75-100 taps, evaporator size?

[wanting to get into it]

Hello,
I am looking towards next year already. I have a question for you all. I would like to tap 75-100 trees for next year. What size of evaporator should I be looking at and what type do you all recomend? I know I don't want to do batches. Thanks for your help.

[ackerman75]

Sounds like 2 X 4 flat bottom pan with dividers or the same thing in a 2 X 6 if you think you might go to 150 to 200 taps

[themapleman54]

Hi, I would look for something with a flue pan. D&G has a 18x63 Sportsman rated for up to 150 taps.



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[Russell Lampron]

Go with a 2x6 with a flue pan. You will be over 300 taps before you know it if you are like the rest of us.

[michiganfarmer]

I agree with the others. Get a 2x6 with a flue pan. You can expand to more trees in the future. When I had my 2x6, I got rid of 500 gallons of sap a day if I boiled 18 hours. you can probably more than double that with an RO.

Im still debating with myself about whether I should have kept my 2x6 and gotten an RO instead of buying this 3x12 that I have. The feed tank that I fed the 2x6 wont work with the 3x12. The building Im using is almost to small.

You can do a lot with a 2x6.

[PerryW]

I also vote for the 2x6 (with flue pan).

For a typical run of 100 gallons, you can have it all boiled up in 3-4 hours.

[3% Solution]

Wanting,
I would say a set up with a flue pan also.
You will no doubt want mooooorrrrre!!!
With the flue pan you won't have to constantly fit to keep a boil going.
Maybe even consider forsted (??) draft too.
Do it right the first time.
Hope this helps.

Dave

[RileySugarbush]

We tap 100 to 120 and have a 2x6. Perfect!

[wanting to get into it]

Thank you all for your input. I was leaning towards a 2x6 but just wanted a few other views. I know that if this goes like everything else, tap 75 trees next year it will be 150 the following year LOL. It is never enough is it? Thanks again on all of your input.

[Dill]

I'd say 2x6, my 2x4 is about maxxed out with 100, or I should say I'm maxxed out.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Buy a 2x6 for $ 2000 and use it 2 or 3 years and sell it for as much or more than you paid for it if you take care of it and don't warp the pans as this size sells like hotcakes.

[KenWP]

If I had access to a welder right now I would think of a bigger evaporator in case I actually get so sap flowing. I can just imangine days of stuffing wood in a fire boiling 40 gallons of sap at a time. A guy would maybe get frustrated pretty quick. I might have to use the poor mans RO even.

[sweetvt]

I would look at something like a leader 2x4 or one of the 18x 60 or 20 x60 evaporators made by the canadian companies. I run a Lapierre 18 x66 drop flue and I have around a 120 taps. I have added a steam hood, preheater and forced air to the firevox and get on a good day 18 gph. That translates to 4 to 6 hours of boiling with each average run of 100 gals.

A 2 x6 flue evaporator would give you better numbers but you may not get enough sap to make it worth boiling with that many taps.

Of course anyone will tell you to go bigger then you plan because once you get this sickness it always keeps getting bigger.

[Justin Turco]

2x6...but build your building big enough to house a 2x8.

[VT maple maker]

Its true there really is a sickness, i went from a home made 2x2 flat pan to a 2x6 Small Brothers to a 40x12 Algiers. Ive only been at this for 3 years. I love it so much i just kept upgrading. As im sure you will probobly do to.

[3rdgen.maple]

I gotta say it all depends on how much time and how much you can expand in the future. I have 400 taps out right now It took over 120 gallons of sap to sweeten my pans. It took about 3 hours and not a minute more to boil that down. Gathered 350 gallons yesterday and boiled it all in about 8.5 hours. A 2x6 is rated for like 250 to 300 taps So you would have realy short boils or would have to hold sap until you get enough to boil. Not a bad thing and you would have room to expand. So decide how much time you have to boil. If you are a weekend boiler a 2x6 might fit your needs perfectly. I don't run blowers preheaters or hood just a bare bones 2x6 drop flue and averaging 40 gallons per hour.

[Brent]

to add another dimension to the discussion

boiling is all about heat transfer, from the fire to the sap, to make it boil as fast as possible. A flat pan 2' x 3' will have 864 sq in. This is roughly what the Leader Half Pint is .. that's what we started with.
======================
A 2' x 6' will have a 2' x 2' front pan = 576 sq in
Here's the real deal the back pan on mine is 2 x 4' with 8 flues.
So the tops and bottoms are 24" x 48" = 1152 sq in .
the sides of the 8 flues add up to 14 sides 8 1/2" deep = approx 5000 sq in
so the 6 x 2 rig has a total of approx 6700 sq in.

with the same size fire box as the Leader Half Pint you will boil about 6 times faster because of the surface area difference.

Whatever your fuel will be, most likely wood, you'll boil about 6 x as much per cord of firewood.
Think about the extra work to cut, split and dry 6 x as much wood and then you will start to look differently at the price difference.

[PerryW]

I have a 20 year old waterloo 3 x 10 (3x7 flue pan & 3x3 syrup pan).

Figuring the boiling time is easy. A typical run for me is 500 gallons.

Figure 1/2 hour to get going, 5 hours of boiling at 100 GPH and 1/2 hour to shut down.