100 psi 160psi 200psi

[K.I. Joe]

Why the difference in mainline PSI ratings and what are the pros and cons of each??

[Moser's Maple]

joe, is this on the colored tubing, or black line.... normally the higher the psi the thicker the wall and the more ridgid the tubing

[gmcooper]

I use 100 psi pipe for main lines. 100 psi is thinner walled than 160 or 200 psi and is easier to work with especially when cold. This also makes it more prone to kinks or collapsing on a tight turn. I know a few use 160 psi but not sure about 200 psi.

[K.I. Joe]

Jake, I understand that but why would a sugarer want thicker tubing or thinner tubing. What is the benefits of each.

[Moser's Maple]

joe
most of the translucent tubing that i'm seeing is 100 psi
only place I see the higher psi ratings is with black line...are you finding other information????
if you read my thread on the other site you'll notice my opionion about black mains.
straight from the lapierre catalog
blue or green mainline 1 1/4 ...........64.20 /100
black line 1 1/4 ............... 55.70/100
it's all personal opionion, but we have a market for lighter syrup and back in the day when we tried to save a few bucks we ran black mains, but have since switched to the colored mains, and have better success at lighter colored syrup
so I would say unless you plan on putting up 1000's of feet of mains, spend the extra few dollars and buy the "Made for maple" tubing.

[BreezyHill]

The higher psi tubing is designed for guys that are putting the gas powered pumps in the woods and pumping to the sugar shack. A system set up for the motor to run at low rpm will blow apart a 100 psi line when the producer is in a jam and speeds the motor to high. Thus the 160/200 is sold to prevent this issue. The 160/200 is heavier so it needs support cable of higher strength also.
If you have a section that needs to come down, say across a woods road, the heavier is recommended. The heavier was originally designed for burial in stony ground to prevent damage on back filling.
Black will run sap temps as much as 12 degrees warmer on the thicker product, 10 on thin wall, over the lighter colored tubing.
Personally stick to the colored like CDLs, we have the best prices in our area by several cents a foot. 1.25 blue is $.53/foot & black at $.50 It is really helpful to be able to see the flow of the sap when looking for leaks and adjusting ladders. Most people don't tap trees in the dark; so why have your sap in the dark...unless it is a dry line and you need that quick warm up in the morning.
I use a heat exchanger to cool my sap so I run black across my brook so that my lines don't freeze way before the bush shuts down for the night.