Upgrade to flue pan or RO?

[blaircountysugarin85]

I am trying to plan for next year and I am stuck on keeping my current evaporator setup and getting a hobby size RO or instead getting a smoky lake hybrid pan. I currently have around 80 taps and plan to go up to about 100 next year. I work on call and typically can only boil on my 2 days off per week or a few hours here and there when i am waiting to get called into work. I have a homemade arch with a blower and a 2x3 divided pan with a preheated. I would like to either upgrade to the 2x3 hybrid pan, or cut my evaporator and add a foot to it and get a 2x4 hybrid pan or keep what I got and go the RO route with a next gen RO unit. I'm boiling about 8gph and occasionally 10gph when conditions are right. Going with both would be ideal but it will have to be one or the other. Any thoughts?

[bowtie]

Had a 2x4 smokey lake hybrid on a mason arch with blower and got about 18-20gph. I think I would go with that vs a ro, unless you made one, then you could do both. cant remember but I think the pan is about $ 1200 or so and a hobby ro new can be $2500 and up. Obviously up to you but I think the pan would be a better bang for your buck right now.

[bowtie]

Just checked a 2x4 hybrid pan will set you back $1575 not sure about shipping.

[blaircountysugarin85]

Yea that's what I'm leaving towards I just checked and the hobby RO is running $1500... Did you go with the float box also? How hard are the flue pans to clean inside all those books and crannies?

[Eliemma]

Sounds like you work for the railroad!!!

[blaircountysugarin85]

How did you know! Lol yes I'm an engineer for NS and it sure makes it tough to do maple syrup. When I was a conductor I could just mark off sick going into my rest days but they have clamped down on that type of behavior.

[Haynes Forest Products]

Blair Having 100 taps on a good day you will be cooking for 10 hrs. at 18-20 GPH. How will you ever boil 3 days worth of sap? I would say having a good insulated storage tank and the RO will allow for longer sap life and then get it down to 8%.

[blaircountysugarin85]

And my tank stays outside so sometimes with the freeze my line into the sugar shack freezes so I have to bucket it to the preheated. How would that work with in RO when it's freezing out?

[Russell Lampron]

You'll get the best bang for your buck with the RO. When time is an issue you will cut your boiling time way down boiling concentrated sap. I concentrate to 14% and can boil the concentrate from 1,000 gallons of sap in 2 hours with my 2x6.

Put a shut off valve on your tank and make a pipe into the sugar house that will drain completely. I use PVC pipe with Fernco fittings on each end so that I can easily remove it to clear the ice if it should freeze.

[Eliemma]

As a fellow railroader “ carknocker” with CSX I can understand how hard it is. I don’t know how you can find the time for maple being and engineer. Mark offs are almost a thing of the past with new attendance polices. I hope though you have a good season!!! I am leaning in the direction of an r.o my self do to cutting time down and seems to be the best bang for my buck. Plus Wood saving is would sure help.

[bowtie]

If you can get an ro for $1500 that may be the way to go, however there are some extra duties to do when using a ro cleaning the membranes, especially if it sits for a few days without use, not allowing it to freeze and so forth, but $1500 is pretty cheap. When I had the hybrid pan it boil very hard,jumped out of the pan, the flues were fairly easy to clean, I soaked it in vinegar and rinsed it, if it was "bad" I hit it with the pressure washer. Another thing on the ro and keeping sap for a few days, the sap will have more bacteria built up in it and therefore will likely clog your membranes faster, that being said I would and will be looking at a small in the near future. I just feel that you will likely want a pan/evap that will boil faster than what you have regardless of whether you purchase a ro or not.

[bowtie]

I also forget that 100 taps for some can mean 200 gallons on a good day,on gravity most of my woods taps might give 1 gallon on a good day. Let us know what you decide to do.