homemade evaporator and using it

[farmer12071]

I have a homemade evaporator made out of a double basin stainless steal commercial sink that holds 40 gallons right to the top that I welded patches over the drain holes and welded in 1/2"stainless fittings for drains in each bay,i have the sink on an old woodstove that I cut the top out of,i've been using this set up for about 4yrs and it works great I start the fire with the first 100 gallons of sap I just keep adding sap all season long as it evaporates off and I keep my fire kind of like I was burning a normal woodstove at the end of the season when the sap has slowed or trees have budded or I've had enough I drain the the sink off and finish it in 5 gallon stainless milk pails on an old cast iron 2 burner propane camp stove,the last 2yrs I've been getting 15-20 gallons of nice rich dark syrup that everyone loves,my question is if I run it with a few inches of sap and a roaring fire can I boil off more and still use the same amount of wood right now I've been using 1-1and a half cords of wood a year and I fill my evaporator right full at night fill the firebox and go to bed I get up in the morning and do the same and go to work,i've never had an issue and have never burnt any syrup I was always told by my grandfather and a few other old timers around here that if you work or have a farm to take care of and still wanna make syrup slow batch boiling is the way to go and I've been doing it for a few years with great success,i want to know what the real benefits are of boiling hot and fast and if I did it how much wood would I burn,

[happy thoughts]

If it ain't broke don't fix it.

IMHO shallow boils are better suited for continuous flow set ups. I boil in steam pans on a block arch which is about the same batch boiling as you're doing. I run my pans deep and stop adding to them an hour or so before I want to quit. When I ran them shallower I just ended up with a lot darker syrup and more burned sugar on the sides. I really see no benefit from running them shallower in your situation. It seems like you've worked out a system that works pretty well for you. I'd stay with it :).

Have a great season! Hope it's already started for you.

[Ausable]

Hey Farmer - I agree with Happy thoughts. You have worked out a system that works for You and Your Family. I batched boiled for years - Just not as as long as You. Why change - It works for You. Batch boiling is more relaxed - You don't have to watch things as close and Your style of batch boiling is really - really relaxed and that is good. The only time You have to really pay attention is when You convert Your Near Syrup to Maple Syrup. I now have a basic home made continuous flow evaporator and being I normally boil by myself - I'm busy and have to pay attention - but I'm an old guy and long retired and it works for me. Main thing is to have Fun and make the kind of Maple Syrup that pleases You.

[farmer12071]

I have had a lot of people tell me that I could boil more per day and still use about the same amount of wood,for the past 2 or 3yrs I've been safe with 1-2 cords of wood I go through about 70-100 gals of sap a day really couldn't tell how much sap in hours I just keep adding to as it evaporates and on the days where I can watch it a little closer i poke a little more fire to it,my system that i use is the same as my grandfather and his father used except a little more modern they use to do it in a big cast iron couldren and stove base in the front yard,but they always used a slow method and batched boiled to get the dark syrup,i've seen hundreds of gallons of that expensive light syrup that everyone is after get dumped back in at the end of the season for dark,everyone i give to and sell to want the dark i have very few that want light,i like my setup i can come and go and don't have to worry much,

[4 Paws Sugar Shack]

I need everyone's input here. So long story short I have a 2x6 divided pan but I wasn't able to build a wood burning arch this year. So I have built a block arch in the sugar shack with a burner with 3, 1" black iron pipe manifold.( Like a grill) the propane company won't tie into because it doesn't have a UL listing on it. So the problem starts here, it starts fine with a 20lb tank and regulator on it but dies down as the pressure equalizes. It has a 1/8" line from a turkey cooker feeding it. Should I try a 1/4" line or should I just tie each tube to its own fuel source so I can run 20lbs max pressure to each individually? I'm running out of time to get it set up 😨