!? A vendor bought me that skull and cross bones ball years back, it was a lovely excuse for off-site meetings with him (we became fast friends). I remember being at a really greasy bowling alley that chewed it up a touch in the return, made me sad lol, would definitely not be smashing frozen sap with it. Mind you when my wife saw the video and realized I was hitting it with an axe head, she probably would've preferred the bowling ball. 🤣🤣

[@NatureInspiredSnipsnSnaps]

🤣😂 I am glad you have a great sense of humour, cheers :)@@simplewoodslife

[@tedgrigg1417]

I have sort of a similar set up but with an insulated cinder block evaporator. Essentially like mine, your front tray is your warming tray. You rear tray is much hotter. I built a simple siphon and it regulates sap levels in both trays. This way I just add to the front tray and it siphons to the back tray automatically as the back tray evaporates. I tried to copy paste a photo but you can’t do that with KZbin comments. If you are interested in seeing a photo let me know how I can send it to you. It’s basically a u shape copper pipe.

[@simplewoodslife]

That sounds like a great setup. I'd built our first cinderblock evaporator in February, and while I did my best to melt the snow and level the base, she went wonky as all get out when the spring came and my plumb and level became leaning towers 😆Do like the idea of the copper pipe, have watched a few setups where it's pulling from a warmer tray situated way up high on a shelf, wraps around the stack a number of times before dripping into the tray (I suppose warming it a load on the way), but am intrigued by yours. If you want to send a photo, you can DM me on Instagram (instagram.com/simplewoodslife/) or email me at [e-mail] - thanks for touching base! 🍁

[@wallymacmillan5696]

Another awesome video Jason ,you are keeping up to your word on not letting me down.syrup is looking good,I'll be waiting for the next one,p.s. miss Lady is quite the bowler

[@simplewoodslife]

🤣 It's a slow go so far, but I'm hoping our volume shoots up a touch. Oh she's a helluva bowler, handed me my shirt that day, and it wasn't even polyester blend with cool retro diamonds on it 🎳 Next video should be out Friday - I'm trying to work out a schedule where we can get stuff up at a regular time and day.

[@YoungbloodFamilyFarm]

Great Video J, I especially love when I learn more Bushcraft tips! Also, really weird question, but what pants do you have, love some side pockets that aren’t carpenter jeans

[@simplewoodslife]

🤣🤣🤣 oh my tips are always on point lol. Those pants might be the cheapest work gear on the planet, but they're my second pair in 10 years... they seem to be relatively indestructible. They're a brand called Tradesmax Pro, just a simple cargo workpant and I picked them up at Giant Tiger here in Canada for something ridiculous like $28. Unsure the US equivalent but maybe you can check them out online? www.bit.ly/3UNoT56

[@thelongbranchhomestead1397]

Nice video Jay we're expecting 50 degree temperatures this coming week and I fear the trees may call it quits. I guess we'll see.

[@simplewoodslife]

Oh man I hope not... but nothing would surprise me this year. A few hours down the way and I hear sap is flowing like water from a tap, but we're just stuck in a quasi-limbo it seems. Bitter cold again today, but supposed to warm up tomorrow, so hopefully we'll have something in the buckets and can fire up the evaporator! Weather out your way still winter at all? Saw you doing some ice-road trucking there a few days back ☃️

[@northcountrytrapper]

Thanks for the video,you gotta watch yer frank and beans eh! I would say, if you’re a small producer, who’s not running your sap thru a water separator and your only boiling a couple hundred gallons or less of sap just run the ice. Don’t listen to these people who are telling you throw the ice out! I’ve also done the ice experiment where I took all of the ice chunks and separated them from the liquid and then boiled them down separately and I still got about 2 quarts of syrup so hogwash!

[@simplewoodslife]

Glad you liked it! Totally agree given the small-batch side of things. Plus, with the weather being soooooo weird this year, we don't have our usual mound of snow to store all the sap buckets for boiling and keep cool, so the ice is acting double duty while the pails are on the cold garage floor; keeping everything from spoiling. I don't mind boiling a touch longer, and we always get our Brix levels to the right amount in the end. Now if I was dealing with 1000 litres, I'd sure be looking to slice some time off the process, but I'm not 😂 😂

[@carrolljoey9704]

1 morning when you doing that the more water parts out make coffee out of it Really good

[@simplewoodslife]

OMG that's a GENIUS suggestion, thank you! ☕☕☕ I know what I'm trying tomorrow!

[@StonerSmurfin]

My 2 cents, it's all the same. Frozen or thawed, it's still the same product in different forms. The good thing about it being frozen is that it won't spoil on you while you're collecting more for a boil.

[@simplewoodslife]

Totally agree with you. Maybe if this was a professional setup, and we were in it for income my thoughts would change, but as a small-batch home-made product that adorns our pancakes and baking, syrup is the only goal. Whether I have to boil an extra slot of time is neither here nor there for me vs. the potential of losing sap by thinking it was ice.

[@carrolljoey9704]

Does maple syrup freeze if it does Proves everybody wrong Dude you're right I've seen many many people Most of them Do not throw the ice out

[@simplewoodslife]

I don't believe maple syrup freezes, but I know sap does. I've never seen it happen, but believe it can shatter a tree something fierce if it's flowing and then a snap freeze occurs. 😲

[@carrolljoey9704]

I have watched Kevin from modern self relianceHe's been doing it for a long time And he says do not throw out the ice He uses a heating oil tank With a stainless steel Is like 3' wide by 6' longBoiling Pan The town I live in I wish I couldThere's Are silver maples everywhere here I got 2 big ones in the front yd

[@simplewoodslife]

He put a nice big setup together eh? Watched that episode when they made that pan and realized I'm a long way off with my little buffet racks lol. But yeah, I'm not throwing the ice out any time soon 🥶 Maybe you could tap the trees and sell the sap? Could be a new business venture 🤔 "do-it-yourself maple syrup" - sell the sap and a pack of matches 🤣