Electric Releaser

[spud]

I will be installing my new Electric releaser from CDL real soon. It will be in a insulated room heated by my vacuum pumps. In the event I shut my pumps down for a week long cold spell I assume I need to drain the releaser. Is there a switch to manually turn the pump on. I probably will keep a small heater running in the room during cold spells. Im not sure if that heater will keep things warm enough. If the releaser was fully drained do I still need the heater on?

Spud

[Brian]

Yes you will we run electric box heaters , they are around 35.00-45.00 dollars. we use the cords with the thermostat built in to then because we have hade the thermostats that are built in fail and freeze things up hard. we set the thermostats and leave them pluged in all season. We still go check them morning & night when it is cold out.

[Sunday Rock Maple]

When it comes to protecting things from freezing, I'm in the belt AND suspenders camp.

[PerryFamily]

Best thing I ever did was put heat and insulation where my releaser s are. Between heat from the pump and a small ceramic heater I **** near eliminated any hangups with my releasers. I never shut the pumps off all season and the releasers are mechanical

[spud]

Thanks everyone. Sounds like a heater will be on anytime the pumps are off. For the most part my pumps stay on all the time. Although there are times when I get mid January sap for a few days and then nothing for 4-6 weeks. It's those 4-6 weeks I am concerned with. I assume I can drain this releaser during the cold spellsspud

[Chicopee Sap Shack]

Even if you drain the Releaser you need to keep the heat on as there will always be some residual moisture in the pump that will lock it up


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[maple flats]

Check out a small propane heater, one with a pilot and a thermostat, far more dependable and that is the most important part. For my RO room I installed an 8000 BTU propane wall heater, direct vent. It has never failed. Mine happens to be on a bulk tank but you could just as easily run one off a 20# tank or even better 2 with an auto switch over when one gets empty. On mine I do have electric for back up but the propane so far has never failed. I have the propane thermostat set at 45 and the electric set at about 40-41 (or whatever it's lowest setting is on the electric space heater. My electric is run from my solar system/battery bank so even if the grid goes out I still have power.

[Buffalo Creek Sugar Camp]

I remove the pump over winter, and during a long freeze up, and put the pump in a heated room. That way you won't need heat on the releaser all of the time. I cut the wire, and put wire nuts on it, so it only takes 2-3 minutes to remove the pump. I learned that even if you tilt the pump upside down, they still hold liquid.

[DrTimPerkins]

Our releaser/RO room is heated by propane, with electric backup heaters on thermostat blocks.

Releasers often do have on/off/auto switches, so you can pump them out manually.

As far as draining, some releasers have a good amount of sap still in them after they are pumped out, some have less, but typically they all have some amount of liquid remaining in the pump itself, so keeping it from freezing is necessary. One problem with this scenario is that the residual sap in the releaser becomes a bit of a cesspool during a week-long freeze-up, since it is in a heated room. Some releaser designs are easier to drain and clean than others.

[hogisland42]

I agree with Dr Tim. There is always some left in the bottom and during long freeze ups and the sap gets nasty from the warmth of the heater. I have a quick connect on mine so I can pump it out on ground after sap starts running again to clean it out.

[Haynes Forest Products]

Living with 2 mechanical releasers out in the weather going thru freeze and thaw cycles every day for the season over a 14 seasons has been a challenge. Now with remote sensing I can see when it fails due to a simple chunk of ice the size of an ice cube. Any kind of heat will be well worth the investment. If you could get your mother-in-law to spoon with it at night would help with production.

[spud]

I agree with Dr Tim. There is always some left in the bottom and during long freeze ups and the sap gets nasty from the warmth of the heater. I have a quick connect on mine so I can pump it out on ground after sap starts running again to clean it out.

Thanks for the info everyone. My releaser has a drain on the bottom so all liquid should drain out. As Dr. Tim said there still will be some sap inside the pump itself so heat will be needed. You also mentioned the quick connect fitting. I assume thats right after the check valve where the sap is pumped out of the releaser. That would still leave a little sap in the check valve itself. I wish that had a drain. The check valve and the pump seem to be the two problem areas that need heat. Is this right? Thanks.

Spud

[spud]

On the CDL vertical electric releasers what size pipe should I run from releaser to moisture trap? The outlet on the releaser is 3 inch but it comes with a friction fit reducer that is 2 inch. If I go with the 2 inch them I could pop it out anytime I needed to move the releaser. If I glue a 3 inch into the releaser it's there for good. I know I could cut the pipe and add a connector in the future if needed. It's 2 inch leaving the pump but I bump it up to 3 inch right away and stays 3 inch through the trap and then to the releaser where I need to connect. What should I do?

Spud

[JoeJ]

I have a CDL vertical electric releaser and I piped it 3" from the vac pump to the moisture trap then 3" to the releaser. I install a 3" union to be able to disconnect the releaser from the moisture trap.

Joe

[PerryFamily]

Fernco connectors work good on the Vac side of things. They allow disassembly and have enough deflection that if things don’t line up perfect they can still be connected. I don’t use them anywhere that sap is since they aren’t food grade

[unc23win]

I use a fernco on mine as well I have it so there is maybe 1/2" between the pipes.

[spud]

Thanks everyone.

Spud