My Hood is done

[mapleman3]

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Well the hood is finished, preheater plumbed up and test fired, I had close to 180 deg then it dropped down to 150+... so I may need a damper. I did get some leaking between the side of the hood and the bottom , so I dried everything up and siliconed the top of the channel to the side of the hood. well see how that does. I have a thermometer in the output to the floatbox and one in the hood itself... that one was around 200+

Here are some pics. Click pic to make bigger

http://img515.imageshack.us/img515/444/dscn1918gy3.th.jpg (http://img515.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dscn1918gy3.jpg)

http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/3194/dscn1920ou3.th.jpg (http://img213.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dscn1920ou3.jpg)

http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/966/dscn1922ve4.th.jpg (http://img213.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dscn1922ve4.jpg)

http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/1672/dscn1925gg6.th.jpg (http://img213.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dscn1925gg6.jpg)


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[mapleman3]

And one more

http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/3118/dscn1919rp3.th.jpg (http://img213.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dscn1919rp3.jpg)

[Dave Y]

Mapleman,
That is a nice looking hood you built. Preheater looks good too!
Nice job! Good luck!

[mapleman3]

Thanks Dave
total cost with the aluminum,copper and some freebies around $195

I got the stainless 8"stack-free
thermometers-free
some copper I had from doing the heating in my house years ago

[Sugarmaker]

Jim,
Very nice job on the hood and preheater! I like the temp gages, you will too so that you can see how it preforms! You don't have to skim any more either a nice additional benefit of the steam hood. You should be ready to go, all plumbed in and set up! I like the diamond plate doors!

Regards,
Chris

[Sugarmaker]

Jim,
A stack damper should allow you to get the full 200 deg F on the out going sap. But also depends on how much sap is moving through the preheater. My guess is that a damper will allow you to get 200 deg consistently from the preheater.
I also see temp drop off, if I have to draw a lot of sap through the preheater to compensate for a big draw off.
I have )10) 3/4 inch tubes about 4 feet 6 inches long and we boil about 80-90 GPH.

Did you vent the preheater at the high end?

Regards,
Chris

[mapleman3]

thanks Chris, I was out of alum. I bout a 4x10 sheet and used almost every scrap of it, so when at the hardware store I saw the Alum diamond plate and said "OH YEAH BABY" though it would look cool, plus its a heavier gauge for the doors

[brookledge]

Jim
It looks good hope it cranks up your boiling rate.
Keith

[TapME]

nice looking job. hope it wooks out better than you expect

[mapleman3]

Chris yes I put a 1/4" vent on the high end before it dumps down to the float box valve, it goes up to the feed tank....

I suppose I'll have to make a damper, I'll pick up some alum rod , I have a small piece of diamond plate alum left I can use. have to figure out houw to lock it in the position I want.

Keith and TapMe I figure it has to do better than none at all... I'm really looking forward to some hot water from it too, hopefully I wont have to run in the house as much for hat water for the filters.

[HanginAround]

Looks great, thanks for sharing the pics.

[Sugarmaker]

Jim,
You should get several gallons of hot water per hour.
For setting the damper, here is what I did. Let the rod extend 1-1/2 inch past the pipe on the side opposite the handle. place a flat washer over the rod, add a stiff compression spring, and another washer and a cotter pin through a hole in the rod. This puts constant tension on the damper and should allow you to set it any position you want.
Also the handle on the damper will get 200 deg F also so be careful. or just don't spend a lot of time hanging on to it.;)
Regards,
Chris

[brookledge]

You can buy a 8" damper for a few bucks then just paint it with rust proof paint
Keith

[tapper]

Jim,

Nice job on the hood! Its as much fun making your own as it will be using it.

[royalmaple]

Jim-

Awesome looking hood. You did a heck of a job. Let me know when you got more spare time and whip me up a 30x5'.

[Fred Henderson]

Very nice looking work. I can see that you take great pride in the things that you build. Why did you reduce the float intake pipe size?

[mapleman3]

The float intake has been 3/4 " since I bought it of Mike in VT, it has always(probably just jinxed myself huh? )gave me good flow, never thought about it being a bigger feed. but then again the preheater is all 3/4 now so that should be ok?

Thanks and yes I do take pride in building it, I figure it has to look good and function great too, I'm sure if my customers came in and saw a hodge podge rickety ole thing they may think twice about buying syrup from me... it may not be as shiny as stainless but she'll do the job.

