2x3 leader

[wlatrout]

Last year i had somewhere around 120 taps. Mostly soft maple with a dozen hard maples thrown in. I have a leader 2x3 with a blower uf,with which I produced 30 gal. of syrup. I run all my sap through a RO and get to around 6-6 1/2 %. i am taking on more trees this year so am thinking of adding the Leader 2x2 extension. and using a flat pan tubed to the front pan , and using a float on the inlet line. Would that make enough difference in boil rate to justify the extra cost?
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[ecolbeck]

I think the community needs more information to provide you with opinions.

Are you using a Half Pint? I believe the extension is 2x3 and is fairly inexpensive. I would look into getting a pan with flues. This would cost more but would offer much better evap rates.

How much time to do you have to commit to boiling? If you have lots of time you can spend less money and boil slowly. If you don't have much time, you need to spend money to boil faster.

Is this a hobby or a business? I know that for my hobby I have created a myriad of ways to rationalize spending money and justifying costs. If it's a business then there are too many unknowns to consider for anybody to give you useful advice.

[wlatrout]

I am semi-retired and will be fully retired by the end of the year so I will have the time. I am looking to add more taps this season and would like to speed up the process. More taps less time. This is a hobby but more syrup means more income to pay for my obsession and maybe some left over. All this said I am on a short budget. And yes I have a half pint.