CDL or Lapierre 2x6 evaporator?

[Wmmaple]

Hello All

Anyone using a CDL Professional or a Lapierre Classic 2x6 evaporator? I'm new to the forum and forums in general so please bare with me if there is a thread already out there. I have to upgrade my evaporator, as like I was warned, I keep increasing taps and my evaporator at 12 gph is not keeping up. I added a blower this year but just don't have the time for the 10 hr boils during the week. These two evaporators are in my budget and are available in Ontario where I live and are both listed at 26-27 gph. Any thoughts or experiences?

Thanks

[Ekrueger]

I have the Lapierre Classic 2x6. It has been very good and dependable. I think I was able to run up to 33 GPH with AOF and AUF. I had to make some splash guards for the flue pan because the sap was jumping out of it during the hard boils. I made a hood and preheater and now run up to 38 GPM.

It is nice being able to switch the front pan by rotating it, but it is not as easy as some that only require changing valves. I think you will be happy with the Classic if you get one.

[Russell Lampron]

Do you like the evaporator that you have now? If so have you thought about getting an RO?

[Urban Sugarmaker]

Just finished this year's season on a CDL 2x6 raised flue. It's well-built. I didn't have a blower which I think you will want. Also, I would go for a system that allows you to reverse flow with valves vs. disconnecting the pan and rotating it. I also didn't like the draw off at the front of the pan. Much more heat in the back of the syrup pan. I had huge draws as the gradient worked itself out which can take over an hour.

[maple flats]

Different brand, but my front pan has reversible flow same side draw. I find that when the draw is at the section closest to the flue pan the draws are better and more consistent than when my draw is off the very front section farthest from the flue pan. Later designs are now able to draw back closer to the flue pan and they switch by just turning a valve or 2. I suggest you find one that does that, you will be happier. It may cost a little more but it will be money well spent. Mine reverses by turning 2 valves but the back draw is far better. I have 2 front pans, (a spare) but if I were younger I'd sell those 2 and get 2 with the better design for draw off.
Drawing off farther back in the pan is better because it is hotter and more consistent in temperature.

[Wmmaple]

Ekrueger do you mind me asking if u built your own AOF or was it something from the manufacturer? Also love to see what you did with the preheater and hood. I'm really leaning towards the Lapierre and they have a sale on now. Going next week to look at both Thanks

[Wmmaple]

Thanks Dave that's the type of thing I need to be asking. I purchased my last evap out of a catalogue and really regretted not researching more. Is your front pan a custom or made by a manufacture?

[Wmmaple]

Thanks Russ, I'm not in love with it. I spent a year and a half tweeking it and it can be cantankerous to keep a gradient on. I am fascinated by the RO. There's a guy on youtube that made his own out of two water filters, two shallow well jet pumps and a 4"x44" RO. He said he now has added a second RO canister and is getting 50 GPH at 8 to 10 brix. Does this sound reasonable? I have everything except the RO canister and filter so it caught my attention.

[Wmmaple]

Sorry for all the posts. Not sure of proper etiquette and wasn't sure if I should reply individually to everyone or just one post..please feel free to fill me in on that. This evaporator is going to have to last me a lot longer than the first one so I want to get it right. I'm going to do another 100 taps on 3/16th gravity next year which will bring me to 250 taps, with 150 on buckets cause the family is nostalgic. I run my own business and though I do love the boiling down part, I work 60 hrs a week so I can't pull all nighters next year and just don't feel good about leaving sap in the tank till the weekend. I read in a different thread that someone suggested maybe bigger than a 2x2 front pan if you are boiling concentrate. Any thoughts on that? I might be able to find enough extra funds to look at a 2x8 but it would be a stretch. I plan on adding an RO and a filter press in the future so just checking. Thanks everyone really appreciate the feedback, you can only find so much on Youtube lol

[motowbrowne]

Your etiquette is exceptional. Nothing wrong with your posts. I don't know anything about cooking concentrate, but I'd think a 2x6 and an RO would be great for 350 taps. Often you'll hear the advice to buy a 2x8 instead of a 2x6 and I generally agree with that. They're not much more expensive and they're a little more efficient and have a little better boiling rate. If you ever want to go beyond 350 it might be a good option. Also it'd probably be easier to sell it whenever the time comes. They seem to be a desirable size.

About the pan sizes and boiling concentrate, I've heard people say that a bigger syrup pan is favorable. So on a 2x6 you might go for a 3.5' flue pan and a 2.5' syrup pan instead of the standard 4/2 setup. On a 2x8 you would probably either go with a 2.5 or 3' syrup pan. I think this becomes more important if you're concentrating to higher percentages. I don't know how much difference it makes at 8-10%.

[n8hutch]

I have a 2.5x8 and it has a 30x30 syrup pan with same side reverse flow, turn 2 valves and it flows the opposite way through the syrup pan. It's a great system. I do wish the pan was bigger at times I'm Boiling 10% concentrate, but overall it worked good this year, I definitely wouldn't want a 2' syrup pan but that's just me.

