Thoughts on turkey fryer for finish

[Polish Wizard]

I see Lowes has a 30-quart propane turkey fryer temporarily available for $39, producing 38,000 btu's.
The pot is aluminum, and the unit price is usually $69.

I'm considering using this outdoor appliance to finish syrup once I take it off a barrel stove instead of mucking up my kitchen.
I plan to tap 10 trees for my first attempt at harvesting sap.

Does 38,000 btu's seem sufficient?
What are your thoughts about propane consumption for only doing the finish cook-off?

[Super Sapper]

The burner will work fine for finishing or heating but I would not use the aluminum pot. Get a stainless stock pot, the aluminum will end up with a hole eaten through it.

[OCHTO]

Get a 14 qt. stainless steel pot at wal-mart for about $13.00. Take your nearup to 219 degrees then use your hydrometer to get your syrup perfect. Propane will last for several batches. I use 2 for my 50 taps, works great and not that expensive.

[buckeye gold]

I have used a propane burner for years to finish and been very happy with it. I used one like the Lowes model for the last five years, but I bought a Bayou Classic high pressure jet burner this year and the difference is amazing. This thing puts out around 150,000 BTU and will boil near syrup in a heart beat. Now I just need to learn how and when to turn it down and regulate the heat. In my fall syrup i have had two finish batches go heavy before I knew it. In the long run I bet it will use less propane. It cost me around $50.00 for just the burner. Money well spent.

I run 100-125 taps and using the burner for just finishing I go through two or less 20lb tanks a season. At $17.00 a refill that's pretty reasonable cost for the control.

[mudr]

I agree with what these guys said, use the burner but stainless will last longer. I'd also suggest something a tad bigger than 14 quarts as that is 3.5 gallons. Let's say you are finishing 3 gallons (it may not happen this year but maybe if you add taps later). That is only a half gallon of head space. 5 gallon pot might work well. I'm assuming (will let others chime in here since I'm a rookie myself), that you'd prefer a slightly thicker pot for finishing in,unlike in an evaporator. Being slightly thicker would prevent real hot spots and scorching, right?

[buckeye gold]

mudr makes a good point. You will want a deep pot to keep it from boiling over. I doubt you'll be finishing any larger batches with ten trees so you won't need a very big one, but I bet you will do more taps in the future. Just like an evaporator pan you'll need the head space to prevent boil over. I do not like the heavy pots at all, they rob too much heat. I am constantly watching for thin walled pots. When I burn one out it's served it's purpose and I move on. I have one that I used for 5 years I retired this year, it was an old water canner pot and I loved it. I made the mistake once of buying a high end stainless pot that I was sure would last me forever and boy was I disappointed....it took forever to finish in. All that metal robbed heat like crazy. I since have converted it to a filter pan. I do not have any luck finding new pots that I like, so I watch auctions and second hand stores for them. I just bought a nice 20 qt one this summer at an auction for $7.00. Since your small you can find something pretty easy that works for you. However, the odds are your going to expand, so look ahead grasshopper.