Boiling Rate

[maple flats]

I can't figure why but my evap rate was low today. On my 3x8 I got between 70-75 gph last season, but today I only got 55-60 gph. My wood is 2 years drying, split the same as always, and same species of wood. Can it be that the extra low pressure with super saturated air caused the change? In my 6 years of recent experience I have not had this happen before.

[maplehound]

I have had many times in the past when it just seemed like it wouldn't boil. Ussually happened to me late in the day after several hours of real good boiling. I have always felt it was due to weather changes, but it may have just been we where tired and didn't keep the fire going as steady. Whatever it was we just ussually decided to shut down and start again the next day.

[MaplePancakeMan]

Humidity can drastically effect boiling rates, in particular if you are outside. Saturated air has no room to let vapors escape rather it pushes them back downward and you end up with a lower evaporation rate

[3% Solution]

Hi guys,
Another thing to think about is atmospheric stability and this is what maplePancakeMan is refering to .
Fighting brush fires and atmospheric stability go hand in hand.
The more stable the atmosphere the the less rise or lift there is.
Basicaly, the more rise or lift, the more unstable and the larger the fire can become.
Good examples are; smoke coming out of a chimney and banking right down, fog in a valley are examples of a stable air mass.
Other examples are; smoke or steam in our case rising high in the shy, clear sky, gusty winds and warm air.
No, I'm not a meterorologist, just a guy that wants to stay alive at my job.
Don't feel bad, my evapoation rate wasn't good yesterday either.
It was rainy and very low clouds.
Hope this helps.

Dave

[mapleman3]

Get yourself one of those boiling barometers... I have one and I use it to watch my boiling temps.. It can change 1.5 degs in a day testerday it did that for me here in ma. I watch it closely everytime I boil... I set it to the waether.com barometer reading for my area and check it a few times against it during the season

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

High humidity will affect it some. It seems like most of the boiling this year has been in the rain or snow and I don't like that, but it's been that kind of year.

[maple flats]

I do have a braometer in the sugarhouse. I am not sure what the reading was but it was the lowest I have ever noticed. The steam was going out the stacks which end in the cupola but it then dropped right down to the ground or near the ground. As for humidity, i don't think it could have gotten any more humid than yesterday, the clouds were very low and it rained most of the day, very heavy at times, with thunder and lightning a few times. BUT this all being said, I was still boiling.

[andrew martin]

We have had a lot of wind here this year, and I found that on very windy days (30-40 mph gusts) I could not get a good draft in the firebox and this affected my boiling rate. THe best nights to boil are cold, calm, clear nights and thankfully I had my share of those as well. I agree with all the things everyone is saying, anyone have any "mail-order weather"??

Does anyone use fans in their sugarhouses to create an induced draft for either the steam side or fire side? I am not talking about forced draft blowers, but induced draft fans.

[HHM-07]

Hi Guys,

I was bopiling yesterday was going good all of a sudden it shut right down like you closed a damper went out side to look the smoke was rising about a foot then going straight down to the ground, iwas about to shut down when it took off agian and went good. Must have been a front go tru, we are froze up now until the middle of the week so time to regroup

Good luck

[maple flats]

I did not detect any draft problem on either smoke nor steam, but both were dropping as soon as they got out the top. I have never experienced any draft problems and hope it stays that way. On my 3x8 rig I have a 3x7 1/2' hood, with the part over the front pan up about 14-16+. On this hood I have 2 steam stacks 10" in diameter (really 2-10's increased to 12" going up for 6 feet, above this I have 2-10's suspended from above and hanging down into the 12's, You say ???, I have a lifting winch set up on one wall with cables going to the four corners of the hood, I just crank the winch and I can see into the pan, easy. the upper 10" stacks just slip down inside the 12" lower ones) BUT the steam seems to know where to go.

[Lwood]

I had the same as HHM-07 yesterday evening. Boiling along nice and steady, drawoff doing it's job nicely pulling between a pint and a quart every 15 - 20 minutes. Then it just stopped. I could not keep a decent boil for anything. Then all of a sudden the fire came back up and took off again. Thought I really messed up firing. Guess I wasn't alone.

[3% Solution]

Hi Guys,
Yup same here for me!!!
I set there boiling for about 20 minutes and couldn't get above 65.5 Brix, **** I hate that!!!! Then it broke.
Two or three time last night the steam just banked into the sugarhouse, couldn't see each other, then a couple if minutes later it was gone again.
I'll tell you just what it is; It's a plot against us all, it's a **** Iraqy plot is what it is. They want to take this over just like the oil!!!!
HA HA HA HA

Dave

[danno]

It was pretty chilly out there today as well. Did you have a cold draft blowing on your rig? I certainly saw a differance when I kept my wood door closed which is only about 5' from my rig.

As an aside - I'd be pretty happy with 70-75 gph on a 3x8.