Lapierre Thrifty Model Evaporator 24 in x 60 in

[Dennis H.]

I am looking to finally upgrade to a nice new Evap and I am looking at the Lapierre Thrity 2'x5' from The Maple Guys.

What does anyone think of this evap? What kind of build quality does it have?
It doesn't look like it has reverseable pans is this going to be a problem for me down the road? What size of smoke stack will this evap use. Right now I have a 6" flue in for my barrell evap.

Will it handle up to 200 taps? Right now I have 71 on Vac and I am working hard on getting another 100-150 more.

[farmall h]

Dennis, you need at least 500 taps, c'mon...put up another clothes line for the wife!:) I would look around you know: Maple Guys, Leader. There must be a small unit out there with raised flue back pan and divided front. Have you been to the Leader site?

[caseyssugarshack93]

go with a 2x6 if you got the money so you can grow into it, and it all depends on how long you want to boil, 200 taps lets say 150-200 gallons of sap and on a 2x6 at 40 gallons a hour, thats a 5 hour boil

[3rdgen.maple]

I have to agree with Nate get the 6 footer with the 4 foot flue pan. Especially if you are talking about adding more taps. Reverse flow on a small rig is worthless in my opinion. Not enough surface area to push out the niter in time before it builds up in the other section. Been there a alot and just plain ole gave up. If you plan on keeping the rig and if coin is available consider an extra syrup pan and just switch them between boils. One is boiling and one is being cleaned. Or just plug the flue and draw off the syrup pan and let it soak overnight. A light scrub and rinse your back in business. Man it is fun spending someone elses money.

[Dennis H.]

I am not sure that I could fit a 2x6 in the current location. A 2x4 would be perfect but I am afraid that I would still have some Realllllly long boils. And the only 2x4 that I could find that had a flue and syrup pan is a Leader WSE.

If anyone knows of another evap in this size range let me know.

I looked at Leader and their bigger evaps, Americans & Patriots are nice, and I looked at the WSE's They fit right into my buget but for what I hear is since they are drop flues and the low end models there is no flue drains so I would have to suck the liquid out when I need to clean or if a hard freeze is in the forecast.

I also was looking at Patrict Phneuff stuff, Wow! very nice It is just that I didn't see that he made a 2x4 with a flue pan either. I was kind of hold the Phneuff for when I get a real sugarshack and the room for a 2x6. And also the time to wait for it to be made and deleivered!!!

My plans with any evap I get will be to fab a hood with a preheater inside. It should help to increase the GPH for the evap a little.

[Dennis H.]

Oh yeah what size stack would a 24x60 use? Would it be 8", I can't imagine that it would use a 6".

Oh Cassey I just noticed that you have a 2x6 WSE, how do you like it? Do you have any trouble with the drop flues freezing and not being able to drain them?

Thanks for the info, I am just trying to get my ducks in a row while I still can get a discount for early ordering.

[Maplewalnut]

Dennis-

I bought a 2x4 as my first 'rig'. It was the best decision I made and also the worst. Great unit to learn how to boil on an 'evaporator' and sold it for only $100 less than I paid for it (used two seasons). Outgrew it before I even unwrapped the pallet and the long boils at 10-15 gallons an hour seem like eternity. You should be able to find a good used 2x6 for a little more than a new 2x4 and it is the world of difference.

Mike

[Haynes Forest Products]

I havent ever seen a thread about what was I thinking when I upgraded to a bigger evap and its to big. I still marvel at the set up I got for very little money:) and what they go for now:cry: DO THE RIGHT THING...........DO THE RIGHT THING.................DO THE RIGHT THING...............keep saying it....DO THE RIGHT THING:mrgreen:

[caseyssugarshack93]

dennis i had no problems with freezes, yes i do wish they had a drain but i have a filterpress so i pump out the flues anyways when im ready to clean the pans, but you can also push the sweet out with water when your ready to clean the pans, Also reversing the flow of the syrup pan, you have to rotate the whole syrup pan to reverse the flow, but all in all there a real good rig to start out on,

[Gravel]

This may be something you are interested in? Looks like new!

http://burlington.craigslist.org/grd/1691545142.html

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Resale value of a 2x6 is going to be higher than a smaller size.

