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I stopped gathering, we might have had more time left but with the weather up and down like it's been, I had no idea when the maples were going to bud out. Husband isn't able to collect the sap and I'm at work all day so I was wasting a lot of overflow anyway. Next year I'll set up something better. What's your current yield? 
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Apr 1, 2015 18:36
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Do you have any tips on how to heat your living space in winter? It looks like it gets dreadfully cold there. I heard some people can suffice with a well designed rocket mass heater by burning small amounts the sticks they pick up, but i've also seen passive solar, compost heating and geothermal. I guess you get used to it, but it gets cold enough for me in Texas as it is.
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Apr 2, 2015 10:38
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Faerunner posted:What's your current yield? A measly 2gal of syrup  The sap is finally starting to run, this weekTsinava posted:Do you have any tips on how to heat your living space in winter? It looks like it gets dreadfully cold there. I heard some people can suffice with a well designed rocket mass heater by burning small amounts the sticks they pick up, but i've also seen passive solar, compost heating and geothermal. We have a small amount of benefit from passive solar but aside from that 100% wood heat. Tips are to insulate very well (2x6 walls rather than 2x4) and reduce heat loss due to infiltration. Then cut a bunccchhhhhh of firewood. When you think you have enough cut about the same amount over again 
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Apr 2, 2015 17:04
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Might be worth getting in touch with your local electrical supply house when you expand your PV array. Sometimes they have returns of modules that don't hit the label wattage but will still be more than you've got - a module that advertises 315 but is only putting out 280 is still almost twice what you've got now. Also, if you can put together the scratch for it, Iron Edison makes some nickel-iron batteries that last basically forever (20+ years expected, warrantied for ten) and have previously-unheard-of discharge performance. https://ironedison.com/ edit to add a little more PV nerdery PV is going to be very exciting in the next few years. IBM's German division put together some truly ridiculous systems that are 80% efficient - efficiency here meaning 'how much of the sunlight that hits it is converted to useful energy' - into a combination of electricity and heat. And they run cool enough to be wired with off-the-shelf conductors. And they look like sunflowers. And the most efficient PV modules on the market brag about hitting almost 20% efficiency. Elon Musk is throwing money at PV research, and his Tesla vehicles have advanced the cause of battery research to an astounding degree. Oh and some folks in Michigan figured out how to make loving transparent loving solar loving cells, bitches. You could rig up a system with these pigfuckers where it's the clear sheeting on the outside of a solar water heating setup - essentially eating the same cookie twice, using the light to generate electricity AND hot water. Holy loving lizard poo poo it is a wonderful time to be alive~ PopeCrunch fucked around with this message at 18:22 on Apr 2, 2015 |
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Apr 2, 2015 18:14
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PopeCrunch posted:Holy loving lizard poo poo it is a wonderful time to be alive~ Couldn't have said it better myself! We generally don't have enough cash to be early adopters of anything, but, and I am quoting a reliable industry source here, "holy loving lizard poo poo" I cannot wait to get my hands on some of this new tech <edit> Our batteries were at float voltage yesterday by 2pm-- suck on that, months-of-grey-skies apatite fucked around with this message at 18:43 on Apr 2, 2015 |
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Apr 2, 2015 18:41
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PopeCrunch posted:Elon Musk is throwing money at PV research, and his Tesla vehicles have advanced the cause of battery research to an astounding degree. The best part about this is that he is making a big production center right where Bethlehem Steel used to be in south Buffalo. For backstory, a company had looked at the site and went "we're gonna build this thing here and call it 'Solar City', and it'll bring 300-400 new jobs to Buffalo!" Everyone in town was excited about it, until we heard the company was bought out. Then we learned that Elon Musk was the one who bought it out when he went "Yeah, I'm still going to do this Solar City thing, but I'm gonna make it bigger. We're gonna bring 1000 jobs to Buffalo. It's going to be the biggest solar cell manufacturing center in the western hemisphere!" which was the point where we all started cheering. Basically, when you factor in the hydroelectric from Niagara Falls, the wind farm all along the edge of Lake Erie, and now Solar City coming here, Buffalo NY is quickly becoming one of the biggest clean energy centers in the country. gently caress. Yeah.
