wanting to learn proper way to install tubing

[chrisnjake9]

I have 250 to 300 taps but I think I hooked them up wrong. I'm looking for pics of peoples tubing system that is tight that doesn't use nails. I'm looking for help. Thanks Jason

[Valley View Sugarhouse]

check on Royalmaple's stuff, he is the tubing guru...

http://s238.photobucket.com/albums/ff175/royalmaple/

http://www.youtube.com/royalmaple

[325abn]

I am sure some more expericed folks will chime in here.

But I think basicly keep it heading down hill and keep it tight. This year the end of a few of my runs where well over 7 feet high to keep a good slop.

[royalmaple]

Andy-

Come on, I have to set the record straight, pics and video sure but far far far cry from a guru.

Lot more knowledgeable people out there than I can cobber up.
Not to mention I only make bad syrup as well. You want advice from someone that makes light syrup.

Seriously though Jason-
Ask questions and you will get some people to chime in for sure. If you have some pictures of your set up, post them here and people will give you some helpful hints.

[OGDENS SUGAR BUSH]

royalmaple is the sap ladder guru also

RICH

[peacemaker]

royal we both make dark syrup must be we are from the north country ...lol

[brookledge]

If you can attend a tubing seminar some where. In the spring all the manufactuers hold open houses and some have tubing seminars or the winter seminar in Verona NY other than that the best is to see it hands on so talk to a sugarer nearby you.
Keith

[troes30]

ive built my own system of 2000 taps and a few for others. the biggest thing is tension. if your using vacuum, act like your not. maintain your slope and tension on everything. wire on your mainline with side ties, hook coonectors and end rings on your 5/16. strive for 5 taps but no more than 10 on a line. theres a lot to cover, i guess just keep asking questions. and when your buying material and your complaining about how expensive everything is...well it is...but the return is quick.

[troes30]

oh and the Verona meetings are excellant. stop in a see us if you go, we'll be one of the Leader dealers.;)

[Haynes Forest Products]

I was told earley on that you should design the system for gravity and then plan on vacuum. Sap runs down hill. Become one with the sap. Why do you hate nails I hate when deer run thru the woods and it pulls and stretches all the lines and its all on the ground. If its nailed at all the trees and the line breaks its most likley pulled off a tee and when you get into the woods in the spring your not trying to pull everything out of the snow. Try and pull 100 feet of 5/16 with 6 taps and tees that have little twigs and 12" of snow over it.

[super sappy]

Before I put up any tubing I looked at several woods,down in good old petersburgh NY you are not far from Hoffmans sugarhouse in stephentown. I think that they have a modern tubing set up.When you see tubing in the woods just stop and look. Glen Goodriches tubing seminar is a good class to take . They did it last fall at New England farms in Granville NY ushally in november. It is a drive for you but Merck Forrest in Rupert vermont is an 8,ooo tap operation and an ag ed farm.(was free except the camping) you can camp out there and tour the whole operation. I was told that Glen Goodrich set up that whole thing and I was pretty impressed with some of the things that I saw up there .

[maplecrest]

when i build mine i build to wash, for that is the hard part. if you can wash fast it will run even better

[peacemaker]

merck is really inpressive

[ronr]

I just got back from Sugar Bush Supplies open house where they had a tubing workshop put on by the Leader rep. I don't have tubing yet but what he had to say was very interesting.

Unfortunately they don't yet have a guide book but he said he is trying to get one together by this fall. I did get a couple of one page handouts with some basic info I could send you. Also I think they will help you with setting up your system (although I didn't get the details on this). I think the representatives name was Bradley, sorry didn't get the last name. At any rate he seemed to be a very knowledgeable guy with ideas that made a lot of sense to me.

[troes30]

thats Brad Gilliland from Leader. he's who helped me flag my woods before i started building my system. Flagging is the first step. Get one of those sight levels to mark your mainlines. they say 2-4 % slope. you dont want too much slope as that causes more friction and slows it all down. however, get as much slope as you can on your 5/16, as it creates its own natural vacuum. If your building a decent sized system Leader will come out and flag for you, of course they expect your business. But they will answer all your questions.

[Jeff E]

I am in the process of setting up a vacuum system for 2000 taps, and my bush is divided by a ridge, right down the middle. I am considering installing a belly releaser on both sides and pumping sap to the sugarhouse. With the cost of these buggers, I am wondering if I put in a sap ladder and pull the sap from one side of the ridge to the other, going to 1 releaser.
I would have to lift the sap 15' or so over 600' of length ( so add another 10+' for sloping the line).

Is this practical?

Jeff E
Movin' on up!

[maplecrest]

would work with a sap ladder or i would think about a sap lifter that cdl sells for 400 dollars. that would maintain your vac level and move alot of sap. to one releaser. leader also sells one. i think they would be the way to go with that many taps.

[Jeff E]

Another aspect to this issue...sap sitting in pump lines between runs. I would think an advantage of using a ladder or lifter would be that gravity would empty the lines out, where with a pump pushing sap from a releaser the sap would be sitting, waiting for the pump to run again....degrading the sap quality on warm days...