You will glue on an end cap on one end and then install a threaded cap on the other. But after the sap has run through the ro system, we can spend a lot less time, energy, and fuel to boil it. And great question about what we run it at! Im making birch syrup in Alaska and it takes about 100-110 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of syrup. Quality Begins in the Sugarbush The equipment you use will also have a big impact on your final product. We collected over 3000 gals of sap this year in 5 weeks. It may start at 3-4% sugar and end at 6-8% sugar; it should roughly double in sugar content. And finally, whats the function of the clear line filter? We are a very small family operation and your RO works really well. Steam the tofu 5. drizzle with maple syrup and mustard mixture. ) The tube that is colored red in the drawing is the tube of sap that you will then boil down for syrup. Since it saves us hundreds of dollars every year in fuel costs as we boil our sap, I totally wanna tell yall exactly how to build your own. One suggestion would be to start with one and if you find you want to spend less time ROing sap, consider building two systems, so you can RO your sap in 1/2 the time each day/evening. I have completed the building of my RO kit and am awaiting sap season here in minnesota. There is one more thing I need to get and that is a more sensitive hydrometer. Hope that helps! If nothing else, sign up and get all these goodies delivered to your door for free shipping, right away, so you can start saving money on your propane. Knowing our sap has been filtered and is safe to use for longer helps us feel better about waiting until the weekend to boil. This may be a good place to introduce yourself and your site or include some credits. If you dont, drop me a line and let me know! Weba maple syrup producer records the amount smithsonian jet works instructions pdf/east dorset open water swimming club/ a maple syrup producer records the amount/east dorset open water swimming club/ a maple syrup producer records the amount Read through all comments looking for what the permeate sugar content was. Our maple syrup operation manager (aka hubby) built a reverse osmosis (RO) filter system that we run our sap through before boiling. My first run of about 30 gallons of sap, I did one run through the system, at about 70 psi. WebConsisting of one sediment filter and two reverse osmosis filters, the Sugar Cube RO Replacement Filter Kit contains everything you need for the annual maintenance of your prototype Sugar Cube RO. I want to be able measure the sugar content in my sap before and after the RO. Wisconsin has won every family taste test (blind of course). But the good news is there are 31 varieties of trees that can be used to make syrup (no one seems to know this so many folks think its sugar maple or nothing) and every single state in the U.S. has at least one native tree that is good for making syrup. Also describe it in case I want to purchase one. How does that compare to my costs last year? . I started producing maple syrup as a hobby over 20 years ago. Im still a little unclear on the cleaning procedure after each run during the season. It was capable of running raw sap from 2% up to 14% by running it thru multiple times. My name is Carrie Williams Howe and I am the founder and editor of Homestead How-To. Seems like if I was using this to actually just.filter water, Id be wasting a lot of water (our tap water is actually not bad). If so, I hope you love it. Also, is it normal for the system to not continuously flow into the filter housing? Maple syrup producers use an evaporator to boil the sap into syrup, and doing so can take quite a long time (read more about how to boil here). Thank you Michelle. Thanks again for the help. So we persoanlly choose to boil our sap with propane. If you are still learning how to collect, boil, and bottle maple syrup, head over here to this article about making syrup, step-by-step or, better yet, pick up a copy of Sweet Maple. Vermont is the country's largest producer of maple syrup. I asked Bill but sadly he said no, he hasnt tried that. All very-long-cold-New-England winter. Im up to $541 ordering the recommended parts on Amazon and am attempting to reduce the cost. The permeate cleans out the filters. Afterall, we all wanna save on fuel, no matter where were get it, can I get an amen? But seriously, you cantry out Prime for totally freefor 30 days. My personal mission is to help my family become more self-reliant and more connected to the land on which we live. just goes to show attention to detail is vital.. Wed love to hear from you! Recently, new membrane processes have been developed to concentrate maple sap to ultra-high Brix reaching up to 40 Brix. Thank you so much for sharing. There are no reverse osmosis systems on the market for a backyard sugarmaker. Hi, Im Michelle. Yes, Laurent is right, if you JUST want to measure the sugar content of your SAP, you can save money by getting a refractometer that only measures on the lower end of the scale like this one: https://amzn.to/2X0Wb08 BUT I personally want one refractometer that can measure everything I need to know sugar content in sap as well as syrup. Im not like you. I have assembled the RO setup like yours. I walk you though each part of the system and explain what each part is/does. I only have 40 taps, but if this works I will tap more. Michelle. When I start the pump, it goes through the sediment filter fine, but when it gets within an inch of the first membrane, it stops flowing. if this works I plan on expanding to an additional 5 trees but being only having 6 trees at my disposal expanding is limited. Plenty of elbow grease and lots of clean, hot water are the best cleaning agents for maple syrup equipment. Thanks so much. formId: '608a538fe8b3a8e1e4d62a1d', One of those tubes produced clean, clear water, and the other produces highly concentrated sap. We use filters intended for 150 gallons per day, and 5 gallons goes through in about 45 minutes. Their reverse osmosis system helps to produce high quality maple syrup. We live in Northern New York, think near the Canadian border north. Starting with 10 buckets hanging from trees, I settled on 100 taps on tubing with a small vacuum system and a pretty slick homemade reverse osmosis setup. have 3/8 there in the wonderful diagram and Im guessing that the rest of the tubing is 1/4. Basically, I cant connect the 3/8 tubing to the pump because its actually 