[3rdgen.maple]

I dont want to open up a can of dead worms but Patrick does make a 2x4 with a drop flue with a drain. All you gotta do is ask him and tell him what you want. Also I know he will take it back in trade for a 2x6. I do not think his website list everything he makes. Just a thought for you. It has been said a hundred times he may be late but man the stuff is exceptional.

[Dennis H.]

Yeah 3rdgen I emailed him yesterday afternoon for a quote on a 2x4 and a 2x6 and I would say that maybe 3 hours went by and he already had sent me a quote for both!!

I don't think I can afford a Phneuff right now, I agree that his stuff looks very nice and all that shiney stuff really draws us to them like a moth to a flame.

I am kind of stuck right now with how big I can go. The room on the back of my garage where I have my barrel evap is only 10'x12' and the way it is laid out with a patio around it it would be very difficult to add on to it and my plans are to make a "real" sugarshck on a new piece of land in a few years and that is when I would then look to upgrade again to a 2x6.
This is why I am trying to stay with a 2x5 or smaller evap.

Keep the comments and ideas coming.

[caseyssugarshack93]

dennis here are 2 of pats evaps on ebay there both 2x4s

http://cgi.ebay.com/Maple-syrup-2-x-4-Pro-hobby-evaporator_W0QQitemZ230458538907QQcmdZViewItemQQpt ZLH_DefaultDomain_2?hash=item35a8663b9b




http://cgi.ebay.com/Maple-syrup-2-x-4-Pro-deluxe-evaporator_W0QQitemZ230459887208QQcmdZViewItemQQpt ZLH_DefaultDomain_2?hash=item35a87ace68

[Dennis H.]

Thanks for the links Cassey.

How is the build quality of the Lapierre Evaps? Are there any known problems.

It seems I am leaning toward the Lapierre because of $$$ and also sugarshack size.

[barkeatr]

i purchased a lapierre 2x6 economy model raised flue last summer on sale from maple guys. the build quality on this "economy" model was quite good. there were a a few cosmeticf flaws but overall im very impressed with it and the floats, float boxes and pipes and fittings. the pans have the tricky fold hand grips that the full on evap pans have and are not just s straight piece of stainless.

my sides are galvanized. I bricked it up with a very small space between the insulation and the galvanized to help reduce how much the galvanized gets all burnt up from the heat, it seemed to have worked.

I paid around less than 3,500 put that was a sale price. mine wasnt built untill early in 2010 so i had to heat the room to do the bricking...and I picked the unit up from lapierre in swanton vermont to save the shipping.

the doors, and front seem heavy duty. grates seem heavy duty.

all in all i would go with lapierre again for sure.

barkeatr

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Looks like Patrick's ebay feedback is starting to catch up with the feedback on here.

[Haynes Forest Products]

Looks like Patrick could use a little help with the work flow. As far as his Feedback if it wasnt for his high praise from his supplers he would be in the 75% range:mad:

[Dennis H.]

Thanks barkeatr, that was what I was looking for.

I have heard of the build quality of the Leader WSE and for the price they are asking I just couldn't see spending that when/if I can get better stuff else where.

You say shipping fees? Does Maple Guys charge shipping fees to thier place? I had full intention to pick it up at The Maple Guys place when it arrived.

[heus]

Ive said it before but I think Patrick is right where he wants to be. Even with the slow service people are still beating down his door for his equipment. As long as there is a high demand for his products he probably sees no reason to change his business practices. Even after all of the waiting I went through, I am considering having him make me a duplicate syrup pan for my rig.

[barkeatr]

i believe maple guys could offer me a slightly better price if i picked up the evap at lapierre in vermont. It saves the shipping cost of going from swanton to NH. They are still credited as dealer. im not sure on all this but..

again im doubtfull the build quality is better than leader due to the cosmetic minor flaws..on these economy models (if they still have them) I havent seen a leader but expect thier build quality might be an eight...lapierre might be a seven on a one to ten rating. but for the price difference and the fact that its only cosmetic issues...what the heck.

boil rate seemed to match what is claimed.30 galls per hour plus...

[maplekid]

help a fellow trader out... talk to W.F.MASON his prices look lower than everyone elses.i got a qoute for a set of 2x6 pans and it was only $2500.thats either raised or drop flue i think. ive never heard anything bad about his equipment.

[Dennis H.]

Thanks maplekid about WF Mason, I forgot about him I will shoot off a PM for a quote.

I will have to call and ask about picking the evap up at Swanton. For me it is about the same time and distance so if I can save some I could go and pick it up at the factory. It would also give me a reason to stop by Leader while up there for tubing and misc other stuff.

