CampHamp
02-14-2012, 05:20 PM
Tapped yesterday (42 on gravity + 4 buckets), but nothing has come yet.
From what I've read, the next few days should be the right temps for it to be flowing. I thought it would today - it got to 40°, but it was cloudy. I'm on a north slope, at 1000' and still have 3" of snow on the ground - so I'm hoping I didn't mess up by doing them all now.
It's my first year. I built a 4-pan arch out of cinder block (with flue and forced air) inside of a small greenhouse.
My bigger concern is how I will empty my two 50-gallon collection drums when it does run! I'm hoping to syphon, but will need to lift one of my drums using a hand winch that I have tied between two trees, so I can get the drum higher than my UTV bed (learned how to make a "drum hitch" out of rope). Food-safe pumps were out of my budget for this first year. I know that some use sump-pumps or bilge pumps, but I want to avoid bad plastics and lube oils.
Here's to good, clean fun! (at least until the "drinking while playing with fire" part of the process starts) :mrgreen:
From what I've read, the next few days should be the right temps for it to be flowing. I thought it would today - it got to 40°, but it was cloudy. I'm on a north slope, at 1000' and still have 3" of snow on the ground - so I'm hoping I didn't mess up by doing them all now.
It's my first year. I built a 4-pan arch out of cinder block (with flue and forced air) inside of a small greenhouse.
My bigger concern is how I will empty my two 50-gallon collection drums when it does run! I'm hoping to syphon, but will need to lift one of my drums using a hand winch that I have tied between two trees, so I can get the drum higher than my UTV bed (learned how to make a "drum hitch" out of rope). Food-safe pumps were out of my budget for this first year. I know that some use sump-pumps or bilge pumps, but I want to avoid bad plastics and lube oils.
Here's to good, clean fun! (at least until the "drinking while playing with fire" part of the process starts) :mrgreen: