My homemade arch project

[raptorfan85]

Thanks maple flats. It's not the prettiest bricking job ever but I know it will last. I went heavy on the refractory and made sure I pressed them together to get a good seal. A lot of the refractory smooshed out so it ended up being a little messy. I think lll skim coat the inside after to clean it up some.

The hands don't perform like they used to. The joys of getting older.

[raptorfan85]

So the firebox is fully bricked. All full bricks, and the flat part under the flues is also full bricks. I know its not needed but it was how I had planned it out before I knew that I could just use blanket so they were needed to take up the space under the flues. Theres still a bigger gap then I would like, I will probably end up sliding another piece of blanket under the flues. I had a small fire to cure the refractory last night. Everything went really well. I think I might need one more section of smoke pipe. I have 7 feet right now. It was surprisingly air tight as well. There was one small area where the blower connects to the back with some ash coming out that I will have to seal up.

IMG_20181006_144338588_HDR_zpsshz2yccz.jpg
IMG_20181006_144343764_zps4xsbehix.jpg

Im incredibly happy with how well the door seals and keeps heat in. After almost an hour of fire the outside of the door was still cool to the touch. In the picture you can see the inside of the door. The outer layer of ceramic blanket sits inside of the door opening frame and against the front of the arch sealing it up. The inner 2 layers sit snug inside the opening and are flush with the brick inside the firebox. Very happy with it. I would bet it seals air tight.

IMG_20181006_144329525_HDR_zpsu7t43qyk.jpg

[raptorfan85]

So here it is! The final product! Its been a lot of work and time. I couldnt be happier with how it came out. I put my twists on it and its my own. My best project to date and Im proud to say I built it.

IMG_20181006_144250482_zpstdzcjkl5.jpg
IMG_20181006_144310406_zpslru6bwcs.jpg
IMG_20181006_144301315_zpshaed2yck.jpg

[n8hutch]

Looks great, you are going to have a lot of fun boiling with that.

[raptorfan85]

Here's a video of the test boil. It was about 19 gph at full throttle during the boil. Sorry for all the posts... I'm just happy to be done with it and proud to have built it myself.

https://youtu.be/9s0HcTrDyq0

[phil-t]

That's awesome! You are going to have a LONG winter, waiting for that first sap run.

[Z/MAN]

Great looking rig. I also built my own and it is great when you see how much great syrup you will make. Well done.

[maple flats]

Good job. I think it will boil even harder when you get more wood in the firebox. It should be about 3/4 full side to side and front to back in the firebox when filled, then when refilled it should still have 1/4-1/3 full remaining. After you get a couple more feet of stack, try just once opening the door with the air on full. See if you get anything out the front. If yes, close the gate every time, if not, leave the gate open. I think it will all depend on how well the stack draws.
When you add wood, have it ready to go in before you open the door and add it as fast as you can without risking hitting the flues and denting them, or denting the bottom of the pan itself.
Also, split it a little smaller, it will do best if no dimension is over wrist size, a couple of the highest pieces seen when you opened the door in the video are larger, or else you are a real big dude.

[raptorfan85]

I will be sure to fill the firebox more next time. I was a little hesitant because it was the first time I've used it. I did try to open the door with the blower on and fire came shooting out the door. I'll try again with some more stack. The wood was literally 2x4s. I'll split them in half next time and see if that helps. Thanks for all the advice.

Phil-t, only 135 days, but who's counting?

[Super Sapper]

Looks great, it should boil even better after you get a good routine down. Make sure your grate is completely covered or else your auf will short circuit around the wood and coals. It takes about 2 hours for it to heat up and max out, that is when to experiment with your wood and air. If you have a great boil in the back but not the front and your stack is glowing you may need to cut back a little on the air. Have fun tweaking and they you will need to find more taps.