building a flue pan from scratch

[maplekid]

i want to make myself a set of raised flue pans and wanted to ask some questions
(1) do i need a bending brake? in dont have access to one any more.
(2)has anyone tryed this?
(3)how do you determine gph?
(4) how high do the flues rise?
(5)what size piece of steel sheet do i need to make a 2x4 pan?

thanks in advance, nathan

[danno]

Seems like most flue pans have either 5" or 7" flues, although the new revolution's are even bigger. Deeper flues = >gph. The guy who fabricated my smoke stack fabricated a ss flue pan for his brother. I was amazed - now that's craftsmanship

[maplekid]

im not sure if im following correctly you say 5-7 inches. does anyone have a picture of a raised flue pan. im planning on making it in 5 pieces front back both sides and the bottom and then solder it up. am i gettin' in to deep?

[MR Electrician]

im not sure if im following correctly you say 5-7 inches. does anyone have a picture of a raised flue pan. im planning on making it in 5 pieces front back both sides and the bottom and then solder it up. am i gettin' in to deep?

i hope you know how to scuba dive
your heading for the deep end of the pool.
take a word of advice find a local welding shop make him a deal you buy the stainless steel he bends it up and welds it for you .

heck pay him with a years supply of syrup
youre still going to be better off than if you do it yourself

[325abn]

Heres a shot of my raised flue pan. Is this going to be your 1st try at weilding SS?


http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y26/reagantrooper/Evaporator/8-06065.jpg

[Bucket Head]

Nathan,

1) Yes, you'll need a brake.
2) Yes, they have. I did.
3) You can't figure gpm right now. Build the pan with as much additional
surface area as you can fit into it. More surface area mean's more
evaporation rate.
4) I put 6" flue's in mine.
5) You will have do figure out how much material you'll need after you
determin how many flue's you want and their height.

Are you a welder? A good welder? It won't be easy, but a homemade pan can be done.

I'm a big fan of the barter system. I have built about 80% of my rig myself and am currently building a hood and pre-heater. All I have invested is the cost of material's and time. A friend of mine bent all the metal for my flue pan and hood. Another fellow producer allowed me to use his TIG welder and plasma cutter for my hood. I MIG welded my pan's myself.

Do you have any family, friend's, neighbor's, or co-worker's that you could trade service's with? There are many way's to get this sort of project done.

Steve

[GOwin]

danno, pics of those flue pans you're talking about would be *very* nice.

:)

[tapper]

Nathan,

Success is built on not being afraid to fail. Gather as much positive information as you can and go for it. But maybe you will want to practice on some unimportant pieces to work out some of the failures. Dont worry about getting in too deep just be prepared for the depth. Both soldering and welding are quite an art especially on light gauge metal . With proper information and a lot of practice you can do it! And the only way to learn is dive right in there and do it. Yes you will need all of the resources that you mentioned and bartering for those resources is a great way to get them as long as you hold up your end of the deal. Go for it kid keep it simple and have fun doing it.

[OGDENS SUGAR BUSH]

MAPLEKID

sounds like you are way over your head

RICH

[danno]

GOwin - the homemade flue pan was for the fabricator's brother - not me. Thus, no pics - unless you want pics of my waterloo pans:)

[thenewguy]

Maple Kid, I just bought a brand new 2x3 drop flue pan for my homeade rig. it was 1095.00 which I didn't think was that bad. It is a beautiful pan, I was going to consider making one but by the time you get the steel, your time and frustration. It's just not worth it, save your syrup money from this year and order one right after spring.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

And where did you pick up a new drop flue pan for that, that is an unbelieavable low price about half what is should be.

[GOwin]

GOwin - the homemade flue pan was for the fabricator's brother - not me. Thus, no pics - unless you want pics of my waterloo pans:)

Yes, I know. I was just wondering if you had any pictures. Maybe you could invite the brother to join mapletrader.com instead. Then we ask him to post pictures of his pans.

Hehehe.

[Big_Eddy]

Maplekid - I am impressed with your enthusiasm. I don't know what your skills are - so I'll assume you are mechanically inclined and know what's involved.

Let me make a few suggestions for you that might help you decide if you are ready to give it a whirl.

First - can you TIG weld? If yes - then you are one step on the road. (it is possible to MIG too - although this is pretty thin material for most MIG welders) Find yourself an old washing machine / fridge / water tank, grind the paint off and start cutting it up into 3" squares. Most are ~22gauge mild steel and will give you lots of little pieces to perfect your welding on. Take 2 of these pieces and weld them at 90 degrees to each other. Do it again and again and again until you can consistently do it without a single pinhole. Now take 5 of them and make a 5 sided cube. The goal is to make it watertight the first time. Do that a dozen more times to perfect it.

