Early taps OCD

[Redmaple]

With this type of weather we need to talk a litle bit about early tapping. I was told that a drilled tap hole takes about 8 weeks to close naturally. So if we tap early what are we going to deal with? If it freezes for a couple straight days after tapping whats the big deal? If taps freeze and thaw out daily anyway it doesn't seem like it would matter tapping a little early. The sap in the lines will be frozen and kept fresh untill the next thaw even if it was a few days. I could have tapped 2 weeks ago and had thousands of gallons. I look forward to a good season like 2011 but if things are different im tapping half my trees in the fall and half in spring. I love dark syrup anyway it's more drinkable :D

[Russell Lampron]

On a closed tubing system the holes will stay fresh longer but on buckets 4 weeks seems to be the point where the holes start drying up. Sooner if the spouts aren't sanitized.

[danno]

And I think cliamte/weather has allot to do with it. I can't get 8 weeks on my taps - more like 6 for me, with a serious slow down in week 6, and that's with high vac/check valves. Only week I went 7 weeks, I reamed my taps after week 6 when the taps slowed down, and got 1 or 2 more great runs. That was a cold April and I boiled till my birthday 4/22, which is very late down this way.