Sap storage tank with lead

[Brent]

I've just made a deal for a 650 gallon SS sap storage tank, BUT it's lead soldered. ( @ $250.00 )

It's a traditional sap tank, round bottom.

Should I try to remove and replace the solder or maybe just run a bead of RTV silicone over the joints ??

[BryanEx]

Just a bump on this post as it's of interest to me as well.

[OldManMaple]

You might look into a poly tank liner. I looked into one about 20years ago for a 900 gallon tank I had. Don't remember the company name but they were in Vt. I ended up getting a milk tank to replace it instead. Have you ever looked at a segmented mill stone? A friend had a bunch and the stones were chinked in with lead. Grind that.

[Flat Lander Sugaring]

I feel the "lead " issue is over exagerated. The old timers who used lead pans for years nothing ever happened to them , the families or people who bought the syrup.

Has there ever been a scientific link between maple syrup and lead contamination in the history of syrup producing?

I found like a round tank 4ft high and 5 or 6 ft dia. It is soldered and assuming with lead I will use it. Hell a farmer used it for milking purposes for years.

[adk1]

I was thinking the same thing, as I was going to use a stock tank until Dr. Tim said "well, that is fine if you dont mind the lead accumulating in your childrens blood and brain"...that statement right there put it into perspective for me. Just passing that along.

[DrTimPerkins]

I feel the "lead " issue is over exagerated. The old timers who used lead pans for years nothing ever happened to them , the families or people who bought the syrup.

Has there ever been a scientific link between maple syrup and lead contamination in the history of syrup producing?

I found like a round tank 4ft high and 5 or 6 ft dia. It is soldered and assuming with lead I will use it. Hell a farmer used it for milking purposes for years.

MOST syrup, even that produced with some lead-soldered equipment, has lead that is well under the action level. In Vermont that level is 250ppb. In most other places, it is 500ppb. However, I have also seen lead levels of 15,000ppb in some syrup. Those are extraordinarily high levels and could cause health issues fairly quickly, especially in susceptible individuals.

Sap and syrup are NOT like milk. At times they can be quite acidic, which leaches the lead at a fairly high rate from equipment. The more equipment you have with lead, the higher the chance you will have elevated lead in your syrup.

No...lead in syrup isn't going to kill you outright. It'll just cause your kids to have health problems, including reduced cognative function (they'll be stupider to put it bluntly) and learning difficulties. The effect happens primarily during fetal and childhood development, and is cumulative. The more sources of lead you have in your home (paint, water, etc.), the worse the problem.

As far as it being a big deal. You have syrup that exceeds the action level and you will find it to be a VERY big deal. Over a million $ of funding was spent to identify the sources of the problems, to come up with mitigating strategies, and to conduct education. During the early phases of the problem in the late-1990s, when there was a lot of press (not good) about lead, we had calls from people about how they could safely dispose of syrup they had bought due to the toxicity of it (that is overblown obviously, but that is what people were thinking in terms of consuming maple syrup). So I disagree strongly....LEAD is a big deal, requires little effort to deal with, but could have a large negative impact on the industry. It is pretty simple....just do the right things.

If anyone has questions about lead in maple operations, please feel free to contact me off-list at Timothy.Perkins@uvm.edu or 1-802-899-9926.

[collinsmapleman2012]

No...lead in syrup isn't going to kill you outright. It'll just cause your kids to have health problems, including reduced cognative function (they'll be stupider to put it bluntly) and learning difficulties. The effect happens primarily during fetal and childhood development, and is cumulative.



this might be a good explanation for some of the kids i go to school with...:D;):o
not to steal the thread or anything

[Brent]

Update:
I had a customer of ours come in and look at the tank. This thing is 650 gallons and is about 10' long x 4' wide and 4' deep, with a total of 4 seams.

This guy is a master welder. His shop machines and welds parts for Pratt and Whitney engines. The bottom line ... forget reworking it. Removing the leaded solder and welding would take more time than just cutting out the seams and welding on fresh stainless. So to get a lead free tank, the only value here is the stainless sheets and frame, after the lead is sheared out.

So I think I'll coat the seams with RTV sealant and have yet another factor added to process sap fast. Dump raw sap here and fire up the RO.

[Flat Lander Sugaring]

Thanks Doc. I will head your warning and pass on the tank. Thanks for the explanation but Doc I think I'm ok after all those years of lead paint:D

[BryanEx]

... but Doc I think I'm ok after all those years of lead paint
Shall I refer you back to your own photos of stuffing a poly tank into your Cherokee? :lol:

[brookledge]

When I had my syrup tested (had to be back inthe 90s) it was well below the threshold. Since then I have continued to take steps to eliminate things that I feel will some day be banned like galvanized tanks and buckets. Anyways my feelings are you don't want to be the last one holding the cards when the government steps in and says you can't use it any more. The day will come.
As for lead soldered pans etc. the industry is lucky it wasn't a quick fix type response from the government. Meaning the lead free solder switch was around late 80's- early90s. So many producers have had a chance to use the pans to get their investment out and then trade them. I know there are pans out there that are still in good shape that have lead in them but many of them have already been sent to the scrap yard.
Keith