[Dennis H.]

So here is another question.

What can I expect for evap rate from the 24"x60" evap.

[maplekid]

from what a friend of mines does. id say 15gph with wood. 20 with oil

[Dennis H.]

Well I finally fired up the evap and watched water boil!:lol:

After I got it boiling I filled the feed tank and started my timer. I went thru 24 gals in 1hr 15min. That puts me right at 19 gals/hr. Not bad for 1st time firing.
I figure I could get a little more out of it by using smaller split wood and paying more attention to how I fire it.

I did see one thing that worries me though. I had a hard time getting the front part of the syrup pan to boil. It has 3 sections and the back two had a fast boil and the front one just barely bubbled.
Now I did find that at first I had the draft door open too much, it looked like it was causing the flames and heat to go to the back to much. So I closed down the draft till it was open only about 1" and that is how I got the front to just start to boil.
I also found that keeping the wood right at the front next to the doors helped alittle.
Also my thermometer never got to to the 0 mark, it is one of those 0-50 degree ones.

Is this normal with a crossflow pan? What am I doing wrong.

I made a little diagram of the evap to show what looks like. The section that I am talking about is labeled 5.

The flue pan boil really good it looked like gysers all over the pan, really cool to watch.

Thanks for any info you all can give.

[DrTimPerkins]

I had a hard time getting the front part of the syrup pan to boil. It has 3 sections and the back two had a fast boil and the front one just barely bubbled.

You should be able to tweak it a bit more, but may still see this to some degree. The front-most pan has a lot more surface contact with the arch rails. As the entire arch heats up (and it takes more than an hour of hard firing to get really hot), it'll boil somewhat faster, but probably never quite as hard as the other two syrup pans. This isn't a real big problem.

Thermometers are typically adjustable, so when the water first starts to boil you dial it in at 0. This compensates for barometric pressure at your elevation and the day you're boiling (depends upon the weather).

Do you have a stack damper? Perhaps it was too wide open. What were your stack temps? Were the 3 front (syrup) pans tight together? Do you have insulation gasket around the arch rails?

[3% Solution]

Mornin' Dennis and the good Dr.,
Well we have a home-made 2x5 and the front section will boil, don't worry about that.
We usually hold the wood right back to the door.
We also have a forced draft.
It takes awhile as the dr. said to get things heated up in there, the bricks are cold and they will take a lot of the heat away at first.
The law of heat is "Hot goes to cold".
Just like an old steam engine, when it gets up to temp it will just chug along nicely.
You just need to learn about your new rig that's all.
You'll figure it out!!
Have fun.

Dave

[HHM-07]

Hi Folks, I have a 2x4 and had that same problem, i put a row of bricks at the rear of the firebox that holds the heat to the front and it boils like a bandit. Hope this will help you out try it with loose brick just to try it then if it works cement them in place

Good luck Dick

[3rdgen.maple]

Water in that front section isnt gonna boil at all like a front section with heavy concentrated sap in it. Once you get those pans sweetened up you are gonna see alot of difference in how that front section boils. On the plus side a somewhat softer boil up front will give you better control of the finished product anyways. A mad crazy out of control boil up there could lead to a scortched pan and worse a burnt pan if you are not on your toes. I would suggest seeing how she does once those pans are sweetened and you draw off your first batch. Good luck.

[Dennis H.]

Thanks guys, I guess I will wait and see. Maybe I will give it a try with the bricks at the back of the pan.

Dr. P, wait now that doesn't sound good! Dr Perkins, yeah I have Pan rail gasket all around. But I don't have a stack Thermo. So I have no idea what those temps are. That is one thing I forgot to get.

I will have to look under the syrup pan though, I just thought about it, I may have the gasket material sticking out under the syrup pan farther than it should.

Here is another thing I took notice too. The syrup pan is right up tight to the cast front of the evap and the syrup pan is tight to the flue pan. The stack base it bolted to the side rails in slotted holes. it looks like I can slide the stack base rear ward about 1/2" which means that I could slide both pan rear ward some. Would getting the syrup pan back away from the front help to get a better boil in the front section?

[PATheron]

Dennis- Whats the rig supposed to be rated at? Theron

[DrTimPerkins]

Dr. P, wait now that doesn't sound good! Dr Perkins,...

I've been called worse. :)