Homemade releaser

[partsrus1974]

How it going??Any of u hard core maple addicts ever make a homemade realeaser?And have it work?I'm addind vacuum to 150-200 taps and was looking for some help on making a small releaser Thank you

[Haynes Forest Products]

I would check out other treads on the subject. We did talk quite a bit about the foibles and parts needed

[tmccrumm]

Have have plans and photos of a home made releaser if anyone wants them. Contact me at tom@southfacefarm.com

[danno]

Tom - are they possible to post in this thread. This questions comes up like once a month and it would be great to see what you've done and how it's worked - I'm sure we would all like to hear the details. I looked into it a few years ago and did not see anything practical. Broke down and bought one.

[partsrus1974]

when i went to bascoms last saturday.i looked at the mecanical releasers and they are very simple to make..What type of releaser is your plans for tom?Also i see your in western mass,I'm in stephentown ..nice to see a hometown guy here:p

[Grade "A"]

I made a releaser by looking at a store brand mecanical releasers. It worked, but not good. My big problem was that I couldn't get the thickness of lexan I needed so the ends of the releaser would bow in and leak.

[partsrus1974]

whats size lexan did u use grade A?also how big around and tall was your pvc tube for the releaser?

[Grade "A"]

I think it was 1/4" lexan and it should have been 1/2". I used 10" pvc pipe and it was about 12" long.

[Uncle Tucker]

Matt
We need pix and drawings.
Thanks

[Grade "A"]

I will try to get some picture and upload them, it may take a couple days.

[nymapleguy607]

I am in the process of making my own mechanical releaser as well. I'm using 8in pvc and cut it to 24in long for the ends I plan to use 1/4in plexiglass. I calcilated it out and it should dump about five gallons at a time. I will keep you posted on how it works
Jeff

[partsrus1974]

what do u guys think,would work good for the flapper on the bottom.I was thinkung of maybe a toliet flapper if i can find one stiff enough..any ideas??

[Haynes Forest Products]

Why not it cant hurt to try . You could always fill the flapper with Silicone to stiffen it up. you might incorperate the whole unit so you get a hinge and seal area. The trick will be to find a food grade flapper......................never mind

[Grade "A"]

I am still trying to get pics but I used a flapper check valve.

[Haynes Forest Products]

Granger,Home Depot have PVC check valves that are a rubber swing check type that would work nice.

[partsrus1974]

i acually have one of those i was going to use it for the check valve between the two sections instead of a ball.so i will pick up another one and give it a try for a flapper bet it works good thanks!

[tuckermtn]

I took a few shots of our hobby releaser set-up.

clear plastic hose connects vacuum to main chamber

threaded hole on top of top chamber comes from Vac. pump

large threaded holes on back of top chamber that come in on an angle are where mainlines enter....we have only one mainline at the relaser, so one of ours is plugged...

[tuckermtn]

here is another shot from the side...

[Sugarmaker]

I'm about as dumb as a board on this releaser stuff. But when we went to Somerset PA maple tour several years ago a guy was using old pressure cookers for having multiple lines run into and one line out of? Not sure it was a releaser as such but he claimed it functioned well in his tubing system. This is just food for thought. Making something from nothing!

Regards,
Chris

[lpakiz]

Hi Eric,
Is this unit mechanical only, and able to be used in the woods without electricity?
Can you give me a description of what happens when it dumps?
Is there a valve that is acuated with vacuum when the releaser is "full"?
Thinking of a gas powered vacuum setup (got the SP-11 pump) but wouldn't have juice out there in the woods.
THANKS

[OGDENS SUGAR BUSH]

TUCKERMTN

looks like a store bought 1 GOOD JOB

RICH

[Haynes Forest Products]

You can see the float that cuts of the vacuum when the sap fills the tank and lets the sap dump from the holding tank. Float goes down vacuum starts and the prosses starts all over again.

[maplekid]

i was pondering on a homemade releaser as well. i have an i dea but dont know if it will work. hope i explain it so everybody understands.i was thinking take an 8'' peice of pvc and putting plexi covers on both ends. then run a rod in the middle of the tube with a float that runs on the rod(up and down) with a vac line comming through the top of the plexi and the mainline comming through the side. then have a valve at the end of the vac line so when the releaser fills up the flaot will trigger the valve and cut off vaccumm until the realeaser is empty then close the valve as soon as the float goes to the bottom of the releaser.(a rope will be hooked to the handle os it pulls the valve shut when the flaot goes down. and the process strats again. i hope i explained it well

[nymapleguy607]

maplekid
That is essentially the same as how I am building mine. I am using plexiglass covers with cork gaskets. I am goming through the plex at the bottom with a tee my chheck valves are attached to the tee and I have a rod with a float on it in the center I can't really explain the valve on the top but when I finish it I will post some pictures

[tuckermtn]

just realized I posted my photos in the wrong thread...was supposed to be in maplewalnut's hobby relaser...not homemade relaser.

[Haynes Forest Products]

Maplekid most ball valves take alot of force to open and closes will the float be heavy enough to close it and still float?

[paul]

does anyone know were to get those latches that hold the plexiglass on Erics releaser or what they are called?

[Dave Y]

Sugarmaker,
He was using pressure cookers as vacuum boosters.

[dano2840]

maple kid if i were you i would go to tractor supply or some thing and buy a float ball valve used to water cattle, that would probably work the best. better than a ball valve
we cut a 55gal drum in half and a hole in the side for the valve the hose connects to the outside when the float goes down the water from the hose goes in until shut, it would be this process in reverse

[dano2840]

I was given an old lappiere releaser, its not blue its green and it is like 2 of those 24" one stacked on top of eachother from what i can tell the bottome one is the sap part and the top is the vacc chamber, there are 2 release gates on the sap chamber ive never seen gates like this but i was wondering if any one had one of these and could give me some direction on hooking the thing up, there is a hole that comes off the gate contorl valve ( i think its a control valve, and i think it goes up into the vacc compart ment
Does any one know about it?