Block Arch

[NedL]

To anyone else out there with a block arch. Are you 2 or 3 blocks high? I had 3 steam pans last year at 2 blocks high. I am moving to 4 pans and considering going 3 blocks high so I can get more fire under there. Any thoughts?

[Maine4me]

My first boil was 1 block high and it was a pain in the butt!! I was kneeling in the mud all the time trying to keep the fire going. I then switched to 2 blocks high and life was better but it was still alot of bending over to tend the pans. This fall I have moved to 3 blocks high strickly for pan height ergonomics but kept the fire box/pit portion to 2 blocks. I felt 3 high for the fire box was alot of fire to tend 24 inches

[mfchef54]

I'm at 3/12 blocks high and it was just right. fire box is about two blocks in height, I agree anything larger is just to big to tend.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

I remember the cinderblock arches, gotta love them as I used them for years. They work great as they are cheap and last good. If one cracks, just replace it or use it cracked. Amazing how much heat they hold in I guess due to being double walled. I always ran mine at 3 courses high. I had the grates aprox 6" off the ground, so I had 18" for fire space. Maybe, 4 would be better and allow more room for combustion. I had a 5x7 four section stainless King Syrup pan from Bascoms that I bought used for $ 200 and when I got the fire warmed up, it would boil off around 50 gph with 2 sections of 6" stovepipe pulling the draft.

[TapME]

Mine is 2 blocks high at this time. If the metal arch doesn't get done for spring I will add a block to mine for ease of getting at the pans. We have a 3x4 flue pan and a 3x3 syrup and can get 30 gph out of it.

[NedL]

Thanks for the replies. I drop my pans into the arch and this year was planning to raise the grates about 6 inches. Looks like that will give me the 2block firebox.

I love the input from this site.

I melted the grate I was using last year(old firplace grate). I found another one for this year. Hopefully it will last a little better.

[peacemaker]

ned the best thing i found that lasted was to weld up angle iron making them loki like this

V V V V V V and then fill them with sand or ash the will not warp or burn up

[RileySugarbush]

I second Peace on the grate design. Works well.

The other thing that keeps grates from the big melt down is to assure plenty of combustion air flowing up through them. If you can introduce some forced air, then there will be no coals under the grate and the air keeps the grate temp down. Once they get a bunch of hot coals under them, it is basically a forge and they will be glowing red.

[peacemaker]

u could also probaly make them out of pipe cut in half but seems to much work to me ... when the angle works well

old bed frames work

[NedL]

Old bed frame..........Now you have me thinking.

[peacemaker]

ned i built a barrel evap with one bed frame ...

[TapME]

Here's a thought: Make the grate out of some 1'' iron and seal them so that you can put water (sap) in them to preheat the sap and keep the grates cool. My neighbor had a wood furnace that he heated his saw mill and house with and he used 3'' black iron and ran water through them to his heat needs.