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Apr 2, 2015 20:06
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PopeCrunch posted:Might be worth getting in touch with your local electrical supply house when you expand your PV array. Sometimes they have returns of modules that don't hit the label wattage but will still be more than you've got - a module that advertises 315 but is only putting out 280 is still almost twice what you've got now. Also, if you can put together the scratch for it, Iron Edison makes some nickel-iron batteries that last basically forever (20+ years expected, warrantied for ten) and have previously-unheard-of discharge performance. https://ironedison.com/ To add to this: Try contacting Enersys for refurbed HEB series VLRA's. From personal experience they do bulk replacements and most of the ones they swap out are still at 80-90% capacity. I had to deal with racks of 300 of them and they're incredible.
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Apr 2, 2015 20:50
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Holy dicks, I just caught up. I've always lived in an urban atmosphere. My first camping experience was fourth of july last year (Northern Lower Penninsula, MI). You've inspired me to dick around with tools. I made a pallet garden last Friday! Had a great time. I'm in the process of stripping paint off an old antique mirror then restoring the wood. Let's see where this takes me. Thanks to everyone here, especially apatite for being badasses.
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Apr 6, 2015 18:47
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24624689997
apatite fucked around with this message at 19:25 on Feb 16, 2016 |
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Apr 6, 2015 19:09
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apatite posted:
You don't really need anything to sell in the SA-Mart thread - just post your thread and people buy poo poo. Generally, selling in sub-forums is frowned upon but you can probably ask a mod and get an exemption (TFR had a selling stuff thread but it got closed due to drama a while ago). I'd definitely ask for interest checks/pre-orders here so those dirty loving SA-Mart dudes who just want some of your sweet syrupy goodness don't steal it before loyal readers *cough* get a crack at it :V
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Apr 7, 2015 02:51
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SA-Mart is a good place to post sales because of the rules - nobody's allowed to buy and sell unless they've had an account for x amount of time, you have to post a photo if you're selling something over $50, etc. Also people go there looking to spend money. I predict if you post an SA-Mart thread, you'll sell out of your entire production in less than three days. I suggest at least $10 + shipping for each 8-oz jar, because this is bespoke handmade handcrafted micro-brew pure unfiltered unpasteurized unadulterated Made in America syrup and that's what stuff like that costs. Goons will happily pay it. Especially with a whole thread about how you're a cool guy doing this cool thing in the wilderness and the money is obviously going to the very good cause of Apetite's construction/motorized vehicle funds.
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Apr 7, 2015 02:57
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$10 is lowballing it. $20. This is a finite commodity.
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Apr 7, 2015 06:21
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Backov posted:$10 is lowballing it. $20. This is a finite commodity. Don't forget, it's "Hand Made", "Gluten Free", "Free Range", "Organic", "Low Sodium", and most of all "Gourmet". Don't sell yourself short, apatite
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Apr 7, 2015 13:56
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I'd love to have some real maple syrup; I'd put it next to my quart of molasses from down home.  Can't wait for grillin' time.Is anything in bloom out there?
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Apr 7, 2015 14:01
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A small bottle gets sold for $25 here. You'd be surprised. Do some research on pricing before you decide. Don't forgetful shipping materials and your own labor to box and ship the stuff. You can always adjust it later!
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Apr 7, 2015 14:23
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apatite posted:Keep up the good work!! Glad I can be an inspiration to strangers on the internet, quite a few people have been coming over to check out the maple syrup operation and several are interested in starting up for themselves so the sickness is rapidly spreading. Some pics of the apatite inspired barrel in action. I chickened out on the copper preheater because I'm a coward but it was still boiling off about 3.5 gph or roughly that entire pot every 30 minutes. Overall, I'd rate it about a thousand times more enjoyable than boiling on propane.  
