homemade evaporator

[maine guide]

7384738573867387I'm trying to upload pictures of my funky but effective double bar ell evaporator Hey that actually worked. this is my pretty cheap 2 gallon a day boiler. The stove on the left is the preheater. There is an arch under third ban and the heat is only an inch under the last two pans. I can get all 5 pans boiling at once and can do 80 gallons in a day. Check out the clever use of a third drum for the legs. The pipe staging is only there to attach the smokepipe to.

[jimmol]

Like the barrel stands! What do you use around the base of the first pan to seal it in?

[TerryEspo]

Impressive. Great GPH rate, you must be proud to be able to run 80 gallons a day, great job there.

Pics of your rig running would be awesome !!

Love the high pipe !!:evil:

Terry

[maine guide]

all the pans are sealed with woodstove gasket material The First or last pan is set in halfway as is the pan next to it. This is to keep scorching down. Its not airtight but its pretty good.I can get all 5 pans boiling. The best thing about this set up is I can move it to behind the barn after the season. There is no way I can have a permenent shack. The town won't allow me. My lot is too small. I got almost everything at the dump or at yard sales.

[Tom59]

Maine guide, looks impressive. Question for you. What is the reason for the tall stove pipe. Do you get better draft for burn rate or is it just for smoke clearance?

[maine guide]

when I first tested my new rig and to burn off the paint I burned a fire for about 2 hours. Only the center pan boiled and the whole thing was looking like a failure. I checked this site out and did several improvements.

1 Installed a grate made up of angle Iron and re-bar.

2 Installed the two tubes to bring air to the back of the fire.

3 Sealed up as many leaks around the pans as possible.

4 Made the stack 5 feet taller.

I don't know which of those improvements made more of a difference but afterward it was like a whole different animal. I can get a fire going easily and the firebox is three feet long so its just incredibly hot. Of course the barrel will only last a few seasons but its so cheap and easy to make I really don't care. Just toss it in back of the barn under a tarp till next year. Oh I would love a little sap house but thats not going to happen. Besides none of my taps are my trees. I make a deal with the neighbors but you know that can change. I do have a woodlot with 400 or so trees on it but its an hour away and down in a gully and getting the sap out would be a real drag. No power No plowed roads steep trails . I think I'll stay small time.