Retrofitting existing pan

[octane]

I Have a mild steel pan that we have been boiling on for 40+ years, not looking to get a new pan. The bottom has a slightly convex shape to it. I was wondering if I could put dividers in it to turn into a continuous flow pan. They would be temporary dividers that will not be attached to the bottom of the pan. Basically something that could be set in and taken out as wanted.

With the shape of the bottom how tight do the dividers need to be.

[jrgagne99]

I would think they need to be pretty tight, no more than an "average" gap of around 0.010", preferably less. The dividers on some 3-channel pans are merely tack-welded, with some tiny daylight underneath and this works ok. But tighter is better to prevent mixing and establish the gradient that you're after.

[darkmachine]

I had a local shop tig weld in dividers into the flue pan I have, while they are just tacked in a few spots you can't slip a piece of paper under them. I used to have a big flat pan with dividers, if i didn't completely seal the ports between the sections in a few hours (while i was asleep) my gradiant was gone.