leveling evaporator

[morningstarfarm]

Finished bricking and insulating the arch today. She's ready to fire...as soon as I put up the stack, anyways, the front channel pan is perfectly level but the flu pan is about 5/16" inch out of level front to rear..is that close enough or should I play around with the gaskets to get it perfectly level? Thanks

[syrupkid]

that is probably about close enough unless you have a nice sized pice of firebrick or metal to level it a little better with

[3rdgen.maple]

Morningstar what setup do you have for an arch?

[morningstarfarm]

it's a 2x6 that I built myself..

[3rdgen.maple]

Sorry I meant a block arch or steel.. Myself it would be unacceptable. But it might be fine. If you are on a steel arch just shim it at the floor and you will be good to go. Also check it a few times throughout the season to adjust for any settling.

[morningstarfarm]

its a steel arch..i might try lowering the rear bolts a bit but the front pan is perfect....

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

The arch rails may be sagging some in the center of the arch.

[3rdgen.maple]

Okay sorry it just clicked with my small brain. I missed the point about the front pan being level. A few things could be happening. But I gotta ask first did you not level this arch before you bricked it. I think that is one mistake alot make. You get some flex in an unlevel arch and then add refactory cement and a bunch of bricks and it stiffens it up then it is out of wack.

[morningstarfarm]

nope i had leveled it before bricking..question remains.. what will the 5/16" it's out of level..low in the front of the flu pan?

[3rdgen.maple]

Okay that is good. Being out 5/16 only on the flue pan might not do anything except annoy you. The syrup pan is the most important one. If it is out of level it leaves the possibility of producing syrup in the middle chamber. First I would try to adjust the the back legs a little more and let it settle out and recheck it in a few days. If it remains the same I would be tempted to split the difference and when you boil on it adjust it if needed.

Another thought i have is are you leveling on the top of the pans or on the arch rail itself. If you are leveling on the pans is there a possibility the sides of the flue pan are lower on one end and it is not the arch itself? Seen it before.

[vtsnowedin]

The first question that comes to mind is where are your float or floats. If you have a raised flue like my lighting then the flue pan float is at the back and having the front of the pan low wouldn't hurt a thing. In fact the 1965 instructions for mine advise setting the flue pan 1/4 inch higher then the front. If you have a dropped flue setup with one float in the middle of the rig feeding the flue pan you don't want the far corners more then an quarter inch higher then where the pans join. I've seen and boiled in pans that were as much as an inch out in seven feet and it's a PITA. Get it as close as you can and watch it as the season progresses. Frost coming out of the ground can even move concrete floors enough to make trouble especially if like most sugar houses they sit unheated all winter.