Dry line in conjunction with sap ladder

[Mark-NH]

I have a 6 star (6 5/16 lines) sap ladder linking 120 taps on 3/4" line to my 1" main line. It lifts about 10 feet. Does it make sense to link my dry line to the 3/4" line just on the low side of the sap ladder, just before the bottom 6 star fitting?

I know I would not get any sap to travel 10 feet up hill through a 3/4" water line but would this line transfer any increased vacuum to the 120 taps by bypassing the sap ladder?

[Big John]

I have never heard of that but If i was to try it. <first off what is the vac on the end of 3/4 now? > I would use a piece of 3/4 pipe and go up and make a loop back down to the 3/4 from the 1" and I would stay up the hill a foot or so from the star so that there is no chance of sucking up that line when the 5/16 is frozen. but if it did, with the loop it will drain out.

[tuckermtn]

Mark- it is my understanding that sap ladders are only doable on a conductor or feeder line in to a wet/dry line system. The sap ladder cannot be on the wet line of a wet/dry system because sap ladders rely on having sap stuck with vacuum applied to get it to lift the sap up in to the vertical tubes. does that make sense? I am not sure if in your description the sap ladder is in your conductor or in the wet/dry line? still trying to understand sap ladders and sap lifting on wet/dry lines so I could be wrong...

[Beweller]

You cannot bypass the ladder with a dry line. The ladder operation depends on the vacuum at the base being less than at the top.