evaporator balance

[John Burton]

Is it me or do some evaporators balance therre boil between front and rear pans better than others.Now i realize that some factors come into play .bricking firing etc... but it seems that some rigs just out perform others of the same size and even size and brand combined. I am not tring to say that raised or droped flues are better or that leader is better than waterloo or algier . just curious cause this 2x6 im on ought to go better than it does.

[mountainvan]

my old 2x6 did 25gal/hr, 5gal/hr less than what the company stated it would do. I think they kinda up the gal/hr for reasons I won't go into, not ranting today. car makers do the same thing with mpg, is almost always lower than stated. they must have all been fisherman in a former life. as for your rig, just make sure you've got the arch as well insulated as you can, then add on the "extras", blower, preheater, bubbler,etc. as you want. and yes I think some rigs preform better that others. I've boiled on grimm/leader Lightning raised flue, waterloo-small intensofire, and dominion-grimm dropflue airtight arch. My personal preference is the later.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

I have a 2x8 and stock, it would do around 35 gph. With a preheater and an inferno arch, I got 55gph yesterday. 500 gallon of sap in 9 hours. I normally get around 50 but I had very good wood yesterday.

How is your wood?? Has it been seasoned for a couple of years and in the dry for at least 6 months. Under tarps don't cut it as it won't let the moisture escape and it sweats. The biggest key is wood. The best stuff is old dead limbs laying in the woods. Most don't have to split and they are already seasoned and will burn like mad. :D

[Sugarmaker]

As far as wood: we burn pallets and I haven't seen a hotter fire. We do have to stoke it a lot but man do they burn. We have a very steady roiling boil in all portions of the evaporator. and some tomes have to dial the power draft down to keep the stack from getting red. (3 x 10) Drop flue, 3 x 5 pans.
Chris

[WRMAPLE]

John I have a Grimm raised flue 3 X 10 and experience better balance and performance by placing asbestos rope under the pans before I level them. Sometimes a little difficult keeping the sap in the rear pan. But i believe the evap rate is worth the water I lose out of the pan. It make a huge difference.

[mapleman3]

consistent firing is the key, when I was wood firedand blower on my 2x6, I would get 30-35gph if I fired every 8 minutes by timer without missing a beat!! the fire stayed steady the boil always there and a steady stream out the drawoff... now with oil(insulated real real good)... I'm right near 40gph, some may not believe that but thats what I got

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

I need some expert opinions concerning wood. I have always burned hardwood but I know a lot burn slab wood. Which will burn the best or should I say give the highest gph evap rate. I have basically free access to either and I have only burned hardwood?? Is slab wood higher gph as I mainly burn locust which is the highest btu wood there is??

[mountainvan]

brandon, if I want to burn really hot I use dried ash split 3". It does'nt have as many btu's/cord as locust or sugar maple but it burns great and really boils the sap.

[sapman]

When I used to burn wood, the best we got was reject pallet wood, about 1/4"-3/4" thick, and about 3" wide. We'd cross stack it, leaving air space, and get it to about 8-12% moisture. I had forced draft, and would get 70-80 gph on a 2.5X8, no steamaway then. Sometimes 90 gph for short periods. Those were the days of very sore backs after boiling all night long.

Tim

[brookledge]

Brandon
Brad Gillian from Leader did a presentation to our association and he recomends that a mix of hardwood and softwood is best. When you add wood some of the heat is used to ignite the new wood. Hard wood takes longer to begin burning so if you add some softwood it will ignite faster. And on the other end softwood will burn up faster so the hardwood will help out then.
Also very important to split the wood up into small sizes. For a 2' wide evaporator wood should be 2-3 inches in dia. Large wood will block the flame from going up towards the pans.
I burn mostly pine and hemlock slabs primarily because I can get them free. I do try to mix a little hardwood in. I have also burned palletts and other than having to pull the iron out after I can definately say that they burn very hot.
Keith

[maplehound]

Brandon,
I too prefer to use locust if I can get it. a fellow sugaar maker that I know asked a man who fired steam engians what he would recomend and he said too that a mix of hard and soft is best. So I ussuallly try to mix it if possible but still hate to turn down locust if it is available.
Ron

[RUSTYBUCKET]

Tim, 70-80 GPH on a 2.5x8 thats cooking. We use whatever I'm cutting out of the forest. Its usually a mix of red maple, sugar maple and oak. I've go some knotty pine chunks that I'll throw in the mix for next year.