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Apr 7, 2015 14:54
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Hnnnnnnnnnghhh
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Apr 7, 2015 16:25
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:Hnnnnnnnnnghhh You stroking out, buddy?
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Apr 7, 2015 18:11
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Cannon_Fodder posted:You stroking out, buddy? He's stroking something over there.  I'd absolutely love some syrup, but frankly not for $20 shipping like some goons are suggesting. I'm absolutely sure there's tons of people who would pay that much, but I live probably less than half a state west of Apatite, and I can get a small bottle of 100% Grade A or whatever maple syrup at Trader Joes for $6. It's not a ton of syrup by any means, but it is the real deal, so 
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Apr 7, 2015 18:32
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neogeo0823 posted:He's stroking something over there. $80/L seems high to me when it's $13/L for real stuff at Costco but people pay $125/L in BC and $60/L in Nova Scotia. The store bought stuff is fine, it's probably actually "better" because the facilities are inspected, the syrup is tested to make sure no table sugar was added, it's filtered really well and it's bottled properly to prevent mold. I can see why people would be willing to pay more for small batch stuff though. The syrup at Trade Joe's is generic by design. The distributors buy it in bulk (for about $7.50/L), mix it all in a big heating tank and bottle it. You end up with pretty generic maple syrup, like mixing all the merlots at the wine store. I'd say the difference with our stuff is that each batch can have some delicate flavors specific to the region, collection time, last year's local sugar storing conditions, how long it took to boil, how much bark made it to the boiling pan and how long the sap sat in my old pickle barrel. Depending how high you want to elevate your pinkie, you can get different syrups and try to pick out flavors that aren't immediately obvious. http://www.agr.gc.ca/eng/science-an...d=1231363888838 
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Apr 7, 2015 19:56
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apatite posted:
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Apr 7, 2015 21:48
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Parts Kit posted:I rather enjoy your posts on your cabin and solar stuff so please keep going. Agreed. I've enjoyed just about all of this thread and especially like to see pictures of anything you have going on up there.
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Apr 7, 2015 22:08
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I joined SA to continue catching up on this thread after it went paywalled.
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Apr 7, 2015 22:15
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jailbait#3 posted:Is there anything between the firebox and the chimney? You will get more heat (and save wood) by adding an overhead baffle (or some other baffle) so the exhaust gas doesn't go right out the chimney. You won't be able to jam as much wood in the firebox, but the wood will burn hotter and with less smoke. Will respond to the rest later but wanted to go back to jailbait#3's post-- I added this broken chunk of cement block to force the flames up towards the bottom of the back pan before being able to go out the stack. The picture is just with it set in there as a concept, it has a firebrick under it to bring it up a little. Now the front two pans come to a full boil much faster than before 
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Apr 8, 2015 18:38
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46859008
apatite fucked around with this message at 19:26 on Feb 16, 2016 |
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Apr 8, 2015 21:52
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I ended up with about 8oz of really dark syrup and about 8oz of maple 'candy' because I over-boiled the first batch, hahaha... But hey, from 2 taps in Norway maples, I'm glad I got anything at all and now I know better than to boil syrup indoors next year. Outdoor boiler, ahoy! Any suggestions for a rapid set-up and take-down style boiler? I have a tiny urban back yard that is easily visible from 3/4 sides, I would rather not A) have a fire set-up that isn't legal in the city (our fire bowl is about all that IS legal) in view of the neighbors, and B) have to store something all winter long because again, small lot. ...would a propane grill work for boiling sap? Faerunner fucked around with this message at 23:18 on Apr 8, 2015 |
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Apr 8, 2015 23:15
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Faerunner posted:I ended up with about 8oz of really dark syrup and about 8oz of maple 'candy' because I over-boiled the first batch, hahaha... Don't bother with the propane grill, that would probably suck. I tried finish boiling on my grill's propane side burner and it sucked. If I were you I'd get a double burner (or i guess single burner but bigger is better) propane turkey fryer thing like this http://www.sears.com/king-kooker-re...0&mktRedirect=y  Then probably just set a restaurant steam table pan or a couple big stainless stock pots on it and go to town
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Apr 8, 2015 23:21
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That's perfect. Thank you! I'll hunt one down for next spring
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Apr 9, 2015 02:45
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The bottle I was talking about is a 12oz bottle, for $5.49. Granted, it probably is the type that's mixed from all sorts of sources, but considering I've only ever had "maple flavored pancake syrup" until this past year when Trader Joe's finally came to town, it's a world of difference, and comparing that to home made stuff is probably like giving a finely aged Cabernet Savignon to a 21 year old. That said, the Trader Joe's website lists their organic maple syrup as coming from Quebec. It also only lists the organic variety, and I'm talking about the non-organic variety, which almost certainly comes from the same region.
