My plan 2022/23

[Pdiamond]

Because my building was already done, all we did was remove the shingles and cut the plywood to the size of the cupola. I had an Amish friend make the cupola as it was much easier for me to just put it up, rather than mess with the building of it. I can't cut a straight line for nothing, let alone build anything. He did a great job too. My son screwed it on from inside the sugar house.

[wobbletop]

Thanks! Nice sugar shack! If I ever get a real evaporator, I will add walls to what I am building, but while I am using a cinderblock evaporator I want lots of open sides.

Can you open the lourvers or does the steam find it’s way through. (I know that could be a stupid question). Is your cupola about a foot high?

These are what I used for louvers:
https://www.homedepot.ca/product/fle...tem/1001682798

They swivel. It's 3 truss widths long, so about 4'. The opening is about 15" (3 standard fence boards).

It's probably undersized, but I only have a barrel evaporator now, but planning to have a 2x4 next year. If the bigger evaporator produces too much steam, I can add a hood to the evaporator.

I'll try to get a picture from inside but it's built using air nailer, so no fancy joinery like your plans.

[Swingpure]

These are what I used for louvers:
https://www.homedepot.ca/product/fle...tem/1001682798

They swivel. It's 3 truss widths long, so about 4'. The opening is about 15" (3 standard fence boards).

It's probably undersized, but I only have a barrel evaporator now, but planning to have a 2x4 next year. If the bigger evaporator produces too much steam, I can add a hood to the evaporator.

I'll try to get a picture from inside but it's built using air nailer, so no fancy joinery like your plans.

Thanks, very cool about the louvers. Thanks for the link. I may also do the roof vents for the other 8 feet of the roof, not covered by the cupola.

I won’t be doing any of that fancy joinery either.

[Swingpure]

I walked up the hill today where I will be putting my new lines. It is steep all the way with no flat spots and lots of maple trees and there will be a good long stretch at the end that will be steep leading up to my collection barrels, that will be the “crux”, the engine of the lines.

It will be ideal. I have to get permission each year to use it, so I will be grateful for any year that I am allowed to use it.

I am also going to redo some lines I did last year and also will not do two lines. I won’t know how many taps I will have for sure until the fall when I actually put all of the lines out, but it will be between 100 and 120. No buckets. And I will have the same number of collection areas and barrels. I will have a better collection pump and piping into the RO in my garage, so a lot less carrying and a lot less pails to clean.

Today I dug out three medium sized roots with the help of my ATV pulling them out. I am also grading the area around my concrete pad. Not much more will happen until I get the backhoe here to dig out the two large stumps on the left side of the picture. Orange pail lids show the approximate placement of the four posts for the 10x10 structure. There will be a fairly large deck surrounding the pad. All of the wood except the four posts is free wood.

https://share.icloud.com/photos/045S...gPFm16uqZma5Ag

[Pdiamond]

Gary, you can't beat free.

[wobbletop]

As promised. Hard to get a good view with the truss' in the way.

[Swingpure]

As promised. Hard to get a good view with the truss' in the way.

Thanks. It was also interesting seeing your trusses.

Not positive yet what I am going to do.

[Swingpure]

The good news is the back hoe showed up and dug out the two large stumps. I knew there was a 50/50 risk that my concrete pad might get affected because the stumps were so close to the pad. Prior to the hoe arriving, I cut as many roots as I could find going under the pad. At first I thought I was successful, but on the almost last scoop, the pad got lifted and broke at the only hairline crack in the pad.

https://share.icloud.com/photos/096Y...9iJ4ajq8S6ygfg

The bad thing is I had based all of my measurements for the post locations, off of the pad. With the pad moved, I will have to go to plan B.

The back hoe also had a large bucket. so the holes are quite large for my sono tubes, but fortunately my soil is very sandy, so it will not be too hard to fill in.

I will figure out how to place the sono tubes in the correct, square locations.

[Pdiamond]

Gary forgive the ignorant question, but what are sono tubes?

[Sugarbush Ridge]

Pour concrete,,,, put rebar in. very cheap for what they do. I concrete may crack but not break apart