driving distance

[super sappy]

I have plotted a 7 mile route that has around 100 large road side trees. Before I contact the owners etc.( for next year,)I was wondering what the average distance some other roadside tappers were driving?-SS

[mapleman3]

my furthest from the house is less than 2 miles, most are on a route that I take home from work so I can do that then.

[Jim Brown]

On that same line what would you offer to the owner as reimburisment for the tapping of his or her trees?

[mapleman3]

I give syrup, avg a qt if they have alot of trees, on house I have 33 taps at , they will get 2 qts this year, some with 2 taps get 1/2pt... make sure it's worth it for you mostly, they are usually happy to get a taste.

[Jim Brown]

I have about 300 more trees in the wood lot that can be tapped but want to grow slow and not let my mouth over load my butt. Which I have done in the past !
Thanks All for you help
Jim

[royalmaple]

Jim-

I had just set up trees this year around the house on my land, I have about 225 taps in currently. I know I have spent aa good amount in main lines / tubing and other doo dads. I enjoy setting it up and all but I was thinking that it was nearly a waste if I really wanted to get some sap. I would more than likely be better off doing a route like you are thinking and drive and get the sap that way. Then you are talking the price of buckets or sap bags and that is it. Slope, and pitch are all thrown out the window.

I guess not having enough experience it is hard to say, but makes you think about it at least. I thought it would be easier and better to just tap my own trees but I guess there is a point where it may not make much sense and you would get more from driving. But I guess it all depends on what your goals are etc.

Probably another big factor would be anyones time to devote to collecting and hauling and handling the sap over and over till you got it to the final resting place.

Does make me think about it at least. Fun either way you look at it.

[sapman]

We run about 550 taps, and the route is about 30 miles, sometimes more if we fill up before we're done. I think it's worth it (I hope!). Since they're roadside trees primarily, they yield good amounts. I would say 1 gal./tap is the least amount that I go out for usually, and good runs should average 2 or more, but that hasn't happened much the last couple years.

[Sugarmaker]

Super,
( Tim (sapman) and I have been comparing notes and kind of scary how similar we are.)
Cheryl and I drive avg. 30 to 45 miles to gather depending on if we have to dump the tank once. All big road side maples farthest group is about 7 miles from the sugarhouse. I scouted for at least 25 buckets at a stop.
I pay in syrup at the rate of 1 gallon per 100 taps. Tree owners are happy Also I give them the syrup at the half way point of the season. Most are surprised to get it that soon. I try to pay them before we have our open house. I want them to be some of the first to get syrup.
Here is what helped us. Bigger truck and bigger tank. Reducing the number of trips back to the sugar house.
Some pictures of the gathering rig on the web site.

Also We posted some pictures of the sample bottle rack.

Good luck with those road side trees!

Regards,
Chris

[sapman]

Chris,

What size tank on your pickup? I've got the standard 425, but I like the horizontal type it looks like you have. My biggest gripe about the unloading is not being able to get all the sap out easily. How is your's for that. I'd love to find a round bottom poly tank that completely drained, but so far I haven't found one. Not sure if it's even possible.

Tim

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Guys,

I don't collect any of mine on roadside trees, but if I did, I would pull a 5x8 trailer behind. It is only a few inches off of the ground and will handle more weight than a normal pickup truck. Also has more room inside and much easier to get in an out. :)

[sapman]

I've thought about a trailer before, but we do have to turn around frequently, so that would be a nuisance. Also, the dumping barrel I use still ends up lower than the opening of my tank, even if setting on the ground. Otherwise, this is a good idea.

[emericksmaple]

I have a 16 mile round trip to haul sap from 2300 of mine. But I use a 1100 gal vertical poly tank to haul with on my gooseneck trailer. As for how to get the pickup tanks empty. We keep a little sump pump with a piece of shrot hose on it by the tank. When we bring a load in we just put the sump pump in the bottom of the tank and pulg it in. We also gravity the sap into the dumping tank. As for a poly tank that drains completly nothing out there useless you rig it up yourself!! :?

[lew]

We have two routes that take us for a sixteen mile round trip for 1800 taps, and 20 miles round trip for 1200 taps. As far as draining those poly tanks empty, I too was frustrated with that problem so I finally solved it last year. We have a 500 gallon horizontal tank, but it empties from the end, not the bottom, and it has like support legs molded into the sides which are squared out on the bottom and hold a lot of sap. So what I did was to drill and tap the bottom of the tank in all of the places that hold sap when the tank is "empty". I tapped them with for 3/4" pipe thread and plumbed them all together with some clear hose with a valve on the end. Now when we are done gathering, we just open the valve into a bucket and then it is truly empty. Also comes in handy for rinsing out the little critters that get into our sap. Ishould mention that our tank sets on a steel rack that kepps it off the bed of the truck about 1.5 inches, allowing us room for a 90 degree street ell for the plumbing. Also, the tanks are plenty thick enough for tapping, about a quarter inch. Just don't tap so far that the end of your thresads from the street ell come above the bottom of the tank. That partis just trail and error. Just do a little at a time and try your fitting out for depth. If it's not in far enough, run your tap in some more.

[sapman]

Good ideas, guys, thanks! Perhaps I will try tapping near the bottom, since tipping the tank is no problem, just that the bulkhead is a couple inches off the bottom. Even a 3/4 bulkhead would probably work, as long as I tip it anyway.

Thanks a bunch!

Tim

[Greenthumb]

we tapped at my inlaws this year for the first time. they are about 25 miles away. we put 18 taps in might be able to get low 20's if we loaded the trees with 3 taps each. My inlaws have mature sugar maples and when the runs started we checked a few and found the sugar content was almost 3.5 for most tress. We could not pass that up when we have all reds that average 2.0 or 2.1 early on. my father inlaw comes out to boil when I am at work on big run days so it worked out well he just collected sap before he came and help out a lot this year with a short season. I have been trying to work some nerve up to go to a few old farm houses around me and see about tapping some very large roadside sugars. I thought I might break the ice with a half pint bottle and see what happens. worst they can say is no. I have found at least 30 tappable trees within a few miles of my house

[sapman]

Go for it, Greenthumb! We tap at 25 different residences, totalling 570 taps this year, and there have only been 2 places that refused us. Taking the syrup is a great idea, though we just asked and promised syrup at the end of the season.

Most seem to appreciate the tapping, and it's a good way to be neighborly and make friends!

Tim

[royalmaple]

greenthumb-

Ask, I bet you'll be surprised. At least my experience anyway, people could care less. And mentioning you are going to give them some syrup at the end of the season, pretty much makes them want to add you to their christmas list. :lol: :lol:

Just my experience, but maybe my charm is just to irresistable? :?:

I felt the same way before I broke my cherry on the first farm house. Worst they can do is say no, don't think shooting you or hanging are in the list of potential hazzards for asking.