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Apr 9, 2015 02:57
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NatGeo has this show called Building Wild where they build these extreme custom cabins. Saw an episode this week that made me think of you, a sugar shack for a maple syrup farm. http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/building-wild/episodes/maple-syrup-motor-club/
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Apr 9, 2015 04:23
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tomapot posted:NatGeo has this show called Building Wild where they build these extreme custom cabins. Saw an episode this week that made me think of you, a sugar shack for a maple syrup farm. That's pretty sweet, how do I get the television to come do work for me?  Bottled the last two gallons last night, actually finished up at 5am. I am going to bottle the first two batches again as they were a little on the "light"(watery) side of syrup and actually have a hydrometer now to get it jjjjjjjjjjjjuuuuuuuusssssstttttttttt rrrrrrrrriiiiiiiigggggghhhhhhhhhtttttttttt
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Apr 14, 2015 17:05
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apatite posted:drat! What is a "small bottle" and where is "here" ? Looks like I could get a generic sourced bottle for less, but the "good stuff" seems to go for about ~$1.45/oz pretty much everywhere. I'm in Virginia, but amazon says the same thing. Bhodi fucked around with this message at 17:22 on Apr 14, 2015 |
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Apr 14, 2015 17:18
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I burned out my drill trying to make a hammock stand. Cordless drills are stupid. Where do you thrifty motherfuckers find cheap tools?
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Apr 14, 2015 20:06
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Cannon_Fodder posted:I burned out my drill trying to make a hammock stand. Garage sales.
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Apr 14, 2015 20:29
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100 HOGS AGREE posted:Garage sales. Oh, well loving duh. Quit following me around, making sense 100 HOGS AGREE.
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Apr 14, 2015 21:36
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It's like prime garbage sale season too. Get out there to find the hottest deals!
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Apr 14, 2015 22:08
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24624789864.4
apatite fucked around with this message at 19:29 on Feb 16, 2016 |
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Apr 14, 2015 22:17
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I usually wait for Home Depot do do their quarterly tool sales (they use any opportunity to sell tools... it's a holiday? BUY YOURSELF A DRILL SET!). We have amassed a pretty large collection of cheap-ish Ryobi tools, all of which share the same batteries and do a pretty nice job not getting lost, being neon green. And for the cheap chinesey hand tools (or screwdriver bits I'm going to strip anyway) we visit our friendly local Harbor Freight. But yes, for ultra-cheap nothing beats a garage/estate sale or auction.
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Apr 15, 2015 19:09
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I didn't have a need for a power drill so I bought a Black and Decker one for like 30 bucks and it died the first time I tried to use it like an adult.
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Apr 16, 2015 18:20
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Cannon_Fodder posted:I didn't have a need for a power drill so I bought a Black and Decker one for like 30 bucks and it died the first time I tried to use it like an adult. Those cheap B&D ones will break the second you try to do anything more than build IKEA furniture in my experience.
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Apr 16, 2015 20:32
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