Help!

[Father & Son]

I did my first boil on the 2 x 8 Dallaire I picked up in November last night and after 3 hours and only boiling off 50 gallons I quit disgusted. I bricked the arch the way I was told, ramped the front up into the first third of the flue pan ( 5 ft flue pan ramp ends 20" back) and drops out with 10" from the back of the pan. The flue pan only boiled in spots and the whole rig boiled better with the blower off and the draft door open. Do I have too much draft, too little draft, or what do I need to change? I must of done something wrong and I need help before I pull out what little hair I have left!!!

Jim

[Fred Henderson]

I don't know the answer but I will offer support. A new rig is always a new learning cruve. Mine was new last year and I had to learn all over again. Someone other than me has the answer. Just hang in there.

[mapleack]

How much space is there under the flue pan between where the ramp ends and where it opens at the back for the stack? There should only be a half inch between the bottom of the flues and the sand, insulation, etc in this area.
-Andy

[Father & Son]

Between 1/4 & 1/2". The void under the ramp is filled with perlite then covered with sand to keep the perite in place. I guess my biggest concern right now is, what size should the opening be that lets the gases out of the flues to go back down into the arch and then out the stack? That controls the draft, correct?

Jim

[Uncle Tucker]

At least the same size as the stack. Did you try making difrent size fires? Some times a smaller fire works better.

[fred]

i assume you have wood fire .is the wood dry.? too old? soft wood or cottonwood?

[mapleman3]

Jim I used to leave only a couple inches at the back of the pan for the gases for height.. I would ramp it down from the height of the rails anout 6" before the stack entrance... that was on my raised flue when I was doing wood
I kept the perlite/sand around 1/4" also.. just not touching the pan...

[Brian Ryther]

Last week I was in the same situation. I converted my arch from oil to wood. Under the flue pan I left about an 1-1/2". The arch is a 6x16 and I was only getting 200+ GPH. So I put a row of bricks near the middle of the flue pan. This closed the gap to within 1/4 of an inch. I instantly jumped to 300+ gph. Before I boil tomarrow I am going to put a few more rows of bricks under the flue pan with about six inches of space between the rows. My theory is the space between the rows should create turblunce. A little trial and eror and listening to maple trader advice can make big differences in production.

[powerdub]

You want as little space inder the flues as possible. Every bit of flame should be directed through the flues. On mine, I don't think there is four inches between the back of the pan where the built up portion is to the entrance of the stack. Who cares about draft, you are forcing it, if it is not enough space smoke will blow out from under your pans or where ever. To be honest I don't think there is any space under my flue pan, the ashes have sealed it off and everything goes throught the flues. Keep a full firebox, full fan and the least room under the pan as you can. Like Fred said, its an learning curve and don't be afraid to play a little.

[maplehound]

What are you using for a blower? Did the rig come set up for forced air or did you add it yourself. On my Dellaire 3x8 I have forced air grates and a box in the ash pit that the air is blown into. Is yours the same?

[Pete33Vt]

This year seems to be a year of odd things happening. A good friend of mine has been boiling on his 30x8 for quite a few years and the first time he boiled, he had to shut his blower off and the rig just did not perform like it has for years. But the next time he fired up things worked like they always have. Could be it was just an off day, as far as weather goes. With a new rig you gotta learn how it reacts to certian things. I am sure you will figure it out before long.
Good luck

[Father & Son]

powerdub, this is just a regular arch not airtight,

maplehound, I have added a 265 cfm blower into the back of the firebox

I have a damper in the plenum for the blower and regulate the amount of air flow, otherwise I'm blowing ashes out the front of the arch.
Last night we drained the pans, took them off the arch, and re-did the rear ramp - opened it up a little - we will boil tonight and see if that improved anything. No let me rephrase that, we we see how much improvement that made.

Thanks for everyone's input,
Jim

[maplehound]

Like they say some days it just doesn't wanbt to boil. It seemed to me today like I was having a harder time keeping mine boiling hard. It may have been the baromentric pressure or itmay have been that the wood was slightly damper than what I had been using or countless other things. Tomorrow is another day though.