Evaporator size recommendations

[BoerBoel]

I am expanding this year from 15 taps (for the last 2-3 years) and boiling on the top of a wood stove.

This year I hope to expand to approx. 100 taps and then approx. 150 taps the following year. I do not think I will be expanding past the approx. 150 taps for the next 5(?) years until I more to a property with a bush of my own.
I am only available to boil a couple of hours during the week at night (maybe 3-4 hours maybe twice a week). Longer on the weekends but I would like to still have a little bit of a life to keep my wife happy. This would be on top of my regular full time job. I would like to have this figured out and ordered/purchased before the season is upon us and everyone is busy with their own setups.

I am thinking a 2 pan set up with a divided drop flue sap pan and a divided syrup pan. Or would something else be better?

I am also trying to figure out what size evaporator I should be getting? I have talked to some and the size they suggest seems to vary. 2x4? 2x6? and even had a suggestion of a 2x8? What would the approx. boil rate be with each so I can figure out how long I will be boiling and how much of a life I would have?

Any ideas, suggestions, comments would be appreciated.

[SeanD]

Plan for the 150 taps, so you are buying one rig for the next five years. You don't want to be too conservative and wish you bought a bigger evaporator in two years. Some upgrades are good to do incrementally, but an evaporator is a longer-term investment.

Given the time limitations you know you are already facing, maybe plan on an evaporator and RO combo. If you go with a small RO, you can go with a smaller evaporator like a hobby sized or 2 x 4. Otherwise, you can go with a 2 x 6 and you'll be able to keep up. Look for boil rates as you shop around. If you are burning wood, you don't hit peak boil rate for the first hour and then there's the shutdown time to factor in at the end of the night.

You didn't mention finances. That's usually a big factor in the decision. Also, in your planning think about time to collect. Gathering from 100 to 150 taps is a big jump from 15. All that depends on if you have buckets or tubing, etc.

[TapTapTap]

I am only available to boil a couple of hours during the week at night (maybe 3-4 hours maybe twice a week). Longer on the weekends but I would like to still have a little bit of a life to keep my wife happy.

HA! Do you realize how many guys have tried that excuse: "Honey, I need a bigger rig so I can spend more time with you."

I'm not sure whether that's ever worked out as planned. Bigger rig, more taps, more firewood, more bottling, more cleaning, more, more, more. The reality is that sugaring season is an intense time of year that sucks up your free time - and that's the way most of us like it.

For saving time, my best recommendation would be to look at fuels other than wood for whatever size evaporator you select.

[BoerBoel]

I will likely be getting a wood evaporator as I will probably be boiling in the bush. No natural gas and propane sounds expense.

Regarding time spent boiling...last couple of years I would start boiling on Friday and finish on Sunday. Didn't see my wife much all weekend. I do not mind long hours boiling but would like to not have to spend the whole weekend boiling to all hours of the night.

With 100-150 taps I will be using lines to collect.

Finances will be playing a big part. I may have under budgeted but it is what I have to work with. From what I have seen for new commercial evaporators, they seem to be too much. Used might be an option but still maybe tight on my budget.

I briefly talked to a local mennonite and they said they could build a 2x4 for about $2300. They did not give me a price on a 2x6 but I think it might be around $3000. This would be in my budget.

How long does a typical hobby evaporator last?

I do have a RO Bucket (RB5). This may be of some help but I do n0t know if it will be enough. Since I do not have hydro in the bush, I will either need to use 2 batteries or a generator. Not sure what a small commercial RO would cost.

[maple flats]

If you won't have electric, look into a gas powered RO or one that runs on 12V DC. Ray Gingerich makes small gas powered RO's, I don't know current prices nor if any other make gas powered. As far as the evaporator, it will last 20+ years if you take good care of it and don't burn it. Burning it happens when you don't keep enough boiling sap in it. Mild burning can be fixed, real bad burning might lead to a new pan. There are lots of ways to get in trouble boiling, I think the most common is falling asleep or doing other things away from the evaporator while boiling.
At 150 taps a 2x4 with a 50 gph RO will do ok, a 2x6 with a 100 gph will do much better. Look for used and look now, as the season nears the prices go up, especially for good used ones. Check on several to get a feel for what is available. If you want a lower cost evaporator in used, even look for a 3x8, a 2.5x10 or even a 3x10, the bigger ones are in less demand, but be aware that with a 3x8 or 2.5x10 you will need about 150+ gal just to fire it at the beginning of the season.
A good rule of thumb on how much sap you need for the first boil is 3x the hourly evaporation rate, that will get you to enough sugar in the pans to protect them from freezing solid down to 15-20F, colder than that you may want to drain the pans and pour it back in at your next boil.

