# Liquifying Crystalized Honey



## Struttinbuck (Mar 8, 2020)

mtnmyke said:


> I made the mistake of using plastic queenline jars for honey and against my labeling, customers were still microwaving their honey. To my surprise, the plastic jars actually shrink and deform which squeezes out the honey making quite a mess! I tested this and only after 15-30 seconds they sure did deform!
> 
> I've since switched to glass queenline jars and pulled all my plastic ones from shelves. Now that I've left them sitting for a year or so I'm left with many boxes of crystalized honey in plastic jars I'm not sure how to get out. Because it's so much honey, I'd certainly like to liquify it and rebottle or use for creamed honey.
> 
> ...


No advice on any kind of level but my own personal. I was told by a commercial guy one time to never go over 110 degrees if you wanted to keep the enzymes and the good stuff in tact. It always did work but it can take some time. Also made sense as far as the temperature of a beehive should rarely get over that also.


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## mtnmyke (Apr 27, 2017)

Struttinbuck said:


> No advice on any kind of level but my own personal. I was told by a commercial guy one time to never go over 110 degrees if you wanted to keep the enzymes and the good stuff in tact. It always did work but it can take some time. Also made sense as far as the temperature of a beehive should rarely get over that also.


I'd agree. Anything over 110 seems excessive. My honey blanket apparently reaches UP TO 110, but takes a few days to get there. I could fill a bucket with the crystalized jars, then fill up with water and wrap the bucket in the bee blanket?

Just curious if others have had this issue and how they resolved it.

Any tricks to keep honey from crystalizing in the first place? All honey crystalizes, perhaps just some tricks to extend the liquid shelf life?


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## johno (Dec 4, 2011)

mtnmyke said:


> I'd agree. Anything over 110 seems excessive. My honey blanket apparently reaches UP TO 110, but takes a few days to get there. I could fill a bucket with the crystalized jars, then fill up with water and wrap the bucket in the bee blanket?
> 
> Just curious if others have had this issue and how they resolved it.
> 
> Any tricks to keep honey from crystalizing in the first place? All honey crystalizes, perhaps just some tricks to extend the liquid shelf life?


I use one of those medical heating pads that are used to help on back and shoulder injuries. The one I use is about 10" by 14" and that fits neatly into the bottom of a polystyrene box into which I can get around 20 of the queenline jars. The one I have has a 3 position switch and I start on low and leave it run for a couple of days which generally does the trick but you can step up the power if you need it done more quickly. However avoid the pads that have a timer controlling the temperature.


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## Steve in PA (Jan 26, 2015)

I put a few quarts in my instant pot and set it at 105. I put the lid on & it maintains until I shut it off. Works good for just a few.


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## Sam B (Jan 14, 2021)

I just put the jar in the sun for a few hours and the honey liquifies. But you have a lot of honey to process so it may not be a good approach for you.

[Also, weather here is fairly warm, even in the winter.]


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## JWPalmer (May 1, 2017)

Mike, getting several boxes of honey to liquify may be a simple as placing all the boxes in the trunk of your car and parking out in the open on a sunny day. Works for crystalized super frames too if you have a van or pickup with a camper shell.


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## mtnmyke (Apr 27, 2017)

All good stuff! Sadly it's a little chilly here right now so the sun isn't much use. We sit through fog this time of year and don't get much sun, not to mention the giant redwoods everywhere.

I looked for a heating pad that doesn't have an auto shut-off. Doesn't appear they make those anymore for safety reasons, unless someone has found one somewhere? I like the idea of placing them in a cooler with the hot pad and giving them a day or more to liquify.

I don't have an instant pot but do have a slow cooker...but am guessing that will get too hot even in "warm". It may also take quite a while considering the amount I have to liquify.

Jokingly my partner said I should just throw them into the hot tub. I laughed, but she may be onto something! Hot tub sits at about 104 degrees!
Hold my hive tool, I'll be right back! lol


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## JWPalmer (May 1, 2017)

mtnmyke said:


> Jokingly my partner said I should just throw them into the hot tub. I laughed, but she may be onto something! Hot tub sits at about 104 degrees!
> Hold my hive tool, I'll be right back! lol


Er, I don't think she was joking. That actually sounds like a really great idea. Buy the lady a piece of jewelry and get on with it then.
Note: this plan will NOT work with the crystalized supers!


