Hey there, as a relative newbie myself, I have a few suggestions that may help.
- First, once you go past a dozen taps or so, it becomes all about efficiency, even if you are still doing it just for fun. Do anything and everything you can to raise the temp (and even the the sugar content) of the incoming sap before it hits the pan and increase the rate of boils after. Because in the end it will save you time and fuel both which you are going need a lot of especially if you are going to tap 100+ acres.
- Second, TimJ's 6 arch feature suggestions are good things to consider if you are going to do anything significant. When I went from 6 to 31 taps my second season, I incorporated those types of things and others into my small rig and it definitely improved my quality, efficiency, and sanity.
- Third: if you are handy with metal and are going to tap more than 50 trees, I would suggest making yourself at least an oil tank evaporator, if not something more like the commercial arches. I built myself what I think is a pretty decent barrel arch (with a divided flat pan) and even with my small RO it would have a hard time keeping up if I doubled the number of taps. Granted I don't yet have a pre-heater but the best it can do right now is about 6-7gph. Maybe with a decent preheater and a drop flue-pan I could get it to maybe 10-12gph but I'd have a hard time finding either in my arch's size unless I custom make them. MeadMaple's rig is a real nice example of something a bit bigger than a barrel arch and it can handle standard 24" wide pans which will open up a lot of options. There is tons of info on here about them and you can always add another section later making it longer if you want expand.
Good luck and keep us posted!
-Scott
2017: Found a new addiction/hobby!: 6 taps, Coleman stove/turkey fryer, graduated to barrel arch, 1.75 gal
2018: Increased efficiency - 22 taps on 3/16 gravity vac, 10 buckets, homemade extended barrel arch w/ firebrick, warming pan, 20X30 baffled pan, small home-built RO, 11.5 gal
2019: Same as above now with AUF, home-built float pan, gas sap pump, fewer fire brick but more insulation, maybe a few more taps if the wife lets me. ;-)