1/2 and too big for those outlets. Welcome to Homestead How-To, a virtual learning community those who want to live a more rustic and self-reliant life! Thank you, Gordie, for letting me know all of this!! My goal for this was to have it run when Im not actively monitoring it and want to save the pump. Heat olive oil and butter in large frying pan over high heat. Every evening during the season, when were done RO-ing for the day, we simply run the RO one more cycle, using permeate instead of sap. Cant wait to try it out. Click either the item name or the picture for ordering information. Hope that helps! Ive had this bookmarked for a while and finally made mine. WebTito's Homemade Vodka, Fresh Lime Juice, Mango Puree, Fresh Jalapeno Topped with Ginger Beer. 4. I generally have used garden hose to connect the low pressure system components together. It's universal, it's cheap and readily available. It's Learn how your comment data is processed. Every This kit is indeed awesome! The whole point of boiling sap is to evaporate water and be left with a thick, sugary maple syrup. I am sure that this will only be first of many questions. You can also follow my Maple Syrup pinterest boardright here. Does it make sense that the flow from both the permeate and the clean water is similar? I love my Nikon; you canread more about my camera and even purchase your own here. Feed your Family: How to Start a Vegetable Garden from Scratch, this set of instructions from Souly Rested, Sugar Cube Reverse Osmosis System from Vermont Evaporator Company, How to Prepare your Vegetable Garden for Winter (Fall Garden Checklist). Michelle, My first time finding your web page and read thru all of your posts. Iam going to build one as per your drawings. Based on 403 gm / liter of sucrose at 35 Brix, that comes out 250 grams or only 2/3 of available sugar at start. Spendy at $30 each. Im assembling the RO system now, and everything is going great. (And all the money it saves you!!). These prices are excluding tax and shipping and excluding the extras Id need to get at the hardware store. We just finished putting it all together. 7. If you are prone to fits of unrestrained enthusiasm, such as I am, you may want to add capacity by adding additional RO membranes in series. It How often have you have to change filters? Thats just the one Bill chose. Your blog is so interesting. Thanks again for sharing all this info.. Great to hear from you Gordie! Good luck this season. Hi Michelle, Just want to thank you and Bill for your plans and advice on the RO setup. My primary limitation is sap storage. I got a lot of wet. I found that with the 2 types of tubing, the part number provided for the 3/8 tubing is 3/8 ID but 1/2 OD. Thanks and happy sugaring!! thanks for putting this down for people like me! This system is fantastic! in the sense that we keep the waste (the sugar) and toss the water (permeate). Its all Bills work. We always, always run the sap through twice, even with the 4 membranes. the system is working flawlessly now. Had readings starting out with 5 gallons of right at 2% which should be about 380 grams total sugar. We run it at 60/70. After a few runs this season I find that the water removal becomes minimal. I just found your post this a.m. after writing Michelle this weekend with the same issues. What pressure do you run at? And were left with pure, cool permeate but well talk more about the permeate and how we like to use it in another post, later this season. Part of the problem here is describing the tubing. Our evaporator is heated by a wood fire and it usually takes around 50 gallons of sap to cook down into one gallon of syrup. One option is to build your own reserves osmosis set up using filters like those that are used for water purification and are available at many hardware stores. Look up a group called the Vancouver Island Sapsuckers. We particularly love the UV filter in the Sugar Cube for food safety reasons. Required fields are marked *. I hope that you find what you are looking for on Homestead How-To. Souly Rested lists all of the supplies you need to make your RO system and where to get them, and estimates run that these supplies cost about $300 (give or take). Every detail you need 2. The frame is a rectangular base welded from 1 1/2 in angle iron. It measures 18 inches wide by 24 inches long. It has a mounting plate for the h Visit our affiliate disclosure page to learn more. Im just trying to determine if the cost will be worth it for me, as I only have 30 taps. You definitely want to build it in series. Hi Michael, No need to apologize I could never build one of these myself. Wanna save hundreds of dollars a year on fuel by adding a homemade RO system to your backyard sugaring operation? You do need the needle valve. I expected the permeate flow to be really really really low and most would just flow into the water tank. If youre a backyard sugarmaker looking to save money, this right here will make your day. The Mapel Fever is almost here.. Like Michele said for little cost a refractometer is really fun. Hi Gordie The only problem I run into is getting the pump primed and pulling in the sap, but a little elevation does the trick! Carrie Williams Howe is an educational leader by day and an aspiring homesteader by night and weekend. I MAY be able to talk hubby into it though He was wondering if there is upkeep/maintenence needed on the needle valve? then go bake some maple cookies while they do the hard work. 8. Before you run valuable maple sap through your unit it is a good idea to test it on 50-100 gallons of clean water. Fill a tank with 50 - 100 gal I guess looking at the elbows and paying attention to the image of your setup is crucial to a correct build. Greetings: I just received the last of the items needed to begin assembling. $12.99. Likewise, as much as we love sitting outside by the evaporator with friends, there comes a point where 18 hours of boiling each weekend can feel cumbersome; getting to syrup faster is not a bad thing. even read about storing the filters in permeate. Its was 2% to start with. Keep them from extreme heat and freezing and they will be safely stored until next season. I just ordered for myself and cant wait to try RO. Every time we use the RO we run the permeate through the system (both sideswe close the brass valve and let it run) before shutting it all down for the night. Killer Key Lime Pie. Id sure like to reduce my energy cost. 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