How far can you offset

[firetech]

We are plannig the new sugar house and I can't put the evaporator dierctly under the peak. How far will the steam drift on the rise. Looks like it's 4ft off center. It won't be a problem when and if we ever get hoods.

[Haynes Forest Products]

Is it going to be close to a open window when you cook? If so you will get alot of steam flying in all directions. Steam will only go so far up before it cools and sinks like a rock. Next time you boil water on the stove see how it reacts with the hood fan on off it doesnt get sucked of very well because its heavy with all the moisture. You need alot of make up air to get steam to want to move up and out of the room. A small evap. in a big room wont move alot of air but a big rig in a small room will have alot of upward movement.

[firetech]

Is it going to be close to a open window when you cook? If so you will get alot of steam flying in all directions. Steam will only go so far up before it cools and sinks like a rock. Next time you boil water on the stove see how it reacts with the hood fan on off it doesnt get sucked of very well because its heavy with all the moisture. You need alot of make up air to get steam to want to move up and out of the room. A small evap. in a big room wont move alot of air but a big rig in a small room will have alot of upward movement.
Its a 30x10 in a 24x20 room 10ft ceiling

[802maple]

No problem

[802maple]

I should say no problem if your cupola is big enough

[maple flats]

With no hood the cupola should be as large as the evaporator.

[3rdgen.maple]

Steam in the sugarhouse is all part of the fun. Clears up the head really good. People pay good money to sit in a sauna room. You will be just fine with that setup. We run a 2x6 with a 2x6 coupla like you the evaporator is not centered under it maybe a foot offset. No it does not all escape but most does.

[Nemo5]

firetech, if you take the photobucket link in my signature there is a folder there called Sugarhouse design. Might be some info in there that may be of use to you.

[Mac_Muz]

I am probably way out of line responding to this since I never had a sugar shack. But I did live 3 full years in a tee pee and one of those was in NH.

The tee pee worked with a fire inside because it creates a partial vacuum. Well the tee pee is gone, but I have another hunting lodge type of tent I can have a cooking fire in, and the way it works is the roof line is open, but more than that the side backing the to the wind is raised some what higher. Since this is a tent for primitive events I made it so i can controll either of the 2 long sides..

But if you can predict the winds most common to your site you could use this idea to some advantage just the same.

Old cabins with no modern shingles and other modern caps at the ridge line used this same method, while the roof was closed tight.

What ever way was more backed into most of the winds had the wooden shingles left full length at the ridge.

[maple flats]

There is nothing that says a cupola must be at the peak, it should be directly over the pans. Same with smoke stack, that is why you see listings for peak mount AND side mount roof jacks.

[Revi]

Our cupola is slightly offset and the steam finds its way out. It seems to drip when you have boiled a while from the ceiling, but it drips everywhere, so maybe that would happen if the evap was directly under the vent anyway.

Good luck with it!

[Clan Delaney]

Steam in the sugarhouse is all part of the fun. Clears up the head really good. People pay good money to sit in a sauna room.

It's just really awkward when visitors drop in and you're lounging on the counter in a bath towel. Let me tell 'ya. :lol:

[3rdgen.maple]

It's just really awkward when visitors drop in and you're lounging on the counter in a bath towel. Let me tell 'ya. :lol:
Yep even more awkward when you forget the bath towel. maple sauna baby.:lol:

[Dennis H.]

I was worried about raining in the sugarshack this year, but I had no such problems.
My cupola is slighty offset from the evap, maybe 2'. Also my evap is not parrallel to the evap either and it seems to work real nice.

What I found was that the only time I got dripping is when the temp in the shack was going above the dew point. Once it was above I was fine. Now I think the size of my shack had something to do with that, 10'x12' with 8' ceilings.
A few days when I had long boils it was pushing 110 degrees in there!:o
That is also with both windows wide open and the door wide open.

Someone else mentioned about the steam blowing all over if the windows were open, I didn't have that problem.