Tube to pail system

[maineboiler]

I had a rough time last season chasing down buckets from tress that had blown away in the winds. This year I would like to set up a tube system that would gravity drain into 5 gallon pails. I have purchased some 5/16'' tubing and spouts.

Question : what size drill should I use for these smaller ( smaller than my metal spouts) plastic spouts ?

Another problem I have is that I have a lot of red maples in the woods that do not put out a lot of sap. I am thinking of setting up a vacuum and tube system to get more sap. The trees are spread out so I am thinking of collecting the sap from different areas in a collecting tank and then transferring this to the sap tank at the shack. Is this possible or does the vacuum system have to be centralized and drain into one tank ?

Thanks

[SDdave]

I don't know if this would help out or not but, I have to deal with constant windy conditions. I have all my taps on buckets. To keep them in place I tie some cheap string around them, it loosens up as the season wears on. I also put a water bottle in the 5 gal bucket to help weigh them down. I've chased and lost many buckets, and after doing the above I haven't lost any. Knock on wood.

SDdave

[optionguru]

I tend to have small clumps of trees near each other so I tap two or three trees at a time and run them into a 5 gallon bucket. The 5 gallon buckets tend to stay put better than the small 1 gallon buckets I used last year.

[Ausable]

Started using 5 gallon buckets a couple of years ago. Had a couple of problems at first. One of them being the wind and wanting to blow the buckets away. So I put about a 2 foot length of clean slab wood on each of the the lids and that problem was solved. I use 7/16" plastic tubing spiles and the OD of the plastic tubing is also 7/16" - so - use the same size drill on the lid and tree. I was worried about rain or snow leaking into the pail around the holes I drilled in the lids - Not a problem - the tubing fits snug into the holes and all that gets into the buckets is sap. Another plus - as it warms up - the various insects like the sap - Using this method with the weighted lids - everything but the sap stays out of the buckets. Discovered a few other tricks I won't mention - The Commercial Maple Syrup Makers would never approve so I won't irritate them here. This method - for me at least - is far superior than hanging buckets on a tree. I still hang a few in odd locations. ----Mike----

[maineboiler]

That's great advise. I am cultivating trees so hopefully I will have many more taps in the future. I am looking forward to easier times collecting sap. . Thanks to all

[Sugarmaker]

This is similar to a talk I did at LEME describing short run gravity tubing systems. Good luck with your bucket and tubing systems.
Regards,
Chris

[maineboiler]

Thanks Chris. Nice Web site---Paul

[Sugarmaker]

Paul,
Thanks.
Your sugar house in the avatar looks good. How big is it?
Regards,
Chris

[maineboiler]

12X 16. I stained the inside this past summer and painted the concrete floor. Looking good