[BoerBoel]

I have not seen any of Ray's ROs (used) advertised in Ontario. I do have the RO Bucket but I am starting to think that my current unit will be too small for the number of taps and be better to use it for our house drinking water (when not ROing sap it is used for our drinking water - dual purpose). I will keep an eye out for any small used ROs in Ontario. Ones advertised in the U.S. do not help now with closed borders and the added cost of exchange.

To avoid burning of the pans, are float boxes worth their money and do they save pans from burning? What are the pros/cons of a drop flue pan with a single float box feeding the sap pan vs a raised flue pan with two float boxes (1 feeding each pan)? I was told the second float box feeding the syrup pan costs a lot more due to the hot near syrup.

Can anyone think of any pros/cons between a used commercial evaporator vs a new hobby evaporator built by the local Mennonites? The obvious one is the lower cost of the Mennonite evaporator (typically under $2500 for a 2x4 w/ 2x3 drop flue, 1x1 syrup pan, bricked/lined, stack). Do you think the quality and life expectancy be similar when compared to a commercial unit? Should I be watching out for anything build designs/features that I should try to avoid in a hobby evaporator?

I am leaning towards a 2x6 but have been keeping my eyes open for something larger if the price is right. I figure I could always block off a portion of the arch and use shorter pan (or maybe only use 2 pans out of a 3 pan system).

Should I be looking for an arch with a blower or would 2x6 without a blower be sufficient? Can you add a blower to a hobby evaporator relatively easier down the road? Is a blower hard on the arch/pans/stack? When boiling previous years on the top of a wood stove, we had the stove and stack glowing red. We were concerned about burning out the stove or stack, so we would always try to reduce the airflow to cool things down. Using a blower would be constantly blowing additional air into the arch. Would this make everything glow? In addition, if boiling in a bush is there more of a concern with sparks exiting the stack when using a blower? And obviously if running a blower I would need a generator.

I am trying to look for everything now before it gets too late and prices go up but there does not seem to be a lot advertised in my budget. I will keep looking.

Thanks everyone for the help with all of my questions.

[Super Sapper]

https://www.smokylakemaple.com/product-category/boiling/full-evaporators/dauntless/

Here is one that may be in your budget.

[BoerBoel]

Thanks for pointing this one out. I saw it previously but had not looked at recently. Yes, it would be in my budget.

I looked at the one with the drop flue pan (plus warming and syrup pan). It may be a little small since it is only rated for 30-95 taps and I will be looking at 100-150.

In the description it says "The three pan systems, can be swapped out at any time as the maple producer’s needs change or their tap count grows." Being I will likely be starting with more taps than it is rated for, any idea on what the 3 pan system that the unit comes with could be swapped out with to meet the increase in taps?

The estimated evaporation rate is 15 – 20+ gallons per hour. Any ideas on how to increase this?

The good thing about this evaporator is that there seems to be a distributor in Ontario not far from me.

[DrTimPerkins]

Get an adequate hobby RO and you'll cut your boiling requirements in half (if you concentrate from 2 to 4%) or by 3/4 (if you concentrate to 8%, perhaps necessitating 2 passes depending on the RO). The RO Bucket is great, but it isn't going to cut it for 150 taps. The money you spend on the RO will be offset by the need for smaller pans and you'll still save a lot of time you'd otherwise spend boiling (not to mention wood).

Floats can help, but not totally eliminate the possibility of burning pans. They aren't foolproof devices and require monitoring. A float won't help if your head tank runs out of sap or the float sticks due to niter. That said...I wouldn't boil without them. It's kind of like cruise control in a car...not necessary but darn useful, especially if you're boiling for hours. Drop or raised flue is mostly a preference thing. A blower will certainly increase boiling rate, but it won't come anywhere close to matching what an RO will do in terms of time savings. It is very rare thing for someone who starts using an RO to go back to boiling raw sap. Mostly they wonder why they didn't do it earlier.

Diligence is the key factor in preventing burnt pans. DO NOT STRAY from watching the rig while boiling. It's kind of like driving down the highway. Would you decide to go in the house to make a 5 minute phone call with the car still going 70 mph in cruise control. The first thing many people who burn pans say is "I was only gone for a minute." That can turn out to be a VERY expensive minute.

[maple flats]

I agree with Dr Tim, nothing eliminates the possibility of burning the pans, but a float box with a properly sized and elevated head tank, along with a way to know how much is still in the head tank along with an O S*#T bucket of sap or water, and an alert operator reduces the chances of burning it to nearly zero. You also want to know what to do as soon as things start heading south.