Great idea!
Very nicely done.
Mark
Great idea!
Very nicely done.
Mark
Mason 2x4 w/raised flue pan, 240 gal. sap tank, 80 Reds on 5/16 tubing and Lunchbox releaser/pump, 20 sugars on buckets
Here's a photo of the metal diamond plate I put over my wood plank floor:
2X4 XL - 4.jpg
My evaporator is a Mason 2x4. Never had a problem.
Mark
Mason 2x4 w/raised flue pan, 240 gal. sap tank, 80 Reds on 5/16 tubing and Lunchbox releaser/pump, 20 sugars on buckets
Great ideas guys; thanks!
2016 - 2 x 4 Randy Worthen built arch and pans 11 taps; 2.625 gallons of syrup!
2017 - 29 taps; 11.625 gallons of syrup!
2018 - 30 taps; 98 pints bottled! New sugar house being built, new equipment coming!
2019 - 125 taps; 50 gallons made! New 2x6 Smoky Lake Corsair arch, drop flue pan, auto draw. Smoky Lake filter press and Steam Bottler
2020 - 173 taps; only 35 gallons made.
2021 - 242 taps; New record! 50.5 gallons made!
2022 - 321 taps; New record! 80 gallons made!
I have a 12x16 sugarhouse for my 2x6 and it seems like the right size. I have a wood floor but the evaporator is support by cement blocks. I kind of built the sugarhouse around it. I dug down several feet where the arch would go and filled that with sand and placed the blocks on top of that so that they would not shift. So the area under the fire box is actually open and not on wood.
I keep an eye on any sparks but I usually pour sap in an area in front of the evaporator after the first firing and any stray embers and then again at the end of the day. I have not had an issue in 10 years.
About 300 taps
2'x6' air tight arch
Semi complete 12'x24' sugarhouse in Somers, CT
My YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/CapturedNature
My eBook: Making Maple Syrup in your Backyard
My shack is a 12x14 for my 2x6. My shack does sit on sono tubes but I placed 6 extra tubes & footings just to support the evaporator floor.The slab is 2 1/2" thick reinforced with #5 rebar.[ATTACH=CONFIG]15845[/ATTAC2015-10-10 17.09.45.jpg2015-10-11 14.39.44.jpg2015-10-11 15.59.32.jpgH]
2012- 12X14 Shack, 2x6 CDL Maple Pro
2013- 165 taps
2014- 300 taps, small vac system
2015- Still Looking to expand
2016- Less Taps Rebuilt sugarhouse
Tappy - Have you experienced any cracks in your slab?
2016 - 2 x 4 Randy Worthen built arch and pans 11 taps; 2.625 gallons of syrup!
2017 - 29 taps; 11.625 gallons of syrup!
2018 - 30 taps; 98 pints bottled! New sugar house being built, new equipment coming!
2019 - 125 taps; 50 gallons made! New 2x6 Smoky Lake Corsair arch, drop flue pan, auto draw. Smoky Lake filter press and Steam Bottler
2020 - 173 taps; only 35 gallons made.
2021 - 242 taps; New record! 50.5 gallons made!
2022 - 321 taps; New record! 80 gallons made!
I boiled for years on 3/4 stone in my Sugarshack. Pouring a concrete floor with strategically placed drains with a nice slope toward the garage door was the best addition I ever did in my Sugarshack. We are able to hose down whenever we want. It is nice wheeling around drums easily. I think it will be more money, but less upkeep. Just my 2 cents. Lee
Lavoie's Sugar Shack
130 taps
Homemade rear fired oil evaporator
oil tank evaporator
Home made stainless steel flue pan
Homemade R O
addition on barn for sugaring
2 children who love hauling sap
golden retriever who love syrup
Barry the helpful neighbor who loves bottling
Good wife who likes to think she finances this insane hobby
No cracks as of yet!
2012- 12X14 Shack, 2x6 CDL Maple Pro
2013- 165 taps
2014- 300 taps, small vac system
2015- Still Looking to expand
2016- Less Taps Rebuilt sugarhouse
DMF what did you end up going with for your floor ?? I was looking into wood and crushed stone floors also. I ended up deciding with a 6" slab with drains 12 x 16. Total cost estimate between materials and tools is roughly 1100 bucks if you can work with concrete
2018 - ?? 2x5 lapierre raised flue evaporator
2017 - 150 taps mixed 2.5 x 4 evaporator
2016 - 230 taps taps mixed 2.5 x 4 evaporator
2015 - 115 taps mixed buckets, bags and, water jugs. 2.5 x 4 evaporator.
2014 - 55 taps mixed buckets, bags and, drop lines. 4 steam trays and a block arch. 3 gallons made tapped prematurely (lesson learned)
Has anyone tried a suspended concrete floor? Basically place your sonotubes to below frost on heave footings up to the elevation of what will be the bottom of the concrete slab then support metal decking for a form under the concrete. The same as parking garages only scaled down. It would take a lot of rebar tying everything together and probably 8” thick concrete but I would think that it would be better than burning the sugar shack down. Downside would be extra cost and I would want someone to help that has a lot of concrete experience, or an engineer to figure the size and placement of the rebar. Sort of like Tappy did only for the entire floor.
Last edited by minehart gap; 11-18-2017 at 05:42 AM.
Matt,
Minehart Gap Maple
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