Test Boil

[backyardsugarer]

Wow! 8O I boiled water for the first tme on my 2 by six and I can't believe how fast it was. I had the back pan dancing after sbout 50 minutes. Now all I need is some sap flow. I did not get the syrup pan up to a boil. Is that common? I shut down soon after getting the back pan boiling.

Chris

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Chris,

It will be a lot easier to get the syrup pan boiling when you are making syrup than with water because you have a lot of sugar in the syrup pan versus none with water. As you start using it, you will learn certain things and techniques that will work to improve things. It takes me about 30 minutes or less to have both my pans boiling pretty good on my 2x8. You can probably get the back pan boiling in 10 minutes if you really fire it good from the start.

Good luck, sure will have a lot of fun! :D :D

[Salmoneye]

Ayuh...

50 minutes is way long IMHO...

Be sure you are not afraid to put the wood right to it...Dryer the better of course...Make sure you have as many of the air leaks into the firebox plugged or gasketed (as in ceramic blanket)...Since the doors on most arches do not sit completely flush, I have seen people glue strips of gasket material around the edges of the doors with cilica cement to better seal them...Much like a 'rope' seal on a woodstove door...

[backyardsugarer]

It took that long because I was warming up the fire brick gradually as I was told to do the first time. I can't wait to give it some good seasoned wood :lol:

Chris

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Chris,

Probably a good thing to do. I was told by an old timer before I did my test boil not to get too much fire on the grates the first time also as the first fire was what cured them. I don't know, but better safe than sorry! :D

Soon it will be sap and you can't get too much fire under that! :D :D