Redneck Bathtub Evaporator

[JDP]

Just joined this forum. Thanks Everyone! Great info for us first timers. Plan on cooking every year now.
First year making syrup up here in Ontario Canada. Needed an evaporator and my 45 gallon drum was froze into the ground so we came up with this beauty. Turkey roaster pans for surface area to match the output of the tub surface. If we keep a boil on it we can do about 6 gallons of sap an hour or 1 gallon of maple syrup in in 6 hours. Our sugar maples are higher than 2%. Haven't tested sap but our boil times indicate it is closer to 3% I think.


40 buckets out
2-15 gallon storage containers
1-45 gallon drum for storage
1-250 gallon tank (if it really starts flowing)
1 bathtub evaporator (as attached)
2-ATV's and wagons for collection
1- Case tractor and wagon (if it really starts flowing)
Plan on running gravity lines on our sloped runs next year.

[spud]

I'm speechless. :o

Spud

[chad]

that's awesome, but I do have one question did you cut the bottom open so the flames are touching the pans?

[harrison6jd]

way to think outside the box. I love it.

[Ausable]

Love the picture. You wanted to make maple syrup and nothing stopped You. Good for You.

[Run Forest Run!]

Looks incredible JDP, but what are you going to do when you need to take a bath? Keep us posted with your syrup numbers this year!

[Cedar Eater]

Kudos for the design, but what exactly is that? I can't tell from the pic.

[Galena]

Looks like an ol' school ceramic bathtub turned upside-down with a door cut into the front. I'm guessing the hollow inside is the firebox and the pans on top are either sitting atop the bottom of the overturned tub, or perhaps sitting in cut-out inserts like Run Forest Run! also thinks.

Either way I think it's brilliant, The Professor from Gilligan's Island couldn't have done better himself :-)

[Big_Eddy]

I thought I'd seen everything. I guess not!
You should mount a faucet handle on the "door".

[js4fn]

funny I was just thinking today I want a Hot Tub

[JDP]

Update to questions
Tub has cut outs under pans for direct heat. Tested without cutouts but boil would drop off if fire was not fully stoked. We can put 4 ft pieces of wood in no problem and continuous boil is no problem. Cut outs also allow for wood loading if necessary.
As for taking a bath? That will have to wait til the sap stops flowing. LOL
The idea took on reality when I realized that the pots on the turkey fryer were porcelain???? The light bulb went on! The tub is also porcelain. We have the technology Houston. You know the tub is as clean as a whistle in the firepot! Porcelain can withstand incredibly high temps.
The bricks you see lining the sides of the tub are old clay reclaimed bricks that good old Google suggested could be fire brick substitutes! And boy do they work......No residual heat to keep us warm anymore!! All heat is directed inward to the pans and the sap within. We have to stand on the loading door end for some heat.
Sugar shack next year! I will upload a picture from today's operation sometime tommorrow. 3 turkey pans on boil with 4 alternate pans around the edges warming sap. The one pan nearest the chimney will actually boil.

Today we boiled 30 gallons of sap down to just over a gallon of syrup. Doing alright at better than 30 to 1 ratio!
Total time - 6 hrs- equaling 5 gallons an hour evap........hope to shave that down to 5 hrs on the next burn.

Anyway, she's working great and we have invested a grand total of $ 0.00 . That's right $0.00

My brain says we can up the anti next year. I have an old 250 gallon diesel fuel tank that was left by the farmer that rented the property years ago. I want to cut the top off that tank and drop another bathtub in it right side up. The tub will be a gigantic evaporator with a drain welded on to the actual tub drain. The drain will have a nipple and valve outside the firepot for draining to finish off n the Turkey fryer. The porcelain tub will act as one gigantic canning kettle able to withstand the constant heat of the fire in the tank.

Cant wait to figure out the gallons per hour boil rate for that puppy!

You know the OLD saying folks. "Necessity is the mother of invention"

Redneck Bathtub Evaporator - Patent Pending - LOL

It my be odd but she really works great!

JDP

[maple flats]

What did your wife say when she found out the tub was gone?

[saphound]

Love it JDP. Is the tub porcelain over cast iron? What did you cut it with? Thanks.


Edit: Thinking about next years model...it actually could be a Hillbilly Hot Tub the other 11 months of the year. You could mount a couple trolling motors around the sides for jets. :lol:

[Wizbi]

I did a similar concept a couple years ago. Worked well to about 7 gal per hour using 4 6" deep half-size buffet pans that are dropped into a surface plate which is clamped to the bathtub top.

Pictures attached.
11525 11526 11527

A friend named the rig: "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang". :)

[JDP]

Started holes with a torch then ran my sawzall to complete burners. Did 60 gallons of sap today in 10 hrs producing 10.75 litres or about 2 1/4 gallons of pure "Mountsberg Gold" maple syrup!

[JDP]

The Bathtub is decommishioned. Only I year. Expansion of operation neccicitated higher boil rate. We'll miss her but she is free to a good home or maybe Maple Traders Hall of Fame one day! LOL

Only a back up I guess unless a newbie nearby want to fire her up? 6-8 gph max

Also attached....
New rig a couple weeks ago. Almost done now. Just firebrick and insulation to add.

[Run Forest Run!]

That's a fabulous upgrade for you this year. I bet you are counting down the hours until collecting time.

[JDP]

oh ya.... this weather has us itching but we have resisted to tap. Will put taps in after this cold snap coming up.

Pretty exited to try out our New Evap, new 2 X 5 continuous flow pan, preheater pan, preheated copper tubing, AUF blower, 150 GPD R.O. ...........just missing AOF, something for next year I guess.

Biggest change next to Oil tank Evaporater is our new Sugar Shack.

18 X 16 ft attached to a 35 ft camping trailer. Living room looking out into Shack, fully operational Kitchen for finishing, Bathroom and tons of storage.
What a year this should be! weve come a long way. Hope to tap 75-100 trees on buckets and try some tubing in a fencerow full of mature maples.

Shack is remote so its solar and generators for power. If the battery/ solar will run the blower for 2-3 hours we can recharge overnight .

setting this all up and figuring it out is half the fun. I read Maple Trader and Sugarbush forums almost daily to gain more info. Ive become an addict!

Good luck in your operations this year Run Forest Run!

[Russ008]

So Cool !!!

[Run Forest Run!]

JDP, go big or go home eh? I'm sure jealous!