I was able to boil about 10 gallons of sap today...only one day after putting in the taps. I started at 10 AM and ended up with three 1/2 pints and a small mason jar of nice, sweet maple syrup by 7:30 PM. At that pace...it will take several weekends to come up with and significant amount of syrup...but I love doing it. Perhaps next year I will get serious about it and build a little sugar shack with a good evaporator. Not sure how syrup is made...well...here is the short version. Tap the trees and hang your buckets...empty the buckets into a large garbage can lined with a plastic garbage bag. When you get enough to boil...filter the sap through a filter you can buy from a hardware store...or two layers of felt or flannel...into the vats you are going to boil it in. The flatter...more suface area...the better for the pot you are boiling in. It takes about 10 gallons to make 1 quart of syrup. As the pots start to boil down I start combining them until I am left with one pot...and as the sap in that pot nears about a quart of liquid left...I filter it again...using the same type of filter. Then I stick a digital thermometer in the boil and set the alarm for 219 degrees. You are supposed to use a candy thermometer...but I broke mine the first year I had it...the digital thermometer I use to cook roasts with seemed to work just fine. When the syrup reaches the right temp...you funnel it into your little jars...turn them upside down so their lids seal...and then stick them in the fridge after they cool down. Finished.