Help with recurring leaks at 3/16 spouts

[dvnwvt]

I have a run of 22 taps on 3/16 to a tank 30+ feet below the top tap. Gauge at the top never reads more than 18" or so. Gauge connections are tightly made with teflon tape. All T's and fittings look good. Almost anytime I walk the line during a good sap run, while some drops have a steady flow with an occasional small bubble, I find many with bubbling or empty pockets at the top of the drop line right below the tap. If I rap the taps back in until there is an audible 'squeak' of plastic on wood the bubbles start to move and sap obviously begins flowing, as if I've sealed a leak. The problem is it doesn't seem to last ... I can go out and find the same taps doing it again! Picture of the style tap is below. Are these taps too tapered such that wood expansion/contraction forces them outward? Did I tap too hard to begin with? Should I just try different spouts next year? Anyone else using these? Thanks!

18447

[Greg MacWilliam]

Looks like CDL, they are good taps and seal well. This has been a tough year with lots of ice pushing on the taps and tubing joints. What size drill do you use and is it a dedicated tapping bit?

[dvnwvt]

Yes, they are CDL. I hadn't seen any ice. Brand new 5/16" dedicated tapping bit. I know you're not supposed to ream the hole, but these bits seem to 'catch' and stall part way in so I had to pull out and re-drill to get the right depth. That could have created a hole that's not perfectly round I suppose.

[BAP]

A new actual tapping bit shouldn’t stall and catch. If you had to re drill your holes the there is a good chance that the holes aren’t perfectly round. Did you buy a bit made for tapping from a Maple equipment supplier? Are you running the drill on high speed so that it drills and cleans the hole well?

[dvnwvt]

A new actual tapping bit shouldn’t stall and catch. If you had to re drill your holes the there is a good chance that the holes aren’t perfectly round. Did you buy a bit made for tapping from a Maple equipment supplier? Are you running the drill on high speed so that it drills and cleans the hole well?

Yeah, brand new bit from well known large maple supplier. Drill on high speed. Maybe I got a bad bit but more likely inexperience on my part. I'll try practicing in the off-season!

[dvnwvt]

A new actual tapping bit shouldn’t stall and catch. If you had to re drill your holes the there is a good chance that the holes aren’t perfectly round. Did you buy a bit made for tapping from a Maple equipment supplier? Are you running the drill on high speed so that it drills and cleans the hole well?

The hole edges were very clean but had shavings. I probably reamed a few to get the shavings out. What's a better way to do that, or, avoid shavings in the first place?

[maple flats]

Go in and out in one motion with drill on high speed. Be very cautious not to wobble the drill, it should go in at a slight upward angle and out with no wobble. Put a piece of 5/16 tubing on the bit as a stop and go in 1.5-2" if on vacuum tubing, those on gravity with no vacuum go 1/2" deeper. 3/16 tubing uses the vacuum choice. If there are any loose shavings, use a little twig from a nearby bush to clear it, never blow in it, re-drill and only use that twig on one hole then toss it. When taping the spile (spout) in, either use a tapping hammer or a little 8-10 oz. hammer, or I always use the flat jaw of a pair of lineman's pliers. Tap it in gently, when it is properly set the sound will change. stop at the sound change.

[wnybassman]

Once in and once out is obviously the best, but I noticed tapping bits tend to really dig into the wood fast and I'm not sure my drill is strong enough to power through that at times. So I have had them stall out too. I always two hand the drill and keep one elbow against the tree for extra stability in case I need to go in again. I tend to find a small twig within reach to break off and clean the hole if any shavings are present. Generally a properly drilled hole won't have any though.

[n8hutch]

I am 99% sure that with the tap pictured CDL recommends a 19/64 tapping Bit. Also I had a terrible time this year with Brand new tapping Pits getting pulled into the hole two fast and stalling my Drill. It seemed especially bad with thawed trees/wet tap holes. Only thing I can think of to try next year is to Tap earlier and I may consider getting a more powerful Drill like a Milwaukee because my 20vt Dewalt was not powerful enough.

[maple flats]

I use 2 DeWalts, each 20V and they do not get stalled. I suspect another issue. Generally I tap earlier but when I got the Doctor's OK to tap all of my taps were into thawed trees and the holes were wet. I suspect something other than the drill, maybe the bit, maybe you need a piece of tubing on the bit to stop it from going too deep, maybe your batteries are not full, and maybe your charger is not doing it's full job. I'm actually using the little 2AH batteries most of the time because they are lighter, but I do have some 4AH and a few 6AH if a battery runs low. Even on the 2AH, I get 100-140 or so holes on a fully charged battery.

[n8hutch]

I use the light weight lithium ion Batteries, Brand new Drill, Brand new Batteries, Brand new Bits, mostly the soft maples seem to bother. I have noticed after about 100 holes it doesn't seem to be as much of an issue, it's almost like the Bits are too Sharp. I don't usually run a tubing spacer on my Drill because I like to be selective on how deep I still my holes, a 30" maple with over an inch of bark might get drilled 2.5" , where a 10 inch maple with smooth Bark might only still that to an 1" or 1.25"

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

That tap definitely should be used with 19/64 bit. Doesn’t sound like much but that coupled with drilling in more than once could certainly lead to leaks.