no available electric sap pumping?

[seandicare]

if you haven't been able to tell from previous posts, i am trying to start this as cheaply as possible. maybe too cheap.

my bush is about 2 miles from my evaporator and am using my Outback to transport sap....i am trying to figure out ways to get sap to where i need it. i am thinking of using a 55gal or a couple 15gal drums in the back of the car. problem is getting sap into the drums, because there is no electricity there to run a full size pump. i would collect from the trees in 5gal pails, then need to get it into drums

what i am thinking is using a battery bilge pump. i happened to find one at out local Wally World for about $40.


my next delema is getting from the car to my evap. closest i can drive up to is about 120ft away, but pretty much level. i do have electric here, but again, i am cheap.

i am thinking of a drill operated pump. found one at the hardware store for $12.

i could almost use the drill at the bush, except that the pump requires a drill that runs at least 1200rpm, and my cordless only runs 650rpm. a new one runs $100 or better, and not needed except for this. corded drills normally run that fast, so can use at the house no problem.

has anyone else had experience with either of these drill types??

[maple flats]

Get a better bilge pump and use it for both jobs. Those drill powered pumps are poor at best. Then plan for next season to get a 1" gas powered pump, it will more sap much faster and again, the same pump can do both jobs.

[seandicare]

thanks for the tip....i was kinda wondering how the drill pump would work. i did find a 12V submersible pump that should be able to fit into a bung hole on the 55gal drum. almost same price as the 2 pumps i was planning on.

if not, i did find some more expensive ($100 or so) self priming pumps

[billyinvt]

This might be a good way to go. You can use this to do both jobs.
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Wayne-12-Volt-Transfer-Pump-PC1/203663854
A portable gas powered generator might be a good idea too. At least it has multiple uses vs. spending money on a single purpose item.

[seandicare]

Billy, i was just looking at a similar pump in TSC last night.......probably have to go that route in the end

[Big_Eddy]

Be sure to check the ratings and do some math.
70-80 trees will regularly yield 50+ gallons of sap. The linked HD pump is rated at 310-350GPH depending on the lift. That equates to ~10 mins of pumping time at either end of your car trip. Not a big deal at the bush end where you are walking back and forth to your trees. Probably okay too at the sugar shack.

The typical $10 drill pump originally referenced is rated at roughly 3GPM @1200rpm (180GPH). Your trigger finger would cramp up before your tanks were empty.

[seandicare]

Big_Eddy, i had thought about that after i had posted this and thought on it some more......from the general consensus, it looks like i will be using 5 gal buckets to haul and store anyways, so wont have to worry about it.

[VT_K9]

Look into an RV 12v pump. You maybe able to run a wire from your car's system to the trunk area. Plump it wit hthe quick attach fittings so you can pump from a 5 gal pail at the road side and then change the lines to pump into a 3/4" line which will feed your tank at the sugar house. Next option would be to pick up a gas pump. You would have to put together a decent size funnel if you want to dump the 5 gallon pails into a 55 gallon drum on it's side.

Good luck,

Mike

[scottdevine]

looking into these myself and came across this http://www.harborfreight.com/12-volt-marine-utility-pump-9576.html

[whity]

Look at the shurflow 12 volt pumps. I bought 2 on Amazon for around $70 ea. They are good for 3 gallons a minute

[DocsMapleSyrup]

Have you considered a 12v bilge pump? you can get a 500 GPH pump and drop it into your 5 gallon pails to pump them into the 55 gallon drum. Then from there, You could drop the bilge pump into the 55 gallon drum if you have a large enough opening, or you could empty the 55 gallon drum by gravity into an open top rubbermaid 50 gallon water tank and pump that via water line to the sugar shack. I use a 2000 GPH bilge pump to empty my 275 gallon tote into a 65 gallon poly leg tank and transport it home, then that gravity feeds into an open top 100 gallon rubbermaid livestock water tank. I then use the same pump and transfer either to my head tank or to another storage tank. Seems to work for me and it would be faster than a shurflow pump. Good luck with whatever you chose to do.

[Maple Man 85]

looking into these myself and came across this http://www.harborfreight.com/12-volt-marine-utility-pump-9576.html
This is what I have I ran a hose from the main tank to the head tank and simply disconnected the battery wh en the head tank was full. word of caution put a fine mesh screen on the hose coming from the main tank as you don't want to suck anything through the pump...

[johnpma]

I bought this and it is a beast!!

Bought it on sleeze bay :)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/3500gph-Marine-Boat-Bilge-Sump-Pump-12v-Unlike-Rule-3700gph-/331995876477?hash=item4d4c7f0c7d:g:rA4AAOSwPCVX-C6U&vxp=mtr

[Sugarmaker]

We use a 3000 gph Rule and a 2700 gph Rule in the bush. At the sugarhouse you could use a 110 sump pump.
Regards,
Chris

[Snowmad]

Is anyone using a DC power inverter that converts 12V to 110V AC? I was thinking about looking into one to use on my Polaris Ranger to gather with so I could use my 110 volt sump pump. Wouldn't that work?
Something like this: https://www.amazon.com/BESTEK-1000W-Power-Inverter-Outlets/dp/B007SLDDHQ/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1480644150&sr=8-10&keywords=DC+power+inverter