Hi-Tech Sugaring With Jim Ellsworth On The Comette Road

ELLSWORTH SUGAR HOUSE ON THE COMETTE ROAD

And here is where it all starts at the Ellsworth Sugar Woods - No sap buckets here, but an elaborate web of plastic tubing that winds itself through the maples to several larger lines, then to storage tanks at the bottom of the hill where it will be pumped back up the hill to the 75 year old sugar house. Maple trees that produce sap are at least 40 years old. It takes 40 gallons of sap to produce one gallon of Maple Syrup. It will take the annual sap output of four mature maple trees to produce one gallon of maple syrup.

Using a milking machine vacuum pump, with vacuum set at about 23 Cubic Feet Per Minute (CFM), the vacuum system helps increase sap flow at the Ellsworth Sugar Orchard. In order for more producers to benefit from the use of vacuum in sap collection systems, the basics of why vacuum can increase sap flow should be understood. Maple sap cannot be pulled or sucked from a taphole. Increasing sap flow using vacuum is more complex. Sap flow is generally associated with rising temperatures (above 32 degrees F) following freezing temperatures (below 32 degrees F) along with increasing pressure within the tree. When tree pressure is greater than atmospheric pressure, i.e. is positive, sap will flow freely when the tree is punctured as by a taphole. As temperatures drop below freezing, sap pressure changes from positive to negative causing sap flow to cease. Conditions often exist during the sap production season when the internal tree pressure is low or equal to atmospheric pressure creating less than optimal or “weeping flows.” Vacuum pumping in effect lowers the atmospheric pressure in the tubing system, thus creating a pressure differential that is greater inside the tree than atmospheric pressure, thereby allowing sap to flow more freely from the taphole. Now you know why Jim and Mary have sap flowing from their trees, while the traditional tapping with spout and bucket producers do not. You will note the old retired sap buckets remain unused at the left in the picture above.

Pumps at the bottom of the hill in several tanks automatically pump the sap into this large tank inside the sugarhouse.

As Jim Ellsworth explains - During a good run this tank is not large enough.

So the two large tanks shown above act as a resevoir for the overflow

A pre-filter to filter sap before it enters the Reverse Osmosis (RO) machine shown above is used. Reverse Osmosis (RO), originally used for desalinating salt water, is a process in which the water content of maple sap is reduced by forcing sap under pressure across membranes that contain pores large enough to pass water molecules, but too small to permit the passage of sugar and other large molecules. As the sap passes over these semi-permeable membranes some of the water passes out of the sap through the membranes leaving behind a more concentrated sap. Repeated passes of the sap through the membranes result in additional water loss and increasingly higher sugar concentrations. Reverse osmosis has been used commercially in the maple business since the mid 1970s, though less efficient technology dates back to the late 1950s. The objective of using reverse osmosis is to remove a substantial portion (approximately 75%) of the water from the sap, changing the concentration of sugar from about 2% to 7 to 10% before it enters the evaporator, thereby reducing evaporator fuel costs and boiling time. Other advantages frequently cited for reverse osmosis include shortening the holding time for unprocessed sap (less spoilage) and shortening the time sap is processed at high temperatures. At this point it only takes approximately eleven gallons of the sap concentrate instead of the 40 gallons of raw sap to create a gallon of maple syrup. Jim's father, Ralph Ellsworth prefers to call this piece of equipment a separator, which is also an easier name for many of us to remember. In earlier years, my Dad who would have been 110 years old this coming April 4th, used to work with Jim and his Dad Ralph in these same sugar woods. At that time they used to tap 1200 trees, while now Jim has a total of 2800 trees tapped.

The water removed from the raw sap goes into this tank, which is later used to flush the line in the sugar house.

Jim Ellsworth shows me to his right, the tank where the sap goes with the new sugar content increased to 7 to 10% from the Reverse Osmosis machine.

The Ellsworth Sugar House was built in 1930 - Mary Spaulding, shown above in the red jacket, helps Jim Ellsworth with the sugaring operation. Although the building is 75 years old, it has a cement floor and like many of the sugarhouses of today, boasts electricity to operate some of the equipment as well as electric lights.

Some modifications have been made to hold the new equipment like the addition on the left, although I am sure that the storage building on the right was where the old storage tank used to be when sap was gathered from buckets with horses.

With all the modern technology, one thing still remains - Jim still uses wood to fire up his equipment.

Now no self respecting Vermonter would have an operation like this without something unique. Jim has a grid of copper pipes that feeds the sap to the evaporator. Condensation gathers and drips from these pipes into the container above giving him hot water for cleaning.

Once the sap has been boiled down it is sent through the pressure filter shown above to remove the solidified minerals, called sugar sand. The syrup is then packed into 55 gallon drums for storage. When packed into retail containers the syrup is reheated to 190 degrees F. Although more expensive, pressure units are capable of filtering finished syrup quite rapidly and, at the same time, producing a product of the highest clarity. Pressure filters consist of a mechanical pump (gear pumps are traditionally used although diaphragm pumps are gaining in popularity because of less wear) which forces the syrup through a series of filter plates and disposable filter pads. Before pumping finished syrup through the filter a small amount of filter aid (diatomaceous earth) is added (according to the manufacturer's recommendations) to the finished syrup. This product increases the efficiency and speed of filtering by attracting suspended sugar sand and forming larger size particles which are more easily removed. Care must be exercised in assembling filter plates and pads to ensure all syrup is forced through the press. Likewise, pump pressure must be carefully regulated to avoid rupturing the filter pads.