tap holes

[Daren]

it seems like every article I find says that you can not tap directly above or below a previous tap hole and that you need to be several inches away from a previous hole. If that is the case, a tree that gets tapped every year will eventually need to have a hole pretty much above or below, or perhaps less than 4 inches away. Is there a rule of thumb for how old a previous tap hole needs to be before you tap near it? Dumb question?

[maple flats]

If you are using 5/16 spout holes, move over 3-4" and up or down 6-8" from prev year. If you are tapping the proper size trees with the right # of taps this will bring you to new wood grown over the old hole when you get to that spot again.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

I disagree as when I tapped Sat, I tapped some holes with 1.5 inches or less of last years holes to see what it was like and the prettiest white wood you ever saw. I even tapped 1 hole aprox 1 inch almost directly above last years hole and it was just the same. Might not be good to do as it might be harder on the tree and the sap might not flow as good due to the wound being there and some deadwood, but I never hit the least bit of deadwood. :?

[Daren]

So as long as a couple of years pass and the old tap hole has healed over, it wouldn't hurt too much to be just a couple of inches away? I agree that for the most part I have followed the old addage that you should tap on the south side of the tree as the sap runs stronger on the warmer side of the tree. That would greatly reduce the surface area prime for tapping due to other factors on some trees like knots, holes, etc. Thanks for the input.

Brandon....I bet you were the kid with the junior labratory kit growning up. Nice experiment on the nature of the wood around old tap holes. I saw an internet sight on a study for the tree saver taps and what the cross sections of trees with tap holes looked like and for what area around the holes. As you would probably guess, the tree saver taps produced significantly less overall "dammage" or discoloration area than the standard 7/16 size. I have been thinking of changing over to the smaller tap. (might just be another excuse for the wife to allow me to buy some more neat sugaring stuff! :wink: