Short season?

[Windy Acres]

I'm looking for some advice from all of the experienced guys out there, do you think this is going to be a short season? I was going to wait to hang our buckets in another week or two, we tapped all our lines, I am just wondering if we should be hanging buckets now, or wait?

[PACMAN]

I am not tapping till March 1st. Still cold in the forcast up here.

[Bentley Wood Maple]

If you earn your pay tramping through knee/waist deep snow we generally have a decent season.Few yrs ago we had ankle deep snow while tapping. Wasn't worth my time and we didn't make enough syrup to pay for my taps and jugs we didn't fill. Skeptical as to our success this season. But keep telling myself a bad day in sugarhouse beats any day in the paper mill...

[lakeview maple]

12 Rubicon , Im no expert , Ive got a couple of years under my belt and enough of a memory left to remember the last El Nino year. I waited then and got 3 weeks of sap and 23 Gallons of syrup, not a great year. I kinda figure that they can predict the weather 5 to 7 days out , the rest is a computer program that tells you what happened on that day for the last 30 years. If I could see what happened on the last 10 el nino years I would be really happy to see that info. I tapped my barn lot today, 135 taps on a Guzzler and it ran like the flood. Im going to see what happens tomorrow and if its as good Im headed to the mtn Wednesday and punch in the other 500. I kinda figure whats the worse that can happen ? It doesn't run? Oh well Ill still be tapped and in 2 weeks when I normally tap Ill make a pot of coffee instead. Hope this helps ,Al

[blissville maples]

one thing to look at if seriously interested in getting a know on the weather.... go to the noaa and read the arctic oscillation patterns, that's how the weather folks do it for the most part and you can see back to 1950. it says this week slightly positive which means high lat jet stream warmer weather, however is going back negative, which pulls jet stream down and polar air mass releases southward. they are talking about polar vortex split which may make for nice prolonged cool. however i do remember last el nino and wasnt good at all so im wary.

[blissville maples]

anyone south of Albany, Manchester, Ludlow, bellows falls, keene may be different story

[Germanmaples]

I have 1000 on vacuum and 400 on gravity with 300 buckets tapped Sunday. We got the vac line done and I tested it Sunday night after it flushed out. The sugar content was 1. I got there yesterday morning and it had ran all night but only 200 gallons. I tested it again and it was 1.5. I was hoping it wasn't going to be like the last two years with bad sugar content. What a waste of wood to make all dark syrup boiling 100 to 1. Hoping it changes today. I will tap out today and get what I get.

[Windy Acres]

Thanks everyone, I think I will hang our buckets as soon as I get my straight spouts, and see what happens, we have got a pretty good run going today, and hopefully a really good one tomorrow

[lew]

Personally, if I had the time, I would hold off on the buckets. Looks like a couple of cold weeks coming up. I would want my bucket taps as fresh as possible when the good weather hits. This weather now is just a tease. But what do I know? It's always a cap shoot as to when to tap.

[adk1]

I agree with lew hold off on the buckets. They will be the first to close up

[Windy Acres]

I will hold off on the buckets, I appreciate the advice

[blissville maples]

I have 1000 on vacuum and 400 on gravity with 300 buckets tapped Sunday. We got the vac line done and I tested it Sunday night after it flushed out. The sugar content was 1. I got there yesterday morning and it had ran all night but only 200 gallons. I tested it again and it was 1.5. I was hoping it wasn't going to be like the last two years with bad sugar content. What a waste of wood to make all dark syrup boiling 100 to 1. Hoping it changes today. I will tap out today and get what I get.

is nice to tap early and is almost irrestable as i almost scrambled to get ready anf glad i didn't now, were in for more winter, however the trees need these cycles to get good sugar. if you tap at the right time youll get less sap but same sugar and same syrup. if you tap early you may have to boil down much more sap to get same amount of syrup. however that is for us here in vt, if your in ct nj penn, id say its probably time, here in vt antoher couple weeks

[ash10383]

Personally, if I had the time, I would hold off on the buckets. Looks like a couple of cold weeks coming up. I would want my bucket taps as fresh as possible when the good weather hits. This weather now is just a tease. But what do I know? It's always a cap shoot as to when to tap.

the way I read this brings up a question: do taps with buckets hanging on them close faster than tubing taps? if so, why is that, what's the difference.. my first year and lots to learn....I put out (likely too early, I know now) both; ss taps that i have buckets hanging off them and plastic taps that I have tubing on them going to buckets on the ground... or is it tubing taps that are sort of "closed circuit" because tree to tree tubing / collection???

[antelope76]

I believe the spiles with buckets are open to the air/bacteria and the tubing taps are not exposed so it takes longer for the bacteria to effect the hole.

[buckeye gold]

I use tubing to buckets and bags. what I have noticed is that the tubing if not a straight vertical shot into the bucket (has a little loop to it) will retain some sap and help seal off the air. My buckets with tubing always out produce my bags. I just like bags for the convenience, but the buckets get me more sap.

[Urban Sugarmaker]

I use some of the Sap Meister stainless steel taps. I was going to try and put some 5/16" tubing on the end and connect a CV spout. They are designed to be used in vacuum tubing systems, but I read there were some positive results with gravity tubing. If the natural flow of sap can't open the valve, I'm out $0.40.

[old tom]

Is it possible to re-tap them later on?