I've got a mystery here. I have a 20 gallon drum and I place 8-10 gallons of water in it for boiling. I even tried 3 gallons. But, it don't boil. Now I have a hot fire of hard maple and beech in the stove, coals and all. I even took one of the round cut outs off the stove so fire was hitting direct on the drum bottom. The water gets hot and some vapour comes off, but no bubbles, thus not boiling. It has to boil rapidly to get enough pressure and steam to fill my wood steaming chest. I even have a sealed lid and a 3/4" spigot for vapour to escape. Now these oil type drums, the one I have had grease in it, don't sit flat, as there is a rim where the bottom was sealed onto it. What I'm thinking at this point is I need to score the inside bottom of that drum to encourage bubbles to form. Another problem might be surface tension from residue left after burning out the grease. But, I thoroughly washed and cleaned it out and water looks relatively clean when I dip it out of the barrel with a coffee can. The water is hot hot, but it ain't boiling. Possibly it ain't hot enough, but that stove will melt the cotton pants off your legs within 2 feet. :D
You guys laugh, but I can't boil water. ::)
I'm going to the shop with a 5 gallon canister with flat bottom in a few moments and see if that will boil. I had a canner last night I dug out of the shed, but it's got a hole corroded through. A dime short and a day late as always. :D
You answered your own dilema ...... you can't boil water :D :D :D :D :D
SD, you need to get the barrel to sit flat on the stove for a good heat transfer , if not , too much is lost and the water will not boil , it goes the same as for maple sap , if the pan aint directly over the fire , it will not boil , get hot , but not boil . :P
How big is this steam box you are trying to fill with steam? Do you need such a large container? What are you steaming?
Back in the day when I dyed my leg hold traps I used a large tub over an open fire and for the life of me I can't remember if it boiled or not, lots of steam though. I didn't want it to boil either.
Tim
I am going to guess that too much heat is escaping the sides of the barrel. The steel is a good conductor of heat. Insulate the outside of the barrel with something that won't burn and see ifthat makes a difference. No experience, just guessing.
We have moonshiners that boil water in 55 gallon drums here. You gotta have a big HOT fire. If drunks can do it......then you must have the wrong motives..... :D
Quote from: isawlogs on January 06, 2010, 07:48:18 AM
SD, you need to get the barrel to sit flat on the stove for a good heat transfer , if not , too much is lost and the water will not boil.
Well my canner is flat and I tried to get a rapid boil, all I got was light steam and a few tiny bubbles. I never seen a stove yet that couldn't boil water. :-\
You guys might think I'm crazier than hell, but I solved the dilemma. The scoring of the inside bottom did the trick. Now, let this be a lesson to ya's and book mark this thread. :D
Now I need to fill the barrel half way or so to get enough vapour pressure. 8)
get a thermometer like in a turkey fryer and then see what your water temp is, even if your getting close to boiling, or use a turkey fryer base, then i know u will boil water, direct fire on the container is what u need
A watched pot never boils. :D
Quote from: Chris Burchfield on January 06, 2010, 10:05:17 AM
A watched pot never boils. :D
SHOOT ya beat me to it, I knew he was standing there watching it ! :D
When I do syrup the sap wont boil until I walk away to get a coffee or something...
Mark
When you see bubbles in boiling water, they are not air. Water vapor makes the bubbles. The water vapor is made when the vapor pressure of the water exceeds atmospheric pressure. When water turns from liquid to gas, it carries a lot of heat along with the gas and that keeps the temperature of the water steady. You can heat and vaporize and see nothing but small bubbles. Water won't get any hotter at this point. All that can happen is that more liquid changes to gas if you add more heat. That makes the big bubbles that people associate with boiling.
SwampDonkey:
I boil a lot of wood. It takes the tension or whatever the problem is out of the rock hard woods we have here and virtually stops cracking. Here are two photos of a large pot boiling blanks in my barbeque. I did forget it a few times and boil it dry and burnt the blanks.
The other photo is of a bigger barrel I made out of three barrels that went to the jungle to boil the wood before bringing it in . It can be done.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/14293/4_BOILING_BLANKS_FOR_SEVERAL_HOURS.JPG)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/14293/BOILING_THE_BLANKS_A_FEW_HOURS.JPG)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/14293/Copia_de_Big_barrel_BOILING_WOOD%5B1%5D.jpg)
WOW how did you unwind three barrels and weld them into one? :o You always amaze me with your ingenuity.
I understand what the bubbles are, but I need the large bubbles from a more rapid boil.
