How to Use a Refractometer for Maple Sap
Almost everyone is familiar with the experience of putting a stick into clear water and seeing it apparently bend where it enters. That's because water affects the passage of light, refracting it as a prism would. What's more, water will refract light differently if it has another substance -- such as salt or sugar -- dissolved in it. A refractometer is a device that is designed to take advantage of this to test the sugar content of substances such as maple-tree sap, making it a useful tool for maple-sugar producers. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Calibrate your refractometer by placing a drop of clear water -- preferably distilled water -- on the dark, rectangular sample area. Close the cover and look into the eyepiece.
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Adjust the calibration screw until the shadow made by the drop of water falls across the "Zero" mark on the refractometer's scale. Repeat to ensure accuracy.
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Place a drop of maple sap on the sample area of the refractometer and close the cover. Look through the eyepiece to see where the shadow falls on the graduated scale.
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Adjust the eyepiece if the numbers are out of focus. Read the sap's sugar density from the refractometer in either a percentage or degrees Brix, as you prefer.
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Clean the refractometer's sample area after every test. Recalibrate if it is dropped or roughly handled, or if the temperature changes dramatically.
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Tips & Warnings
Temperature has an impact on the accuracy of the test. Whenever possible, test your samples at the same air temperature as when you calibrated the refractometer. Some models will track temperature changes internally and compensate for them as you work.
Refractometers come in a variety of different scales for measuring sap and syrup at different densities.
References
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