First Boil On Our Smoky Lake 2x6 High Output Raised Flue SSR Maple Syrup Evaporator

SouthDown Farm upgraded our evaporator for the 2023 season! Come join us as we fire this evaporator up for the very first time!

[@SingleCreekMapleSyrup]

Sweet!! This it exciting!

[@southdownfarm6323]

Boil On!

[@cydneyscaggs6693]

Pretty cool! 😊

[@richardjulian9263]

We have the exact same setup right down to the draw being on the left vs. the right. This is our 5th year using it and we really like it. Enjoy!

[@southdownfarm6323]

Smoky Lake was great to work with on customizing the rig to fit our situation without any hassle. Though it was not the greatest production year for us I only have great things to say about this evaporator. Really helped save time and firewood! Thanks for reaching out! Boil on!!

[@Tom-yr3pt]

Very nice setup I don't know this brand, few suggestions, exhaust temp is way too high you're basically heating outside while you want the heat under the pans and should aim for a temp of 500-650F. Making a wall at the end of the chamber and waves under the pans makes a second combustion to burn the left over gases. A key at the exhaust and air makeup would greatly help in both heating more efficiently the tap water while saving wood. Very nice setup with great potential!

[@RobertViani]

Nice! Love that pan. I run a Smoky Lake Dauntless here in Connecticut with a flat pan and enclosed stack preheater. we're at 11-12 gph. We have 50 taps... I wish more of our maples were ready to tap. Good luck!

[@southdownfarm6323]

Thanks, hope your season is a good one too! When do you normally tap your trees? We tap in the first two weeks of January.

[@RobertViani]

@@southdownfarm6323 Last year we tapped 1st. Week of Feb. it’s been a pretty warm up here. Hopefully some cold weather coming!

[@RobertViani]

How many taps are you guys running? That pan is blowing some steam! Wooohooo!

[@southdownfarm6323]

330+/- this year

[@devmeistersuperprecision4155]

@@southdownfarm6323how many gallons of syrup from these taps?

[@darrengarlough5121]

How do you all go about cleaning your pans? And how often?

[@southdownfarm6323]

Normally clean them at the end of the season. At the end of the season I will let the sweet sit in the pans fermenting. This process creates a vinegar like acid that cleans up the pans. The pans will then be taken off the arch and the fire side 3:28 pressure washed in the off season.

[@chrisinwood9041]

Check out Goudrelle on KZbin. It’s in French but dude has it nailed down to a science. Seriously knows how to adapt any evaporator to perform better than the manufacturer. He welds his own air diffuser, incorporates a wave pattern under the flues to increase turbulence and an adjustable base stack damper and an auto adjusting chimney draft control which adjusts for barometric pressure. He measures the chimney temperature, flue gases and boiling pattern in order to adjust for the most efficient and effective operation. He’s fixing almost every brands evaporators when the owners have gotten frustrated with the manufacture. I seriously don’t understand why his adjustments aren’t more widely adopted.

[@southdownfarm6323]

Thanks for the tip, I will definitely check him out!!

[@northernwoodsvlogs]

I see that you have the blower on this modle. what are you getting for GPH out of this 2x6.

[@wildernessoutdoors6875]

This will our first year running the 2x6 Corsair as well! Excited to see the difference from the old flat pan. How many gallons of sap did you have to start with, and how long did it take to boil down?

[@southdownfarm6323]

I have not focused on the burn rate, still learning the unit and running it conservatively. It is sweet though and fast! We really like this evaporator so far! The stack temperature is a great way to help keep consistent loading of wood and the auto draw (our first one) takes a lot of the fuss out of the process once it is dialed in where we want it. When does your season start?

[@wildernessoutdoors6875]

I’m guessing late February or early March. We’re in the northern lower peninsula. Hoping we have a good year so we can recoup all the money we’ve spent!

[@KentuckyWoodsman]

Looking good! How much syrup was you able to get this boil?

[@southdownfarm6323]

All the pans are sweet now and we pulled off about a half of a gallon of Kentucky maple syrup to boot!

[@darrengarlough5121]

Did you ever have your evaporator all freeze up do to cold?

[@southdownfarm6323]

Yes, often but it does not harm the evaporator.

[@darrengarlough5121]

@@southdownfarm6323 thanks I was just worried that maybe the freeze may crack a part of the flu pan,but I fired it up today and it seems fine.

[@darrengarlough5121]

I purchased the same unit, ‘this will be my first year they thought I should get sight glasses for both float boxes so I did not sure I understand everything. Do you rely on sight glasses?

[@southdownfarm6323]

For me the sight glasses serve as an at a glance quick look to make sure things are at the right level.

[@darrengarlough5121]

@@southdownfarm6323 thanks. Now that I put in my first year of boiling I understand things much better,except one thing. When it’s the last boil and you have both pans with concentrated sap, other than dumping it or putting into a turkey fry pot and taking 10 hrs to cook it down, what do you do with it?

[@southdownfarm6323]

@@darrengarlough5121 we drain the sweet boil it down on the stove to the point of maple syrup. This last batch we keep for ourselves to enjoy, its usually a bit darker than the rest.

[@southdownfarm6323]

We keep the rest of the sweet in the pans then flood with sap. Leave this ferment which creates a vinegar like acid. We leave it sit in the pans a few weeks then rinse clean. The fermented sap cleans up all the minerals and sugar sand in the pans.

[@darrengarlough5121]

Are you getting the boil rate smoky lake claims? I’m considering buying.

[@southdownfarm6323]

Not exactly sure what their claim is but the last boil I went thru 200 gallons in less than 3 hours, 66+ gph. I do not feel like I am pushing the evaporator too hard, I am sure I could run the pans a bit lower…I am amazed how quickly I can achieve a rolling boil from a cold start. The blower is worth every penny spent. I am happy with this unit.

[@darrengarlough5121]

@@southdownfarm6323 thank you I’m gonna get my order in, probably won’t be able to use till next year.

[@southdownfarm6323]

That sounds great! Hope it all works out really good for you…we have no regrets!

[@geoffoutdoors]

👍🍁

[@southdownfarm6323]

Thanks! I see you make some maple syrup to our north. You ever try walnut syrup? Sycamore? It’s a thing…Boil on!

[@geoffoutdoors]

@@southdownfarm6323 i have NOT tried walnut or sycamore but it certainly sounds interesting! I am still waiting to tap my maples...this weather has been crazy for northern Ohio here this year so far.

[@eagleseyes3]

The video is nice but not very helpful for someone like myself or others who have the drop flue pans. There is absolutely nothing on the internet that goes into details of the boiling down process of the sap stuck in those flues. Does it get wasted, boiled off? How does the sap in those flues get boiled off without burning or scorching the pan? I bought this type of evaporator this year from the flat pan and burned the first batch yesterday and trying so hard to google anything that will answer those question and have had no success.

[@southdownfarm6323]

Sorry, I only have experience with a raised flue pan set up.

[@systemsofcounseling]

I have a Smoky Lake 2x4 hobby pro with drop flue. The boil agitates the sap which keeps it suspended and moving into the syrup pan. We have made over 300 gals on that rig.

[@southdownfarm6323]

@@systemsofcounseling That is fantastic! What part of the country do you live in?

[@MrPlthemachine]

Your chemney temp is way too high you need a draft control or a better ajustment of your ventilator. Your just wasting heat, it goes outside instead of under your pans

[@southdownfarm6323]

Not sure about that…these pans are boiling fast and hot. all of the maple syrup producers I know recommend staying away from draft controls on commercial maple syrup evaporators.

[@MrPlthemachine]

@@southdownfarm6323 the maximum is 600-650 degres. What is your boilling patern?

[@tobyolsen6576]

@@MrPlthemachine hotter the better. 1000 degree plus stack temp is best. You want it hot.

[@MrPlthemachine]

@@tobyolsen6576 600-700 is the ideal temp otherwise the heat is going outside. Im a maple syrop producer in quebec for the last 10 years and my familly for 400 years. My evaporator is never filled up completly and save a lot of wood. My gallons/hr doesnt change full or half full. I dont know who told you that but you should not listen to them