Evaporation Rate

[Rick_Seebeck]

My homemade evaporator achieved an evaporation rate of around 4.5 gallons per hour. It uses two steam table pans. Is this a good rate for a rig like this? If not, what can I do differently to speed things up. I would like a faster rate because I am going thru a lot of beer and fire wood!

[RileySugarbush]

Rick,

Have you got them set down in or sitting proud?

[325abn]

Dump only sap that is at a rolling boil into you main pan.

[mapleman3]

don't run it too deep either... maybe 1" - 1.5" but carefully watch it

[Rick_Seebeck]

I have them sitting down in. If I really watch the fire, I can get a great boil going. No real problem with a scorch line. The syrup that I made is a little dark but very good.

I will try to sit them on top this weekend.

[RileySugarbush]

Jim, with them sitting down in, I found you get better evaporation rate and less burning by having them as full as you can without loosing sap out the top.m It exposes more sap to the heat on the side walls so there is better heat transfer.

When they are set up high, then you want them shallow for best evaporation rate.

Another thing....

Have a trickle feed into one pan from a pot with a valve on it. So you don't knock down the boil when you add sap. ladle from that pan to the other as needed to control the level in the second pan. I would run the pans a one sap pan and one finish pan.