Finally - buy a 2' sq piece of stainless in the gauge you want to work with and make a few dipping ladles out it. (You'll quickly find that stainless is not the same a mild steel! And you need to know what Stainless Sugaring means and how to avoid it)

If you can consistently make watertight ladles to your satisfaction - then I think you are ready to give a flat syrup pan a whirl.

Attached is an "okay" welders first attempt at a 5 sided cube out of 22 gauge mild steel. It leaked. The 8th one didn't.

Hard work, determination and practice make everything possible. Let us know when you get to this point and I'm sure the board will help you with the next steps. I for one encourage you to pursue this. That $1095 flue pan above is ~$500 material and $500 labour / profit. If your craftsmanship is excellent, there is money to be made. Your idea of selling low end 100 tap rigs is not without merit.

p.s. You will need a brake and probably a shear, as fitup is critical at this thickness. I made my own brake specifically for a flue pan as many won't work due to the thin flues. Not too difficult to make if you have the basic skills and access to some material.

[tapper]

Right on Big Eddy

[MR Electrician]

Maplekid - I am impressed with your enthusiasm. I don't know what your skills are - so I'll assume you are mechanically inclined and know what's involved.

Let me make a few suggestions for you that might help you decide if you are ready to give it a whirl.

First - can you TIG weld? If yes - then you are one step on the road. (it is possible to MIG too - although this is pretty thin material for most MIG welders) Find yourself an old washing machine / fridge / water tank, grind the paint off and start cutting it up into 3" squares. Most are ~22gauge mild steel and will give you lots of little pieces to perfect your welding on. Take 2 of these pieces and weld them at 90 degrees to each other. Do it again and again and again until you can consistently do it without a single pinhole. Now take 5 of them and make a 5 sided cube. The goal is to make it watertight the first time. Do that a dozen more times to perfect it.

Finally - buy a 2' sq piece of stainless in the gauge you want to work with and make a few dipping ladles out it. (You'll quickly find that stainless is not the same a mild steel! And you need to know what Stainless Sugaring means and how to avoid it)

If you can consistently make watertight ladles to your satisfaction - then I think you are ready to give a flat syrup pan a whirl.

Attached is an "okay" welders first attempt at a 5 sided cube out of 22 gauge mild steel. It leaked. The 8th one didn't.

Hard work, determination and practice make everything possible. Let us know when you get to this point and I'm sure the board will help you with the next steps. I for one encourage you to pursue this. That $1095 flue pan above is ~$500 material and $500 labour / profit. If your craftsmanship is excellent, there is money to be made. Your idea of selling low end 100 tap rigs is not without merit.

p.s. You will need a brake and probably a shear, as fitup is critical at this thickness. I made my own brake specifically for a flue pan as many won't work due to the thin flues. Not too difficult to make if you have the basic skills and access to some material.


wow as my old welding teacher used to say .
that weld looks like a cow with diarea came by and **** all over it.

well i do however have to agree with big eddy welding stainless is an art form not for the novice
i have a tig machine that my dad left me. i should dust off the manual this summer and get crackin on a little moo pooo of my own.
as i was told once by a professional forensic accountant do what you know best .

[jemsklein]

Big_Eddy were abouts are you located in ontario

[Big_Eddy]

I'm in the Frankford area. We have 75 acres of maples - just do a little for fun - about 100 trees on buckets. I have 4 boys to haul sap - so buckets are no big deal. About 30 minutes of "family time" after school each day. I've done syrup since I was a kid - my kids have the same love for it that I do.

[MR Electrician]

I'm in the Frankford area. We have 75 acres of maples - just do a little for fun - about 100 trees on buckets. I have 4 boys to haul sap - so buckets are no big deal. About 30 minutes of "family time" after school each day. I've done syrup since I was a kid - my kids have the same love for it that I do.

i did a job in stirling just noth of you renovated an old meeting hall on church st across from the public school into appartments,
what a mess.
so were practically neighbours .

[Sugarmaker]

MKid,
Good luck with the project of building a set of pans. Like others have said take your time and learn the skills or rent the skills to complete the project.

Chris

[jemsklein]

I'm in the Frankford area. We have 75 acres of maples - just do a little for fun - about 100 trees on buckets. I have 4 boys to haul sap - so buckets are no big deal. About 30 minutes of "family time" after school each day. I've done syrup since I was a kid - my kids have the same love for it that I do.

so you are about 1 hour away from me