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## mtnmyke (Apr 27, 2017)

JWPalmer said:


> Er, I don't think she was joking. That actually sounds like a really great idea. Buy the lady a piece of jewelry and get on with it then.
> Note: this plan will NOT work with the crystalized supers!


Valentines Day is coming, so don't go giving her any ideas!

And now you tell me! There are frames floating all over the hot tub now! Only good news is there are really available snacks while sitting in there haha 

Seriously though, I put a bin of clean water over the filter chamber, in the hot tub water, and submerged a few jars in there. We'll know by morning how it went!


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## username00101 (Apr 17, 2019)

Once the honey increases beyond a certain temp, it's destroyed.

The hot tub idea is pretty good, but for those of us who do not have hot tubs, it's an expensive method.


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## crofter (May 5, 2011)

username00101 said:


> Once the honey increases beyond a certain temp, it's destroyed.
> 
> The hot tub idea is pretty good, but for those of us who do not have hot tubs, it's an expensive method.


In my opinion this is quite an overstatement and a bit alarmist! If it were factually so, then probably 90% of honey on store shelves will have been _destroyed, _since all but that sold as _raw_ is subjected to heating ~ 150 F. or more. Undoubted some enzymes have been diminished or deactivated but their value is subject to debate. 

I think that up to about 116F. any diminishment would be hard to measure. I am sure that a lot of honey in the southern states gets well up there in the hive.


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## username00101 (Apr 17, 2019)

@crofter I'm not exactly certain what the temperature that destroys honey is measured.

According to this source, anything above 100F destroys 200 components permanently.



To what temperature does honey have to be heated to destroy the health benefits for humans? – Bee Health


Raw honey destruction

_ Heating up to 37°C (98.6 F) causes loss of nearly 200 components, part of which are antibacterial. Heating up to 40°C (104 F) destroys invertase, an important enzyme. Heating up to 50°C (122 F) for more than 48 hrs. turns the honey into caramel (the most valuable honey sugars become analogous to sugar). Heating honey higher than 140 degrees F for more than 2 hours will cause rapid degradation. Heating honey higher than 160 for any time period will cause rapid degradation and caramelization._


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## crofter (May 5, 2011)

Can you give us a link to this source.


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## crofter (May 5, 2011)

Goodness gracious; just think of all that destroyed honey being sold!


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## username00101 (Apr 17, 2019)

Education is important.

The more we know, the better we can serve our customers.


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## Johnnymms (Feb 7, 2020)

I read this method the other day on this forum and it worked out pretty well for me. I used it to liquify a 5 gal bucket of honey, but I imagine it would work for you. 

Stack two deeps and possibly a medium or more depending on how much space you need. I placed a few frame top bars across the first deep to support the bucket. I imagine you could use queen excluders to support the bottles of honey. Put a light fixture in the bottom with a 100 watt light bulb. Cover the stack with a lid and wrap the whole stack with a few blankets to insulate it. I bought a cheap temperature controller online that operates an electrical plug on the device itself. The controller has a temperature probe that I left midway up inside the stack to measure the ambient air temperature at that height in the box. The temp settings for this particular controller will let you set a temperature up to 106 degrees. To liquify the bucket I set the temp at 102F. I later set the temp at 90F to keep the honey nice and fluid before I filled my jars. Worked like a charm. 

This setup worked well and it was nice to not have to build and store a dedicated warmer. Something dedicated and insulated would retain more heat and be more efficient, but for one bucket it worked out just fine for me. I always have some deeps and supers laying around so I can just stack them up when I need them. I would think this should work well for your bottles. Once its liquid then rebottle in your glass containers and youre all set.


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## mtnmyke (Apr 27, 2017)

That's a great idea Johnnymms. It may also be a great way to keep 5 gallon buckets warmed before bottling, as I only have one honey blanket and those suckers are expensive. I'll definitely look online for a temperature controller as you described. How long did you leave the bucket before you'd say it was all fluid?

As for the hot tub experiment. I set the temp at 100 overnight and this morning checked on them. I wouldn't say they are perfect, yet, but are no longer hard as a rock! One of the bottles I added wasn't nearly as crystalized and that was nearly entirely fluid; so we know it's working. I'll check them again this evening but have the feeling it's a long process, which is fine. I'm sure it would go faster if I just tossed them in, but something about having bottles used for eating in a tub where people go to sweat seemed gross to me. Again, they are in a tub of clean water placed inside the tub water, inside the filter chamber.


