should i add fire brick to my arch.

[rookie]

I have a home made arch made from a 55 gallon drum. i don't think i've got it burning hot enough. should/ can I add fire brick or should I put a grate in it to get the wood closer to the pan? i'm open for suggestions. . . . yesterday it took me 4 + hours to boil ten gallons of sap. ( i only have a 2x2 pan), but it seems very inefficient

[rookie]

c'mon guys one of you has to have an answer for me. theres a lot of knowledge on this site

[Southtowns27]

Firebrick will help your efficiency, but not a whole lot on a small rig like yours. Grates might if you can get air underneath them. This will help introduce oxygen under the fire thus resulting in a hotter more complete burn. How big is your firewood? On your rig it should be about kindling size, maybe only an inch or two in diameter. Keep the firebox no less than half full and criss-cross the wood as you load it to help the air to penetrate the pile. How big is your smoke stack? Taller is better as it will help pull a stronger draft. How deep do you run the sap in your pan? Any more than 1.5" will slow you wayyy down. Got any pics of your setup? We might be able to spot something that will help you out.

[rookie]

my chimney goes up 3 feet then 90's out the wall and goes up another 6-7 feet or so to be above the peak of my roof, maybe its diameter is to small i think its only 4". i've been burning big wood i guess. 2x6 chunks and some 1x8 1x10 boards. I definitly want to get a new set up next year. my buddy is a welder and i'm gonna see if ican con him in to making me a new pan and I've got another drum I can turn into an arch

[jc_lamere]

Get some insulation in your arch. Since it's a barrel arch board would not really work well, but ceramic insulation would. The insulation should be rated for 2100+ degrees and this will help keep the heat from going out the sided and push it up under the pan.

[rookie]

where could I get that . . . never heard of it. is it expensive

[rookie]

you said i should try ceramic insulation? where can i get that?

[whalems]

check e-bay they have lots or try this http://www.indfirebrick.com/

[TapME]

southtown27 has the right idea. red hard brick a grate of some kind to get the fire up to the pans. Let as much air in and burn that wood. No more than 2'' in the pan and keep it there. Hope this helps

[Brent]

A 4" stack with 2 x 90 bends would be minimal.

Try the grate and smaller wood as suggested above.
What size if the draft door to let the fresh air in? I would think it should be 40 to 50 sq. in.

A fire brick wall may help force the heat up to the pan before it goes up the stack. Go to the Leader Evaporator web site and under Information get the instructions for the
Half Pint evaporator and try to set it up like one of them.

Two gallons an hour is a bit low. You might be able to double that when you get everything going well. From memory the Leader Half pint is supposed to do about 6 GPH in standard set up.

[rookie]

do you think going straight through the roof would help? thanks for the advice i'll check out the site

[Brent]

Straight up would be better for sure. Just make sure you have lots of clearance to anything flamable. If you getting really rockin and rollin, its possible to get the bottom of the stack glowing dull red, so near the roof it will still be really really hot.

[Southtowns27]

A 4" stack is too small, IMO. Rearranging it so it's straight up with no elbows will help, but I think going to 6" will be a huge improvement. As was mentioned, ceramic blanket will help you out in lieu of firebrick. It's an insulating blanket that's maybe 3/4" thick and will easily contour to your half of a 55 gal drum. The stuff isn't real expensive, but it will get damaged if you stab it with firewood. The idea behind it is that it will help keep the heat in your arch rather that radiate it to the surrounding air (thus transferring more heat to your pan). I really think you can live without it. It will help a lot if you split your wood in half. The smaller it is, the easier it is to ignite and will transfer heat energy to your pan sooner and more quickly as larger wood. The only drawback is that you have to fire the evap more frequently, but that usually isn't much of an issue. You'll likely need to fire that thing no less than every 3 to 4 minutes. Show us some pictures!!

[Brent]

Leader puts a 6" stack on the Half Pint. I think that makes the 4" clearly undersized.

[jmp]

Hi Rookie. I lined mine with firebrick. Good luck! -John

[TapME]

Hi Rookie. I lined mine with firebrick. Good luck! -John

nice pics. shows what needs to be done.. Stack may be a little undersized but if you are on a budget it works. straight through the roof would help the draft for sure. Remember you want to have fun

[Brent]

Keep in mind that firebricks are very poor insulator. In most cases they are put in to protect insulation. In the case of small rigs like barrel and Half Pint arches, they create a wall to force the heat up to the pan.
Ceramics give roughly 13 times the insulation value of firebrick.

[tjintheshop]

I would add them. Last year we built a 2x6 arch and just threw in the regular red brick packed with sand. The sides of the evap were very hot. Now with the combo of archboard andfirebrick, I can briefly touch the sides of the arch without burning. All the heat is up in the pans. My sides are made out of 3/16ths steel which is heavier than most arches out ther though. Found mine at Menards for 10 bucks for a box of six.

[70 Buick]

I put ceramic blanket arch board & firebrick in mine

Ceramic blanket

http://shootthebull.freeforums.org/download/file.php?id=189&t=1

Archboard

http://shootthebull.freeforums.org/download/file.php?id=187&t=1

Firebrick

http://shootthebull.freeforums.org/download/file.php?id=193&t=1

6 inch pipe straight through

http://shootthebull.freeforums.org/download/file.php?id=199&t=1

[70 Buick]

I used the correct box to pass through the ceiling also

http://shootthebull.freeforums.org/download/file.php?id=194&t=1

[rookie]

i picked up some fire bricks today, also i talked to my boss and he said to section off my arch, and have a smaller fire box, and a sloped shallow passageway to the back of my arch where the smoke goes up, if that makes sence ( not sure how to explain it) I might try to increase the size of my chimney and put in ceramic blanket next year. money is an issue. . . i'm also putting in a grate. now i just need to find time to do it, before saturday working 40 + hours with a 2 hour round trip and try to have quality time with the family, hmmm we'll see

[rookie]

I made those adjustments to my arch, and it increased my rate from about 2 gph to over 3, almost 4! still not great but a lot better. still want to make more changes for next season. definitely a bigger stack, and add some ceramic blanket under my fire brick. the brick went in the barrel arch pretty nicely, i laid it lengthways in the arch and it went right up the curves of the barrel gradualy.

[backyard sugaring]

Rookie check out TMS studios in Lowell Mass. for ceramic blanket. I bought a roll 48" x 24' for $60.00 2400 rated for my oil fired evaporator. Ceramic blanket will be a big improvement in forcing the heat to your pans. Good Luck