3/16” tubing install

[t-ciccarello]

Morning. First time installing tubing, and tapping a line of trees on a significant hill that wasn’t practical to do buckets on. I’m thinking of getting the tubing up before the snow flies, but have some questions. Should I just run the tubing now, and add the tee’s and drops this spring? How long of a run can I go without a tee? How tight should I run the tubing? I appreciate everyone’s thoughts and insights!

[Super Sapper]

I would run the tubing before the snow flies and even add in the drops so all you have to do in spring is tap. I prefer the 5/16 drops into a 3/16 lateral. Not sure on what you mean by distance without a Tee. Run from your collection tank uphill weaving between trees to keep it tight and go from one maple to another until you have your 25 to 30 taps. The runs can be 1500 feet or more as long as you have a decent slope on the lower end. Up higher you can run level if you need to or even go uphill some to get your trees but make sure there is plenty of drop after that to make up for it.

[maple flats]

Super Sapper is absolutely correct. The distance between tees can be as far as needed to get to the next maple, just keep it tight and the most critical part is the bottom 30' in elevation. I suggest you don't have any taps in the last 10' of drop if you can avoid it. If possible run extra down hill to get past the lowest maples. An option is to run a second lateral in 5/16 to catch maples that are too close elevationwise to your collection point. If you do end up using a 5/16 lateral line on lower trees, strive for 5, never more than 10. In the 3/16 you can even run 35 taps, but 25-30 is a good goal.

[buckeye gold]

Do yourself a favor and get some sriracha sauce and put on the lines at the trees or on the tree. Teach the squirrels not to mess with it or you'll be repairing lines come tapping time.

[t-ciccarello]

I got the tubing up today, 2 runs down my hill. Tomorrow I’ll add tee’s and drops. And then... we wait.