The internet never ceases to amaze me! Even in videos that are wholesome, family oriented, DIY maple syrup producing tutorials, there's STILL vitriol to be found in the comment section. Unbelievable. Truly. Anyway, thank you, Brother for posting not only your finished successes, but also your trial and errors! I learn just as much, if not more, from seeing minor mistakes and what doesn't work, as I do a perfectly polished outcome that is free from the missteps that I am sure to make! God bless you and yours. 🙏😇👨👩👧👦
been sapping for 40 years . you can use 3 pans moving sap from front to back to finished ,open up front door use an old metal sheet . cold sap knocks you off boil . put a half gallon can in pan fill it with your cold sap ,when its hot put it into pan. oh yeh when sap is almost ready never leave it alone . clean t-shirt material.or you can buy fibre filters . jars should be hot .and keep em sterile . just subscribed
I did the Maple Syrup thing for 10 yrs or so. I found an old used propane grill someone was throwing out. Same pan you used. I put fire brick around the edge of the pan on the grill to block wind and to hold heat to the bottom and sides of the pan, full pan of sap would start a rolling boiling in about 15 minutes. The grill had a side burner for a 1/2 gallon pots which I used to preheat the sap, as not to slow the boil too much. I also hooked up a small computer muffin fan to blow gently across the top of the sap to evaporate it quicker, not continuously, but an hour here and there. I would use around 1-1/2 tanks propane to make a gallon of syrup. I know wood is cheaper but...just what I used. It's a weird learning curve, trying to make basically water boil ! Keep at it and soon you''ll have to much, which is the idea, Right ?
Technically, this wouldnt be considered a rocketstove because it doesn't follow the classic "U" shape or makes secondary combustion in the chimney resulting in nearly zero smoke. That being said, its a very good design that resembles the sugarshack boilers that i grew up many many yes ago. Its always worked and its good to see still working today. GOOD JOB! 👍
FYI, when looking for steam table pans, Look at the gauge of the pan and also get stainless steal ones. The cheep pans are around 28 gauge and thin, They work ok but will dent and bend easily. I just paid about $20 plus shipping for one. A good heavy restaurant one will set you back $40 plus. If you plan on doing it much, get the better ones. But like me, I am just getting back in to it and plan on getting better ones when I can afford it. Look around for used ones, but they can be almost as much. Now in 2022, LP is so high using a block oven like this is the way to go. I wish everyone luck and good times!
I've seen people line the inside with fire bricks so the cinder blocks aren't taking all the heat and cracking. That's a really good set up! I know that small wood stove took forever for me too and it never did come to a rolling boil.
as the burn chamber cools, you can stop the bricks cracking by stopping the flow of air over the bricks (thermal shock) by closing off the draft from the chimney (seal the chimney of with a couple of bricks). Great
Rotate the pan 90° to increase your burn tunnel. Insulating the chimney will also help increase draft. Ie, get a double wall stove pipe and use clay&cement to seal to cement blocks.
Definitely! A couple pancakes with butter and smoke flavored syrup, about 4 slices of bacon, a couple fried eggs, more syrup on top. Best breakfast ever!
Cookie dough looks like she likes your new stove. Glad she stays away while you're cooking the sap. We just finished our first batch and bottled it tonight. Won't be able to collect anymore sap until maybe tomorrow or Sunday. Too cold, everything has frozen. We found another good filter before bottling, diatomaceous (sp) earth. 1 cup for every 5 gallons. There is a process for doing it, then one more filtering it just before bottling, it makes for really clear syrup and gets rid of any bacteria that might cause mold.
Thanks for the details on this! I used a modification of your design this season (my first), worked really well! Rather than capping the top of the front part w/ blocks I used that as another spot for a pan. Couple other tips for any rookies like me -- For the chimney part I used full blocks for the bottom/base but then used a few half blocks for the top. (aka one 'channel') Cheaper/lighter for your supply loads from the store. Get a flat metal panel (usually found by duct supplies in hardware store) to use as a door to the fire, easier to move than a block (i mean the left side opening, still use blocks for the right side). I was also not perfectly level, but my second burn I used mud to pack in the gaps on the inside, as well as any gaps between blocks & the pans (before you put sap in, of course). The mud really helped keep in the heat and way less smoke escaping around the pan. This seemed to be an easier fix than trying to actually level everything.
After you enlarge it : ) You don't have to go up right away you could vent through the blocks make a loop and then go up and make a heated bench. just cobb or adobe or stucco it in and water proof the cobb then you will have a nice place to sit and enjoy the out doors when sugar season is in full swing. heck make a grill out of it for the off season.