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## JWPalmer (May 1, 2017)

If you are properly treating your hotub with bromine tabs, the water in it is probably more sterile than what comes out if your tap. Just sayin'.


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## mtnmyke (Apr 27, 2017)

I do use Bromine, and we have a well on the property, so you're probably right. Still, it's the thought of it haha


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## username00101 (Apr 17, 2019)

Personally, I think crystalized honey is in many ways better than liquid honey. I don't really know why someone would prefer the liquified honey, but to each their own.

There are some honeys that crystalize solid, like goldenrod - other honey's are more fluid in consistency and have a less "crunchy" consistency.


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## mtnmyke (Apr 27, 2017)

This stuff isn't the good kind of crystallization. It's sharp and nasty.

A few years ago I had some crystallize to be so smooth and delicious that I kept a lot of it and still use it.

Now I use that honey to seed the crystals in my creamed honey and honey butter.

So yes, crystallized honey can be good. It can also be terrible. All depends on the crystal structure and what you'd like to use it for.

People also won't buy crystalized honey, from experience, so the point it to rebottle and sell.


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## Hoot Owl Lane Bees (Feb 24, 2012)

We have a electric griddle about 14" x 25".
I have used it with plastic bottles. 
Just use the lowest setting and it takes about 4 - 5 hours.
Yes I melted a few before getting the temp correct.


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## Johnnymms (Feb 7, 2020)

mtnmyke said:


> That's a great idea Johnnymms. It may also be a great way to keep 5 gallon buckets warmed before bottling, as I only have one honey blanket and those suckers are expensive. I'll definitely look online for a temperature controller as you described. How long did you leave the bucket before you'd say it was all fluid?


it was about half a bucket full and it was on there for a little less than 24 hours before it was all liquid. However I did not wrap the setup in blankets to start and too much heat was escaping. Once I wrapped it the temp went up quickly. That may have resulted in some lost time.


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## mrbeer (Apr 4, 2017)

I use a 12volt cooler/ warmer. I bought a temperature controller and plug the cooler /warmer into the controller that I have set to 110 degrees. Put the crystalized honey in for 24 hours and presto, clear beautiful honey.


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## missybee (Sep 6, 2014)

A small light bulb in a cooler works great also. Keep it away from the bottles.


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## oldsap (May 1, 2016)

We use a chest freezer as a warmer. A $25 yard sale find. There is a drain hole in the bottom take out the plug. Run a cord through connect to a thermostat and that to a 100 watt bulb. Set the temp to 100-110 degrees. You can de-crystalize a 5 gallon bucket in 2 to 3 days. Then if not using to heat it stills works to freeze. Supers, frames, ice cream.


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## wolverine (Jan 21, 2010)

Like oldsap, I've converted a freezer(mine is upright) several years ago into a warmer with a 2 stage ETC. This is a little more expensive, as the ETC was over $100, but it works flawlessly. I just drilled a hole large enough to get the electrical wires through the wall and made a simple box frame with a piece of luan on top of 3 light fixtures to keep the bulbs from burning any buckets or jars that are close by. I can fit easily 4 5 gallon buckets and stack boxes of jarred honey on top of each bucket, plus whatever I can fit in door. I've also placed whole supers of honey that had crystalized and subsequently extracted. It doesn't require a large amount of electrical wiring knowledge either. If you're producing a lot of honey, though, having a larger honey warmer is a very important appliance to have in your toolkit.


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## Bluto (Feb 19, 2017)

johno said:


> I use one of those medical heating pads that are used to help on back and shoulder injuries. The one I use is about 10" by 14" and that fits neatly into the bottom of a polystyrene box into which I can get around 20 of the queenline jars. The one I have has a 3 position switch and I start on low and leave it run for a couple of days which generally does the trick but you can step up the power if you need it done more quickly. However avoid the pads that have a timer controlling the temperature.


This^^^^^^^^. All you need is an "always on" type heating pad. not one of the ones that auto-shuts off after 2 hours or whatever time. Works for me.


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## mtnmyke (Apr 27, 2017)

If only I had an old freezer or room for one. I could probably use a cooler with the heating pad but I searched everywhere and they no longer make the "always on" type. They all have timers if even being a few hours.

