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Arch: The arch is the "stove" or stand underneath the evaporator pans to hold them in place. It may be made of metal or cinder block with fire brick on the inside, and a fire of wood or fuel oil is burned underneath to boil the sap.
Brix Hydrometer: An instrument for determining density (percent sugar) of the sap or syrup.
Evaporator: A set of large shallow metal pans and an arch used for boiling sap into syrup.
Filter: Orlon, felt, cotton or special paper used to strain sugar sand from the syrup
Finishing Pan: A separate flat pan used to finish batches of concentrated syrup to standard density, commonly heated with propane.
Flue Pan: An evaporator pan used to boil sap, whith deep channels or flues in the bottom to increase the heating surface. Also known as a sap or back pan.
Gathering Tank: A metal tank used for transporting sap from the bush to the sugar house. The tank is fastened to a sled or wagon and pulled by horse or tractor.
Hydrometer: Equipment used to measure the sugar content of sap or syrup.
Refractometer: Equipment used to measure the sugar content of sap or syrup.
Run: When the sap is flowing.
Sap: Clear, water like fluid from the wounds in maple trees, with sugar content from 1% to 4%.
Spile: A metal or plastic spout, tapered at one end, that is driven into the taphole so that the sap can drain from the tree. They may have a hook attached to hold a bucket.
Storage Tank: A large vat to hold the sap until it can be fed to the evaporator.
Sugar Bush: A woodlot or stand of predominantly sugar or black maples containing from 125 to 300 taps per hectare.
Sugar House: A building with equipment to turn maple sap into syrup, also known as a sugar shack.
Sugarsand: Material that is produced by boiling sap into syrup; it can be either somewhat slimy or very gritty.
Syrup: Sap that has been boiled until it is 66% sugar or higher.
Syrup Pan: A flat evaporator pan used to further refine concentrated sap, where sap is cooked slowly to prevent burning. Also called a flat or front pan.
Tank: A piece of equipment used to store sap.
Tap Hole: A hole bored in a sugar maple, 11 mm in diameter and about 7.5 cm deep (exclusive of bark).
Tubing System: Small lateral lines made of plastic running from tree to tree and connected to a larger plastic main lines which carry the sap to the storage tank.