Are you going to build a rocket stove heater for inside the home? I highly recommend it, I have been using one for years for my 2 story and it saved me many trips outside. -15 this year around january
Would wood chips work in that thing? It seems like the fire would be easier to stoke using those. Of course, THEN you'd have to find a place to keep them dry until you're ready to use them. Piles of sticks dry quickly due to airflow.
lol, the cat follows me around the yard, it is pretty funny. I normally just use a pair of welding gloves to pick it up and dump it in a pot to take inside to finish it
I built a evaporator very similar to this. I have problems with the sides of the pans burning the sap. It leaves black burnt sap mark around near the top of pan. What happens is the sap boils down and it kind of bounces around and burns on the upstroke . Any suggestions?
I was surprised to see you put the cinder block dead center (at 5:40ish in the video) To get more airflow I would have thought you would have put it to the left or to the right. Unless you wanted to reduce the airflow. Because the center of the block block a bit of the airflow unless it is not and it is just the angle I am looking at it. As always thanks for sharing :)
I would fill the blocks close to the fire with sand as they will hold the heat, aka thermal mass as someone had said. Just watch your blocks close to the fire as cinber blocks break down due to heat, they like to crack. I would hate to see you lose a batch if it crumbed down.
yeah some of them in the fire box have already cracked but not that bad where they would not hold together. I suspect this will last for the season and maybe next year also with a few blocks needing to be replaced.
This will only be used for the next few weeks and then I will take it down and store the blocks for next year so it shouldn't be there long enough for that I wouldn't think,
I have seen many rocket mass heaters used to heat thermal mass. I wonder how good something like this would be as a replacement of an outdoor stove to heat water for the house. - Possibly using less wood too.
I might mess around with a few designs in the eventual greenhouse to see if I can make something to heat it and heat hot water for the barn. Rocket stoves are pretty neat
great work, remember a lot of the fire heat will go downwards into the ground eg evaporation of water from the soil, so insulate the ground too ! excellent !!!! Need it to do boil 40 gallons of water, any ideas please
I'd like to see you learn a "running brick/block" stack for a better structure... how about a better ration between firebox/tunnel to exhaust stack... thanks for sharing...
Thanks for not showing us your kids, trees or buckets but focused on the construction. (Not sure how long you can make that heat chamber for more trays as you may fight with adequate draft.)
Problem is direct fire/heat will destroy cement blocks. Reclaimed firebricks would be super. And blocks are a good bit more than $1.10 these days in my neck of the woods. I definitely wouldn’t waste a bag of store bought sand. But… this is on the right track. I built a barrel stove boiler and it’s a big loser!!
+Matthew Collins not sure I know how to respond to that. Burning sticks that were going to waste to boil sap that just comes out of a tree each year. How is that not sustainable?
Trees are renewable if you use dead/down trees. Or, grow sugar beets or cane and use no energy and squeeze the juice out? Maybe grind up some maple leaves for flavor? (Yes, you are trolling.)
The internet never ceases to amaze me! Even in videos that are wholesome, family oriented, DIY maple syrup producing tutorials, there's STILL vitriol to be found in the comment section. Unbelievable. Truly. Anyway, thank you, Brother for posting not only your finished successes, but also your trial and errors! I learn just as much, if not more, from seeing minor mistakes and what doesn't work, as I do a perfectly polished outcome that is free from the missteps that I am sure to make! God bless you and yours. 🙏😇👨👩👧👦
nicely stated 🙂... really does take a lot to do what this gentleman did
been sapping for 40 years . you can use 3 pans moving sap from front to back to finished ,open up front door use an old metal sheet . cold sap knocks you off boil . put a half gallon can in pan fill it with your cold sap ,when its hot put it into pan. oh yeh when sap is almost ready never leave it alone . clean t-shirt material.or you can buy fibre filters . jars should be hot .and keep em sterile . just subscribed
Thanks, great suggestions for rotation of sap & filter + sterilization... new to this so very helpful
I did the Maple Syrup thing for 10 yrs or so. I found an old used propane grill someone was throwing out. Same pan you used. I put fire brick around the edge of the pan on the grill to block wind and to hold heat to the bottom and sides of the pan, full pan of sap would start a rolling boiling in about 15 minutes. The grill had a side burner for a 1/2 gallon pots which I used to preheat the sap, as not to slow the boil too much. I also hooked up a small computer muffin fan to blow gently across the top of the sap to evaporate it quicker, not continuously, but an hour here and there. I would use around 1-1/2 tanks propane to make a gallon of syrup. I know wood is cheaper but...just what I used. It's a weird learning curve, trying to make basically water boil ! Keep at it and soon you''ll have to much, which is the idea, Right ?
