Exciting times: new evaporator and maybe shack

[mudr]

After two years of running my craptastic 4 steam pan rig, I have put in a deposit on a 2x6. Looking forward to running a real rig next year. I had some extra funds come available after I placed the order on the rig. So now my wife, who is more than just supportive but an active participant in my operation, said we need to build a shack this year. I was initially hoping for 2017. Now I'm trying to figure out prices and when to do it. It might happen in September. We may lean heavily on my brother, who is a very talented and skilled carpenter. I'm not really good at that stuff. Give me a drill and I can drill where needed. Give me a saw and I can cut. Designing a building? Not so much. I'm a better laborer, so I need guidance.

Thinking 16x24, 3x8 cupola. 8 or 10 ft walls, want to be able to put in a lean too later that my head won't hit, and I'm 6 ft 4.

Exciting times my friends!

[MISugarDaddy]

Congratulations on the new evaporator and the opportunity to also add a new sugarhouse to house it. I would suggest the taller walls because as with everything else, the bigger the better. Good luck with everything this summer, hopefully you can get started before September so you have it all closed in and finished on the outside before Mother Nature starts making it not so fun to be working outside.
Gary

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Heck with the evaporator and shack, congrats on the wife :lol: It sure is nice to have their support, if not a necessity. I'm sure you have read other posts on here about shack sizing. I personally wouldn't go any smaller than 24x24 but you can only do what you can afford sometimes. At the very least, build what you can for now and plan the site for an easy expansion.

[Super Sapper]

Go with the higher walls. I put an 18 x 18 pole shed addition onto my garage. I put in a bottling room and a loft above it covering 11 of the 18 feet. We use 2 x 8 southern yellow pine perlins with only trusses at the ends so it is open in the loft area. I went with 10 foot wall but a couple feet higher would have been real nice in the loft area.

[BAP]

Make sure it is high enough to have a place to put a feed tank for the evaporator. I would have your brother help you plan your building so that you end up with a building you are happy with. If there is any sugarhouses near you, see if you can look at them to get ideas.

[mudr]

Thanks guys. Yeah, I'm leaning towards 10 ft walls. That way I have more space and will be able to hang a lean-too in the future without worrying about hitting my head. The extra cost will be taller posts and longer board and batten. I'm hoping to talk to my uncle-in-law, the guy who got me into maple in the first place. He has a mill and 45 acres, sells lumber, and has cut a lot of board and batten. Not looking for a handout, but, I know he won't stick it to me. :) About head space for a head tank- I just picked up a 300 gal milk tank. I think I might have it elevated outside. More posts to sink but I feel like it is a simpler system, gravity works all the time.

About the wife, yes, she is handy. It's her extended family that got me into maple. She grew up helping out, so she knows it and likes it. I guess I will keep her.

[georgelineman]

Hey Mudr, Wow that is Exciting! You may want to fix one thing. You said in your post "So now my wife, who is more than just supportive but an active participant in MY operation... Yea, You might want to change that to OUR operation!!!
Get going snow will be flying before you know it.
george

[mudr]

Hey Mudr, Wow that is Exciting! You may want to fix one thing. You said in your post "So now my wife, who is more than just supportive but an active participant in MY operation... Yea, You might want to change that to OUR operation!!!
Get going snow will be flying before you know it.
george


ahem....oops...:-|

[motowbrowne]

Congrats on the big upgrades!!

My only suggestion would be to check with whoever you're purchasing the rig from to see how much extra a 2x8 would cost. The extra 2' of flue pan will really increase your boiling rate and usually doesn't cost too much more.

[mudr]

Thought about the 2x8, but I really can't swing it now. I've got two kids under 5 and my wife and I both work full time. As it is, I will be a bit overgunned in the evaporator department with a 2x6, as I will probably have 75-80 the next couple of years. To feed a 2x8, I'd need more taps, improve my collection methods ($$) right away and have more storage ($$) right away, on top of the extra cost of a 2x8 being added to an already high dollar expense. I figure I can get up and running with the 2x6, get the shack, expand to 250 or so, and then get an RO once I have recouped financially. I appreciate the suggestion, however.

[DaveB]

I think you're fine with a 2x6.

Congrats on the upgrades!

[motowbrowne]

Thought about the 2x8, but I really can't swing it now. I've got two kids under 5 and my wife and I both work full time. As it is, I will be a bit overgunned in the evaporator department with a 2x6, as I will probably have 75-80 the next couple of years. To feed a 2x8, I'd need more taps, improve my collection methods ($$) right away and have more storage ($$) right away, on top of the extra cost of a 2x8 being added to an already high dollar expense. I figure I can get up and running with the 2x6, get the shack, expand to 250 or so, and then get an RO once I have recouped financially. I appreciate the suggestion, however.

That makes perfect sense. If you're only going to be putting out 100 taps or less for now, a 2x6 will be perfect. If you see an RO in your future, then I think you're right on in your plans for growth.

[mudr]

Alright, my wife and I have been tossing around ideas. Going to go with a 10 ft wall. That way I can have slope if/when we hang a lean too on either side. That can be open wood storage, or we could even pull the siding off the existing wall and have the 10 ft lean to as an extension to add more interior space.

The question I have is sizing. I liked the idea of 16x24. I've seen a lot of people here suggest that that is a decent size for large hobbiest in the 2x6 evap range. I actually marked off 16x24 in the lawn, it didn't look as big as it sounded when talking about it. :D. If I were to make it a hair bigger, which direction should I go in? 2 ft wider the entire lenght making it closer to square (too much waste area in the middle?), or 4 ft longer which would give more room out front, and might allow a 8 ft evap to fit better in the future?

[western mainer]

What we have is 20X 28 with a 10X 20 kitchen on top of that with a 2X6 evaporator and is still a little small so we are adding a 12X12 store on this year and expanding the kitchen another 10X 20 next year. We are back in the woods.
Brian

[MISugarDaddy]

Our sugarhouse is 16 X 24 and we have a 2' X 6' evaporator and our wood shed is an attached leanto. We wouldn't want it any smaller with the sink, cabinets, etc. in it. You can see from pictures that are in the link in my signature that there isn't any excess unused space. If you do increase the size of your sugarhouse, I would suggest doing it in 4' increments because that works best with dimensional lumber (plywood), etc. If we could have gone larger, we would have added 4' to both the width and length, but our landscape didn't make it practical for us to do that because of the slope.
Gary

[mudr]

Our sugarhouse is 16 X 24 and we have a 2' X 6' evaporator and our wood shed is an attached leanto. We wouldn't want it any smaller with the sink, cabinets, etc. in it. You can see from pictures that are in the link in my signature that there isn't any excess unused space. If you do increase the size of your sugarhouse, I would suggest doing it in 4' increments because that works best with dimensional lumber (plywood), etc. If we could have gone larger, we would have added 4' to both the width and length, but our landscape didn't make it practical for us to do that because of the slope.
Gary
MIsugarDaddy- thanks for pointing out the 4 ft vs 2 ft increments. That is something I realized, but was thinking similar sq ft add on scenarios (4 longer, 2 wider). Probably not the best way to think about it, sorry.

Still trying to figure out which would be better if we wanted a bit bigger than 16x24, a little longer or a litter wider. Anyone else?

[Mini_Maple_Men]

I like all my work space on one wall. My old sugar house was set up long and narrow with evap and sap in rear and all the work stations going towards the front. Allowed finished bottled product to end near the front. It is all in how you want your flow to be, it is such a personal choice. Our lay out was, sap, arch, filter press, canner/bottler, wash station, labeler, and then boxes or shelves. I would only take a couple steps sideways to go from station to station.