However, the hot tub worked like a charm! haha


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## [email protected] (Jul 9, 2020)

mtnmyke said:


> I made the mistake of using plastic queenline jars for honey and against my labeling, customers were still microwaving their honey. To my surprise, the plastic jars actually shrink and deform which squeezes out the honey making quite a mess! I tested this and only after 15-30 seconds they sure did deform!
> 
> I've since switched to glass queenline jars and pulled all my plastic ones from shelves. Now that I've left them sitting for a year or so I'm left with many boxes of crystalized honey in plastic jars I'm not sure how to get out. Because it's so much honey, I'd certainly like to liquify it and rebottle or use for creamed honey.
> 
> ...


Several years ago, I took a small refrigerator wine cooler and removed the refrigerant parts. I then threaded the electrical cord through the small opening in the back of the cooler and mounted a ceramic light fixture on the bottom. The bottom rack is high enough to clear the light bulb and low enough to fit a five gallon plastic pail. A pail of fully crystallized honey will liquify in about three days without overheating. Putting a bakers cooling rack in allows me to liquify honey in plastic containers without deforming the container or harming the honey. If the five gallon pail has a honey gate, I bottle without having to remove the pail. I control the temperature by using either 60 or 100 watt incandescent light bulbs. I process around two thousand pounds of honey a year using this.


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## mtnmyke (Apr 27, 2017)

Clever. An old fridge seems to be a good tactic, judging by how many people do this. For my 5gal pails I may need to look into it as they won't exactly fit in the hot tub. lol At least without filling with water.

Are you using a thermostat inline with your light bulb? I see you can buy plug in ones fairly cheaply with a separate temp. probe. And what temperature are you aiming for?


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## FL Bee Works (Jan 16, 2021)

Struttinbuck said:


> No advice on any kind of level but my own personal. I was told by a commercial guy one time to never go over 110 degrees if you wanted to keep the enzymes and the good stuff in tact. It always did work but it can take some time. Also made sense as far as the temperature of a beehive should rarely get over that also.


Thought it was 90 degrees???


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## [email protected] (Jul 9, 2020)

mtnmyke said:


> Clever. An old fridge seems to be a good tactic, judging by how many people do this. For my 5gal pails I may need to look into it as they won't exactly fit in the hot tub. lol At least without filling with water.
> 
> Are you using a thermostat inline with your light bulb? I see you can buy plug in ones fairly cheaply with a separate temp. probe. And what temperature are you aiming for?


I did not put in a thermostat since I am able to check the honey regularly. What I am looking for is to liquify the honey and I can check that by filling a jar directly from the honey warmer. If it still has crystals, the light stays on for a few more hours.


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## mtnmyke (Apr 27, 2017)

FL Bee Works said:


> Thought it was 90 degrees???


A brood chamber is over 90 so that wouldn't really make sense? Not to say they heat the supers that hot but it certainly gets over 90 in most of the country and not all honey is 'ruined'?


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## Cloverdale (Mar 26, 2012)

mtnmyke said:


> I made the mistake of using plastic queenline jars for honey and against my labeling, customers were still microwaving their honey. To my surprise, the plastic jars actually shrink and deform which squeezes out the honey making quite a mess! I tested this and only after 15-30 seconds they sure did deform!
> 
> I've since switched to glass queenline jars and pulled all my plastic ones from shelves. Now that I've left them sitting for a year or so I'm left with many boxes of crystalized honey in plastic jars I'm not sure how to get out. Because it's so much honey, I'd certainly like to liquify it and rebottle or use for creamed honey.
> 
> ...


I didnot read down to the other answers but make yourself a warming box with a 100 watt bulb and a dimmer switch. Works very well. Deb


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## FL Bee Works (Jan 16, 2021)

mtnmyke said:


> A brood chamber is over 90 so that wouldn't really make sense? Not to say they heat the supers that hot but it certainly gets over 90 in most of the country and not all honey is 'ruined'?


🤷‍♀️, I don't keep bees for honey, so dealing with it is hopefully going to a minimal issue for me, other than freezing frames to feed back.


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## srcadmus (Nov 4, 2019)

I use my warming drawer and set up a water bath to put the jars in. I select the lo setting but if you want to be real gentle and take a good bit of time the proof setting can be used. To speed things up you can use warm tap water to soak them in before placing in the warming drawer. Use thermometer to check temp of water bath occasionally to make sure not going above 100.


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## oldsap (May 1, 2016)

We use an Inkbird brand thermostat. About $35. It allows precise temperature setting. 105° will dechrystalize honey quite well. Plugs right in and is easy to use.