How do YOU get the pans off when they are full of hot or boiling sap?
Love this...but...how do you drain the syrup, once it's boiled down?
Technically, this wouldnt be considered a rocketstove because it doesn't follow the classic "U" shape or makes secondary combustion in the chimney resulting in nearly zero smoke. That being said, its a very good design that resembles the sugarshack boilers that i grew up many many yes ago. Its always worked and its good to see still working today. GOOD JOB! 👍
FYI, when looking for steam table pans, Look at the gauge of the pan and also get stainless steal ones. The cheep pans are around 28 gauge and thin, They work ok but will dent and bend easily. I just paid about $20 plus shipping for one. A good heavy restaurant one will set you back $40 plus. If you plan on doing it much, get the better ones. But like me, I am just getting back in to it and plan on getting better ones when I can afford it. Look around for used ones, but they can be almost as much. Now in 2022, LP is so high using a block oven like this is the way to go. I wish everyone luck and good times!
I've seen people line the inside with fire bricks so the cinder blocks aren't taking all the heat and cracking. That's a really good set up! I know that small wood stove took forever for me too and it never did come to a rolling boil.
Just a suggestion: pound a couple rods of rebar down the inside of the chimney channels to stabilize it from possibly getting knocked over.
excellent suggestion ... thanx !
as the burn chamber cools, you can stop the bricks cracking by stopping the flow of air over the bricks (thermal shock) by closing off the draft from the chimney (seal the chimney of with a couple of bricks). Great
Rotate the pan 90° to increase your burn tunnel. Insulating the chimney will also help increase draft. Ie, get a double wall stove pipe and use clay&cement to seal to cement blocks.
Great video.
Quick question for you. Since rocket stoves are supposed to burn wood very efficiently, do you really need a high chimney? Thanks.
lol... I love that smokey taste in homemade maple syrup!
Me too! l look for local producers who reduce over wood fire.
Definitely! A couple pancakes with butter and smoke flavored syrup, about 4 slices of bacon, a couple fried eggs, more syrup on top. Best breakfast ever!
Cookie dough looks like she likes your new stove. Glad she stays away while you're cooking the sap. We just finished our first batch and bottled it tonight. Won't be able to collect anymore sap until maybe tomorrow or Sunday. Too cold, everything has frozen. We found another good filter before bottling, diatomaceous (sp) earth. 1 cup for every 5 gallons. There is a process for doing it, then one more filtering it just before bottling, it makes for really clear syrup and gets rid of any bacteria that might cause mold.
+Joyce Mastaw I am go I ng to have to talk to you about that, that sounds like a great filter. Coffee filters take forever!
That is quite the awesome setup!!!
It worked out very well. Sap is running again this week so I get to test it out again!
I built a cinder block evaporator as well with 1 pan and after the first boil quickly added a second pan - twice the evaporation.
Thanks for the details on this! I used a modification of your design this season (my first), worked really well! Rather than capping the top of the front part w/ blocks I used that as another spot for a pan. Couple other tips for any rookies like me -- For the chimney part I used full blocks for the bottom/base but then used a few half blocks for the top. (aka one 'channel') Cheaper/lighter for your supply loads from the store. Get a flat metal panel (usually found by duct supplies in hardware store) to use as a door to the fire, easier to move than a block (i mean the left side opening, still use blocks for the right side). I was also not perfectly level, but my second burn I used mud to pack in the gaps on the inside, as well as any gaps between blocks & the pans (before you put sap in, of course). The mud really helped keep in the heat and way less smoke escaping around the pan. This seemed to be an easier fix than trying to actually level everything.
Cool, simple and fast to make, very interesting solution. Thank you for sharing your amazing video
After you enlarge it : ) You don't have to go up right away you could vent through the blocks make a loop and then go up and make a heated bench. just cobb or adobe or stucco it in and water proof the cobb then you will have a nice place to sit and enjoy the out doors when sugar season is in full swing. heck make a grill out of it for the off season.
excellent suggestions ! thanx
Just wondering if you’ve had issues with cinder blocks cracking from the heat? Don’t want to have to replace them every year!
Otherwise it works great!
Are you going to build a rocket stove heater for inside the home? I highly recommend it, I have been using one for years for my 2 story and it saved me many trips outside. -15 this year around january
how do you do that inside, is it safe?
We are going to try this, this spring!!
