How much wood?

[sr73087]

I am thinking of doing the file cabinet evaporator next year. I currently use propane and a turkey fryer, but am tired of paying for propane. I generally only make around a gallon or 2 of syrup, so maybe 5 boils per year. How much wood should I set aside for this? Any leftovers can be burnt inside obviously.

[maple flats]

On a large evaporator boiling 2% sap a common number tossed around is 1 full cord for every 25 gal of syrup. The smaller the rig and the fewer improvements like a flue pan and a hood, or other improvements the poorer that ratio gets If you make a filing cabinet arch, and insulate the arch, boiling with a flat pan I might guess maybe 6-8 gal per full cord. If you have 1/4 full cord you will likely have a little left over for in the house or campfires. A cord is 128 cubic feet well stacked and split to wrist size and dry. 1/4 cord will be 32 cubic feet, a little more to be on the safe side wouldn't hurt.