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## IdahoBeeman (Dec 26, 2019)

mtnmyke said:


> I made the mistake of using plastic queenline jars for honey and against my labeling, customers were still microwaving their honey. To my surprise, the plastic jars actually shrink and deform which squeezes out the honey making quite a mess! I tested this and only after 15-30 seconds they sure did deform!
> 
> I've since switched to glass queenline jars and pulled all my plastic ones from shelves. Now that I've left them sitting for a year or so I'm left with many boxes of crystalized honey in plastic jars I'm not sure how to get out. Because it's so much honey, I'd certainly like to liquify it and rebottle or use for creamed honey.
> 
> ...


I have been using a sous vide cooker it allows you to set the exact temp and it will never move from that temp.
If your not familiar with a sous vide and my spelling might be off a little Google it then go to YouTube to see how the work.
I used it on about 100lbs of solid honey in plastic bottles and It worked great.


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## ZooBee (Dec 11, 2020)

crofter said:


> Goodness gracious; just think of all that destroyed honey being sold!


Exactly! Buy from beeks you know. I tell ppl all the time " Know your Farmer "
This is the first year our honey has crystalized this soon! Also fortunate we sold most of it but the jars that remain we tell our ppl that this is natural and the crystal is superfine too. Taste just the same.
so far no one has complained. I guess you guys have more honey than you can sell in a season so that's tough problem, not being able to bottle it all.
Not there yet but I think we will continue to bottle it all.
Hot tub lmao, great idea. I have a Joule sous vide and that's what I would use in a cooler, not as $$$ as a hot tub lol, but still $.
YMMV,
Stay sweet,
sj


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## mtnmyke (Apr 27, 2017)

IdahoBeeman said:


> I have been using a sous vide cooker it allows you to set the exact temp and it will never move from that temp.
> If your not familiar with a sous vide and my spelling might be off a little Google it then go to YouTube to see how the work.
> I used it on about 100lbs of solid honey in plastic bottles and It worked great.


Clever! How low do these usually set to?
I may be able to free up my hot tub! And would it work in a larger container you could set a 5gal bucket in?


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## IdahoBeeman (Dec 26, 2019)

mtnmyke said:


> I do use Bromine, and we have a well on the property, so you're probably right. Still, it's the thought of it haha





mtnmyke said:


> Clever! How low do these usually set to?
> I may be able to free up my hot tub! And would it work in a larger container you could set a 5gal bucket in?


They make several Amp sizes the larger the Amp the more water it can heat up.
You could put the 5 gal in an ice chest 
And turn it to 109 degrees and let it go for days if need be


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## PAT FINN (Mar 26, 2015)

I personally enjoy the crystalized honey , creamy and does not run off my peanut and honey sanwich ... 

I have attempted to heat my crystalized honey ( 1 lb glass jars ) , I put a sheet of aluminum foil on my car windshield and placed the jars on top .. on a sunny day ( Pittsburgh , Pa ) 1/2 hour and then spin and an other 1/2 hour the crystals were gone and the honey was only warm to the touch .

now if I were to remove crystals in the honey , 3 lb mason jars , I would use my Sous Vide , set temperature at 108 F . 

I have not tried this technique , but it is a very controlled ( + - 0.5 F ) temperature .


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## mtnmyke (Apr 27, 2017)

Again, this honey is very sharp and not the good type of crystals. I have some creamed honey that we love and I use it to spread that crystal structure. It's so smooth! Yet, crystallized honey of any type doesn't sell well and the point here is to liquefy it to get back on shelves.

Several people have mentioned this Sous Vide. Since I don't have an old fridge or freezer, or space for a thermostat and heating element this may be a good option if I can set my 5g bucket in some water with it and leave it for a few days.

As an update, the hot tub at 104 has mostly worked. However, I may be just a few degrees off to get the job entirely done. It's 90% clear but there seems to be a small amount that just won't de-crystallize. It's thin enough to get back into a bucket so I'll just have to find a way to heat that to around 110 to finish it all off.


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## crofter (May 5, 2011)

Mtnmyke; I have noticed too that some crystals often remain unless a higher temperature is maintained for a while. Maybe some mineral salts or something parallel to the "sugar sand" that sometimes occurs in maple syrup.
In any case if those crystals are not fully dissolved, recrystallization occurs quite quickly. Perhaps refiltering would do the job if you were adamant about not using slightly higher temperatures.


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