I really looked hard at the Lappiere Storm evaporator before I went the direction I did. I think it's a nice unit. I just think the syrup pan setup is better than the CDL on these smaller rigs. Have you looked at D&G or L.S. Bilodeu? They make some nice stuff too, I would look at as many rigs as you can.

Also consider how easy the flue pan is to clean, I have Smoky Lake Pans and all though I like them very much I suspect that they may be harder to clean compared to others, I have 14 flues in my pan that's a lot stuffed into a 30" wide pan. In my experience which may not be true for everyone you need to clean the flue pan more often boiling concentrate.

[BAP]

Another brand people are pleased with is Thor Evaporator. I have their predecessor’s evaporator, Algier Evaporator. Mine is a 2’x8’ with a 5’ raises flue reversible and a 3’ reverse flow Syrup pan on a standard wood arch. I added a blower to the arch which helped a lot. I have 227 taps, 18 on 5/16” gravity, 110 on a Shurflo pump and the rest on 3/16”. The evaporator does well size wise, although I would like to eventually add a steam hood and preheater to gain just a little more. An Air tight arch would help some too.

[VT_K9]

I have a different 2x6 and have moved up in size. If you think you are going to be expanding soon then I would look at a larger evaporator as mentioned like a 2x8. Then you can look at an r/o as your next step then hoods, pre-heater, steam away as your budget allows. We had 400 taps on vacuum with the 2x6 and ran an r/o. I would not do that any other way than have a larger evaporator. We ran about 275-325 taps without vac or sap puller on the 2x6 and it was a very comfortable 4-6 hour boil. Once the vac was added the r/o was important. I think for the money the r/o is a better investment than hood and pre-heater. That is why I recommended a 2x8 then go from there.

Mike

[Russell Lampron]

Thanks Russ, I'm not in love with it. I spent a year and a half tweeking it and it can be cantankerous to keep a gradient on. I am fascinated by the RO. There's a guy on youtube that made his own out of two water filters, two shallow well jet pumps and a 4"x44" RO. He said he now has added a second RO canister and is getting 50 GPH at 8 to 10 brix. Does this sound reasonable? I have everything except the RO canister and filter so it caught my attention.

I'm assuming that the 50 gph that the guy on youtube is getting is concentrate which means that he is taking roughly 150 gallons of water out of 2% sap to get it to 8% in that hour. Not bad for a homemade RO.

I have been boiling concentrate since 2005 in my 2x6 evaporator with a 2x2 syrup pan and don't have any problems doing it. I can see where the draw offs could be a little smoother with a bigger pan. I wouldn't let that be a deal breaker. There are a lot of producers boiling concentrate with 2x6 evaporators with 2x2 syrup pans.

[Wmmaple]

Thanks everyone. Going to take a quick look at a used Lapierre Storm 2x8 that a local guy is thinking of upgrading. 36 to 38 gph burning hardwood on natural draft, no AUF or RO. Had to have side extensions made for the flue pan as he was getting too much splash over on his heavy boils. Might be too much of a hot rod for me lol. I'm 90% sold on the Lapierrre, 2x8 if the budget allows, 2x6 if not. The salesman that I am dealing with is terrific, 3rd generation sugar maker, so that has played a part in my decision. Still going to look at the CDL as they are close to each other. I contacted most of the others mentioned before my 1st post, some didn't respond which I get as this is their busiest time of year, some were considerably more money. Really appreciate and I took into consideration all advice and I'll post what I ended up with. Sure i'll have many more questions about RO, hoods, preheaters ect. so the experience and expertise is valued from all the responses. My wife creeped my post and informed me that I don't need encouragement to spend more on maple equipment lol. Thanks again.

[Ekrueger]

I built my own arch, AOF/AUF, hood and preheated systems. I will try to gather up some pictures. I also made some covers for the float boxes. I made drawings for some of the components which I can share if you want to send me a pm.

[Ekrueger]

Here are some photos:
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[Wmmaple]

Well ended up buying the Lapierre classic 2x6. I intended on the 2x8 but I would have had to reconfigure the shack, smoke stack etc. I’m going to add AUF and am making a hood and preheater. Thanks again for all the help

[Russell Lampron]

Well ended up buying the Lapierre classic 2x6. I intended on the 2x8 but I would have had to reconfigure the shack, smoke stack etc. I’m going to add AUF and am making a hood and preheater. Thanks again for all the help

Re-configuring the sugar house was the main reason that I went with an RO when it was time to upgrade. The cost of a larger evaporator and the cost of rebuilding my sugar house was more than 3 times what it cost to buy the RO.

[Russ008]

Been going through old post as I'm researching replacement evaporators. I'm interested how this worked out .

[steam maker]

Saw on nh craigslist a used 3by 8 this morning if thats your size russ