Would wood chips work in that thing? It seems like the fire would be easier to stoke using those. Of course, THEN you'd have to find a place to keep them dry until you're ready to use them. Piles of sticks dry quickly due to airflow.
That's a cool CAT excavator.Thought they were all yellow and black.What will you use for handles on the pan?
lol, the cat follows me around the yard, it is pretty funny. I normally just use a pair of welding gloves to pick it up and dump it in a pot to take inside to finish it
I built a evaporator very similar to this. I have problems with the sides of the pans burning the sap. It leaves black burnt sap mark around near the top of pan. What happens is the sap boils down and it kind of bounces around and burns on the upstroke . Any suggestions?
Not sure, if the sides of the pan are in contact with the flame that might happen or if you have a thin pan. Cant think if a way to prevent that
I was surprised to see you put the cinder block dead center (at 5:40ish in the video) To get more airflow I would have thought you would have put it to the left or to the right. Unless you wanted to reduce the airflow. Because the center of the block block a bit of the airflow unless it is not and it is just the angle I am looking at it. As always thanks for sharing :)
Smokey syrup, might make a good BBQ sauce.
I would fill the blocks close to the fire with sand as they will hold the heat, aka thermal mass as someone had said. Just watch your blocks close to the fire as cinber blocks break down due to heat, they like to crack. I would hate to see you lose a batch if it crumbed down.
yeah some of them in the fire box have already cracked but not that bad where they would not hold together. I suspect this will last for the season and maybe next year also with a few blocks needing to be replaced.
Yankee ingenuity at work!
Very cool build enjoyed it a lot
I like the idea of smokey maple syrup
Pretty cool. Well done!
That's a pretty cool idea! Well done!
I'm afraid the weight of the chimney will compact the ground eventually ending in a rain of cinder blocks. Please keep that in mind and be careful!
This will only be used for the next few weeks and then I will take it down and store the blocks for next year so it shouldn't be there long enough for that I wouldn't think,
Ok good. Wasn't trying to be negative, but safety first. 😄
do you know of a similar heater to heat a 40 gallon water tank please ?
I have seen many rocket mass heaters used to heat thermal mass. I wonder how good something like this would be as a replacement of an outdoor stove to heat water for the house. - Possibly using less wood too.
I might mess around with a few designs in the eventual greenhouse to see if I can make something to heat it and heat hot water for the barn. Rocket stoves are pretty neat
did you get any rocket stove designs to heat domestic hot water economically eg a 40 gallons of water to boiling ?
great work, remember a lot of the fire heat will go downwards into the ground eg evaporation of water from the soil, so insulate the ground too ! excellent !!!! Need it to do boil 40 gallons of water, any ideas please
Awesome idea but wondering how long the cinder blocks will last. 3 years would mean nothing in cost.
I will probably have to replace a few around the firebox and that baffle each year so maybe $10
Not bad for maintenance cost.
Is Cookie Dough tame enough for petting?
It would not be too difficult to use a barrel stove kit door encased by cinderblock to close up the front entirely.
I built this, but I couldn’t get regular water to boil. I may not be creating enough draft
How are the goats doing? It's been awhile since you were expecting
+FarmDude the have given birth, waiting on a video clip on someone's phone to complete and edit the video on them
I'd like to see you learn a "running brick/block" stack for a better structure... how about a better ration between firebox/tunnel to exhaust stack... thanks for sharing...
Thanks for not showing us your kids, trees or buckets but focused on the construction. (Not sure how long you can make that heat chamber for more trays as you may fight with adequate draft.)
Thank you.
Problem is direct fire/heat will destroy cement blocks. Reclaimed firebricks would be super. And blocks are a good bit more than $1.10 these days in my neck of the woods. I definitely wouldn’t waste a bag of store bought sand. But… this is on the right track. I built a barrel stove boiler and it’s a big loser!!
4 in block hold center make bigger fire box
Just boiling mine off in the BBQ. Wondering how it's gonna taste. LOL
I bet Smokey
How does the cooked Cat Meat taste?
Got a better idea!
It's called a hotel pan
how is burning wood to make a sugar sauce to put on your pancakes sustainable? not to troll but it just seems like a waste.
+Matthew Collins not sure I know how to respond to that. Burning sticks that were going to waste to boil sap that just comes out of a tree each year. How is that not sustainable?
Trees are renewable if you use dead/down trees. Or, grow sugar beets or cane and use no energy and squeeze the juice out? Maybe grind up some maple leaves for flavor? (Yes, you are trolling.)
Dude it's called evaporation. Not suppose to boil until it is syrup.