I didnt get squat for sap tonight, I'm taking tomorrow off to finish up the tapping and get the vacuum going.

Tonight is probably my last night to relax for a month ;) bring on those till 2am boilings

[Russell Lampron]

Jim,

Nice looking hood and pre heater. You are going to like the increased efficiency. You will also like it when the sugarhouse isn't full of steam.

Russ

[Fred Henderson]

That hood and preheater should cut down on a few late nights.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Awesome job there friend!!!!!!!!

[sweetvt]

Mapleman or any trader who has fabbed their own hood, Where is a source to find the aluminum sheets? Also I don't have access to a bending brake so is it still possible to bend aluminum without one and how? what is the gauge or thickness to use? Mapleman3,it looks like from your picutres that your hood is built in 3 sections, two sides rivited to the top and 2 end pieces? how did you end up bending and sealing up the drip edge of the hood? Sorry about all the questions but hoping to get to build a hood before the season gets going here.

[mapleman3]

I bought mine from a metal fabrication shop, you can usually get it there or a metal distributer/scrap yard. mine is .40 gauge aluminum it came in a 4x10 sheet for $65.

I used a siding break, we have an old one at work, but you can rent them from home depot and other rental places... they use it for doing trim work around doors and window when they re side a house... the gauge I used was just light enough to use on it.

actually it is 5 peices... 2 sides a top and 2 ends... I was going to make the top and sides all in one but the break I used was only 14" deep... some are 18"

some of the seams /corners I brazed using dura fix rod for aluminum. then the drip channel I used 100% clear silicone... I just hope it holds up.. if it lasts 1 season I'm happy, then I will just reseal it again next year I guess.

[mapleman3]

Well I sugared the pans last night but I wasn't too happy with the hood... it leaked more than I wanted... I had water running down the sides of the pack pan... yes I did have some going to the bucket from the condensate, but what I figure it the steam is condensating bettwen the bottom channel and the top of the pan, my pan has a flat on top, and my channel on the hood doesn't sit perfectly flat in many places(my fabrication) so now I may cut the channel and have a heavier one made and welded up for me... then I will have the hood sit just inside the outer edge of the channel....and it wont be wider than the top flatpart of the back pan... anybody get condensate between the hood and pan???

[Sugarmaker]

Neil,
Hows the hood coming?
Jim D,
We get a few drips on or hood at the corners. I had to take mine off and add water inside to find where the drips were then I had the seams welded in the corners ( Stainless hood).
Can you re-weld them with the Aluminum welder system? I dont get much condensate out the rip channel on my back hood. I may still have some leaks and maybe its going back in the pan? I just keep boiling!
Do you have less steam in the room??;)

Sugarmaker

[mapleman3]

Hi Chris, I'm boiling without it for a few days as I get time to work on it... I think i can reseal it, just need to do that when I'm not boiling ;)

[maple flats]

I'm going to make a hood this week for my 3x8 raised flue rig. I ordered 1 coil of unpainted 36" wide coil stock from my local true value hardware. This is the same ga used to trim windows/doors but unpainted. Cost was $71.99 for 36" x 50'. I have my design covering the 6' flues pan and then extending out over the 2' syrup pan just over 1/2 way (similar to what WVMapler has). On raised flue I will end up with about 12" elevation over the syrup pan the way i designed it. My question is- I have planned 2- 10" diam stacks for the steam, does this sound too much-too little? I think I will extend the stacks into the cupola and make a rain/bird/bat hat over it and wrap it in alum screen. How does the 2 x 10" stack sound guys? PS, I have apparently lost access to a tin shop i used on my last evap for my hood. The old man has fully retired and looks like the grandson who was taking over gave up, doors always locked, days, eves, weekends. I will be using my 10.5' trim brake from my siding days.

[Sugarmaker]

Maple flats,
I have a 10 inch steam stack on a 3 x 5 flue pan. That seems about right then I have another 10 inch dia steam stack on the hood on the front pan also which is a 3 x 5 but the hood is only 2 x 4 feet.
Good luck with the hood fabrication!


Mapleman3,
Hope you can get time to repair the hood and get it back in service.

Sugarmaker

[Dave Y]

MapleFlats,
I have two 10" steam stacks that are 3ft long going in to my cupula. The flue pan is 3x9 and it pulls the steam out completely. my front pan is 3x3 w/same sized stack an there ar no problems w/that one either.