Yeah, when I started over with new water, it wouldn't boil. It gets real hot but no boil.
You couldn't buy a thermometer like that within miles of here. It would be a wild goose chase going to every store. Just try buying a set of clamps, you'll get one you need but not 4. Your way better off just ordering stuff yourself than running up and down the river valley. It's been like that for 40 years.
Swamp Donkey, you can't boil water way up there on top of the world like that, especially in the winter. When you get that high up, even the school books say you can't boil water. Then you add that ungodly freezing cold air and you couldn't transfer enough heat to a bucket with a forest fire.
My suggestion is to wait for summer. ;D
QuoteWOW how did you unwind three barrels and weld them into one? You always amaze me with your ingenuity.
Den:
Ingenuity comes from a need with no supply and maybe a bottle of rum. Cutting and welding the barrels was not bad except for finding the pin holes in the welds.
More interesting was watching it go to the port on top of a three wheel motorcycle.
SD, I just don't understand why you can't boil water. It should be easy for you since you just have to get the water to 100° to boil. Down here in the US we have to get the water to 212° to boil. ;D
Now that is funny--but true. :D
Bob , his issue is that he uses that Ferinheight scale with Celcuis degrees. ::)
You can sho nuff boil water in a barrell in Ga. Done it plenty of times killing hogs. Never skinned a hog in my life. We always heated the water and poured it on the hog and scraped the hair off. Have to be careful not to get the water too hot, cause then it will "set" the hair and you have to shave it off. We always killed hogs in cold weather so I'm thinking you need a bigger fire ;D But then again, I've never dressed a hog up in your part of the world either :D
The stove is from Columbus, Ga. So I'm beat before I start. :D
Tom, I thought the higher you climbed the lower the boiling temp. Less pressure up here on our big swelled heads. :D
Oh yeah, you're right. I was thinking of cooking potatoes. You can't boil a potato when the water boils at 100 degrees. I guess you were boiling the water all along, just not getting it to roll. Put a lid on it and you don't need so much fire. :D
I've saw lumber steamers on the web that used nothing more then an old teapot with copper tubing connected to it as the steam source. You don't need a ton of water, or a big boiler. Only one big enough to provide enough steam for the project.
I haven't seen your set up , but I think that your drum is to high off the flames. We had a wood fired evaporator at one time that would not get the sap rolling no matter what you threw in the stove , till we lowered the pan a few inches ... then it rolled . ;)
If you are trying to boil the water just for steam try adding salt. This lowers the boiling point of the water. I add it to my boiler when steaming through the perma frost. The water boils faster and I get steam sooner.
I think it's working now. Like Jeff said, too much water. Don't need it. Also like mentioned, need to make contact with the stove better between can and hot spot on stove. I have a couple or three gallons in the boiler now and it is boiling rapidly like I want. I will be on the look out for another can this summer a bit smaller, closer to 5 gallon (or when ever). The pipe from the boiler to the steamer is hot to touch, even with gloves. I'm getting a lot of condensation coming from the end plug where the vent is. Which is good. And the steal, which has 2" of spray foam insulation is to hot to touch, even on the far end where the drain is, and that's 8 feet from the steam pipe. :o I have a couple little bare spots between the foam to stick my finger into next to steal.
Thanks for everyone's insights and all the kidding around parts to. :)
Going to take my test piece out in an hour to bend. Just going to do a quick clamp on the table saw to see how she does.
Cooking wood with wood, nothing better. ;D
Let us know how it tastes. ;D
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/11009/SD_steam-bent_with-twist.jpg)
You bet your ash, Buster.
Swampy , I tilted my steambox so that the condensate ran back down the steam pipe to be reheated . less filling up needed .
I hope you do not break your ash.
Got lots of steam Don, for what I'm steaming. I do collect it in the bucket on the floor. But even after this first run there wasn't much water in the pale. There was almost a steady drip, but not like a tap flowing.
This piece I deliberately put the hurt on it to see what she'd stand. After going beyond a 90 degree turn there was some fibre separation on the back side.
QuoteThanks for everyone's insights and all the kidding around parts to.
I am always willing to help any way I can. ;)
SD,
You could get a better boiler, the kind with that spiral copper tubing coming out of the top, and then when you are finished with your wood project, you could get some of that Iowa corn or some left over potatoes and then.........Oh wait..........Forget that, it will just get you into more trouble :).
If that stove was from Georgia, then it would instinctively know how to do what I was about to tell you to do before I decided not to tell you to do it.
WDH :D :D :D :D