Drop 30' or use less line.

[cjf12]

How do you all justify amounts of tubing? I am tapping a high valley and running mainline down to sugar shack. All in all I have about a mile just in mainline for about 400 taps this year. Maybe more later but maxed out on expenses for this season. Anyway. Is it more important to run extra 3/16 parallel to your mainline till you get 30' of drop or just tie in and lose some vacuum on bottom trees? I figure at least a third or more will be less than 30' if I tie straight in. But each line will have to be maybe 100' longer to tie in with ample drop.

[maple flats]

Will your mainline also have mechanical vacuum too? If yes, tie right in, if no, the extra drop can help quite a bit.

[cjf12]

No pump at all. Hoping I can get around the point in a way that will allow it to drain all the way to shack. Main line will run past a lot of trees to be tapped and even hung on em.

[Russell Lampron]

If you're running your mainline up the hill you'd be better off to run it across the face of the hill and run the laterals down into it. Longer laterals will give you better vacuum and a mainline with a 2 degree pitch will flow to the sugar house.

[cjf12]

That's along the lines of what I'm doing. Slight grade in high valley to a steep grade down the gap to the shack. One low spot I have to be concerned about. I have to keep it on the side a ways to keep slope till I get past the low spot.
Anyone just use zip strips instead of wire ties?

[WVKeith]

I have used zip ties to connect 3/16 tubing lines that are crossing a field using a wire guide. Some brands fall apart after a couple years in the sun.

Keith

[buckeye gold]

I use zip ties and hve no problems. I use two, crossing them in an X on the tubing for extra hold. If you get the black UV resistant they last well.