[hookhill]

We just finished a aluminum hood for a 2.5x5 raised flue pan. The aluminum came from a steel supplier and we used a 4' brake and shear at work. We had to bend the hood from 2 pieces and then screw them together. The gauge was .025 but I thought it was a bit to thin. Maybe .022 would have been better. The drip channels are sealed with clear silicone as well as the drip pan. Hopefully that will work. I wanted to get some of those dura fix aluminium rods but they want $45 for them. The hood and pre-heater came out just ok. Things usually come out better when you are not in a hurry like we are right now!! Good luck.

Jim

[maple flats]

OUCH, I made a big mistake. As posted above I had ordered a 36" wide coil of aluminum trim ciol unpainted. I listened as the store clerk placed the order and said I needed a heavier guage than plain roof flashing. When I go pick it up guess what I got. 36" wide roof flashing. Being in a hurry I took it anyway and said I would have to make it work. It will not bend correctly. I put it in the brake and when I make a bend over 90 degrees it is so hard that it cracks, it actually tears when manuevering the sheet to work on it. Now I have a 42' 5" long piece of garbage and one piece 87.5" long that is reshaped garbage. I should have known better than to take it when I knew it was not what had been ordered. Now I'm not sure what to try. Do I make a light wt wood framework and attach this to it to get thru 1 season or go get the right stuff. I can get alum sheets about 25 miles away in many degrees of hardness but I have lost another day. Most likely can't return the remaining flashing as it was special order and I USED SOME. Back to the drawing board. I need a hood because my cupola is too small for this new evap or I need to enlarge the cupola which would take too long. My first boil should be this weekend. Any ideas?

[RileySugarbush]

Can you put a box fan or two in your cupola? Not elegant, but it will probably help.

[HanginAround]

I think you could probably make a pretty good 2"x2" frame and cover it with your flashing.

[maple flats]

Thanks for the ideas but I changed everything. I went and bought some 3x8 sheets of aluminum .032 (the lightest they had) @ $27/sheet and some 1 x 1 x 1/8" u channel. I will now make the hood as originally planned except I am making a drip channel to be riveted to the bottom with one corner extending out 2-3-4" for condensate drain. Next season I will add a preheater to this. The channel will be mitered and welded with some rod I used to repair my irrigation pipe. It does up with a propane or mapp gas torch and works like brazing. Has proven very strong in the past when I repaired 2", 3" and 4" irrigation pipe with a centrifical pump giving about 70psi and a constant high frequency vibration, never had one fail.
Dave

[sweetvt]

Maple flats,
curious as to how much you paid for the alum u channel?? your idea is sounds like what I am planning(hoping) to do this weekend, I was going to rivet the alum. sides onto the u channel. and then braze the 45 deg corners of the u channel, If you get it done some photos would be great After I read your post I went and checked on the flashing idea and I concluded that the stock flashing would have been too thin for what I had hoped to do.

Keep us posted.

[maple flats]

I paid $21/16' piece for the u channel. They didn't have 1/16 inch thick or it would have been 1/2 that I think because they sell it by the pound. They had a huge selection, lots of shapes and dimentions at this wholesaler but not in lighter weights. They even had round rod up to about 8 or 10" diameter if you need some, in 16' lengths, but don't worry it's light, it's aluminum. (at $2.75/#)
Dave

[maple flats]

I cut and bent all of the parts for my hood tonight. This .032 is a little heavy for a siding trim brake but I got it done ok. When finished I will get some pictures and post them if I can figure it out. Tomorrow I won't be able to work on it very long because of other demands but hope to finish Sat or Sun.
Dave

[maple flats]

Today I did get most of it riveted together, just a little more on the hood to do before my first boil.

[mapleman3]

Do yourself a favor and have the hood go into the drip channel, I had my drip channel on the inside and it leaked between the hood sides and channel, so bow I just finished re working the hood into a new (professionally)welded drip channel, 1.5x1.5x1.5" it sits nice n flat on the pan hopefully not too mach condensation will drip between hood and pan.

[mapleman3]

Well the hood is back on after the needed adjustments and its working perfectly. good steady 180+ and a good stream of condensate coming out. just a drip here and there from between the hood and pan, nothing to worry about... I have about 3+ hours worth of sap and will go out later collect and boil tonight. going to be a big week I think!!