Mainline Tubing

[swierczt]

I was thinking of installing a 1/2" mainline next year. I was wondering if anyone uses 1/2" tubing available at Home Depot for their mainline. The link is attached. It does not say anything about if it is foodgrade, but it is used for irrigation. The link is attached. Thanks!

http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053&productId=100031184&N=10000003+90401+527947

[Mark-NH]

Use 3/4" as they do not make fittings for 1/2" anymore and you will like the added capacity for minimal $

[Amber Gold]

I agree with Mark. Also, shop around. There are places to get it cheaper and in longer rolls.

[maplecrest]

chech out plumbing supply stores instead of h.d. and go with 3/4 inch

[Ridgeland Farm]

I was actually about to post on the same topic! So I know 3/4in mainline is much better than 1/2. However my question is.... I might be aquiring an orchard where I will only be able to gravity feed. This is an extra tapping ground that I was not planning on so my money is limited. If I stick to 100 or so taps per mainline would 1/2in do the trick? Again this piece will never be vaccumed. Im prob. looking at 300 taps. Its just hard for me to spend almost 3 times as much for 3/4 when it will always be a gravity feed system. Just wondering your thoughts on that.

Stefan

[Amber Gold]

Stick with the 3/4". I think I paid $0.17/ft for it last year and I'm sure it's cheaper this year. You'll also likely make up the difference in fittings. they dont' make saddles for 1/2" so you'll have to buy a threaded tee with star fitting and hose clamps to make it work. That's probably $5+ a connection.

[swierczt]

I wouldn't have more that 100 taps on this line either...nor would it be on a vaccuum. It's just to be a gravity line from my sugarbush to my sugar house. Right now, I have 7-9 tap lines going into 55 gallon collection tanks, which I empty by bucket and carry to another 55 gal. tank positioned on top of a hill, which has a 400' long length of regular tubing coming out of it to another collection tank at the bottom of the hill near my sugarhouse. It flows slow, but it works. I would like to eliminate the tanks in the sugarbush an go into a mainline that would go to a tank next to my sugarhouse. It's downhill all the way. Do you really think that I would need 3/4" or can I get away with 1/2". I can make my own mainifold if I have to (have a machine shop). I only have about 100 taps possible in this little sugarbush. I just want to make my life easier and eliminate the need for the 'bucket bregade'!

[Dave Y]

For all the more it cost get the 3/4" water line. It is better to work with and the fittings are readily avlaibale. I have a couple of road side bushes that I put 3/4 on and am glad I did. I have worked with the 1/2 and the savings in $$ is not worth the hassle.

[Ridgeland Farm]

Well I just did a price search. 1/2in line is way cheaper than 3/4. Its close to 75% less. but when you add in the 4x and the 6x inserts and the 1/2 fitting for it it ends up being about 50% cheaper. But like others are saying it seems like 1/2in is more of a hastle to work with. So looking at the 3/4in prices I found a place www.caltrf.com that has 3/4in tubing. Priced against bascom maple in NH www.caltrf.com came in at $4611 (shipping included) for 30,000ft of 3/4 and bascom came in at $6,600 (without shipping) for the same size. Im not sure yet if it is food grade tubing or not. Something to look into but like people said, shop around and you will find some good deals.


Stefan

[Amber Gold]

Try a local company like granite group. From what I've heard you can get 2500' reels of 3/4" from Granite Group. I haven't tried it personally, but that's what I've heard. leave the spool at the road and pull it in. 30,000 ft is a lot of mainline. Are you going from Loudon to Concord? 30,000 feet for 300 taps seems like a lot of effort and expense. Still need to figure in mainline wire and wire ties. Bascom's isn't always the best on prices...typically isn't.

You could also find a local company that makes it. I think there's one near Portland, ME somewhere.

[Ridgeland Farm]

haha!! your right 30,000 feet is a ton for 300 taps! Thats for my main property where I'll be runing anywhere from 2000-3000 taps with a wet/dry line!


~Stefan~

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

I have one bush that has aprox 170 taps on 1/2" gravity and running full bore, the line is no more than 1/3 full. Leader has the 30p 1/2" mainline on sale for $ 61.20 for 1/2" in 400' rolls. I may pick up 3 or 4 rolls of it to use instead of black. Leader says up to 50 taps on it, I think it will easily handle a couple hundred on gravity.

[PerryW]

I would think 1/2" would be fine for a gravity only setup for 100-150 taps.

I've put 50 gravity taps on a piece of rigid 5/16" tubing and ran it down a fairly steep hill to the mainline. Even during the best runs, the taps will suck a strong natural vacuum so they can't be overloaded.

[Russell Lampron]

I agree with the 1/2" guys on this one. If you never intend to put vacuum on it 1/2" tubing is the best thing to use. Make sure it has NSF-PW printed on it somewhere. That means that it is safe for potable water.

[Ridgeland Farm]

well I emailed the caltrf website and their tubing is not NSF-PW. So I guess that one is out!


Stefan

[Specklefield Farm]

The tubing listed in the link from Home Depot is irrigation tubing, meaning it is ment to leak water or fluid, much like a "soaker hose". I wouldnt use that stuff for sure (even if it were 3/4 or 1") :lol:

[PerryW]

Is it worth it to buy the new tubing designed for sugaring or is the standard black plastic waterline better value?

When I installed my 3/4" black plastic waterlines 20 years ago, I decided not to spend the extra money to buy that blue stuff they were selling at the time. Turned out that the blue tubing didn't last near as long as my black stuff. Looked to me like the UV would make it brittle after a few years and my black stuff is still looking pretty good. I still never have problems with it.

[Haynes Forest Products]

Im using a sugar bush that has black poly pipe that is 30 years old and still plyable and is fine. Its 1/2 and has 300 taps on vacuum and it works fine.

[Homestead Maple]

One of Leaders open house seminars was on tubing and installations and a question came by someone asking the panel what color main line they used. Two of them said that they use mainly the blue stuff from Leader. The other said, "Let's see. I've got some white, yellow, orange, black, and blue." Everyone got a chuckle on that response. He regularly makes a 1/2 gallon per tap. They all agreed that the newer blue has a long life because of the newer formulas to make it but other colors worked well also. There seemed to be a little concern about the black heating the sap but they didn't say not to use it. They all liked the Leader blue tubing.

[brookledge]

Many have taken a glove or mit and a gallon of white paint and have painted the black mainline, white. I have never done that but have thought about it especially if you have a section where it gets alot of sun or crosses a field.
Keith

[caseyssugarshack93]

homestead, was that Mike parker? sounds like it

[Homestead Maple]

It was Peter Purrington. He was really fun to listen to. He has quite a sense of humor.

[sapman]

Bascom's has all (or mostly) black pipe in their woods, as told to me by David himself. I almost went black, but am glad I used 30P because it rolled out so much easier than black.

Tim

[maple flats]

Another reason not to use the irrigation pipe linked above is the size. It is called 1/2" but the id is .62 and the od is .71, only irrigation fittings will fit it and that wall thickness of .045 is very flimsey. Go with 3/4" and after I used the 30P I will not go back to the black poly, much easier to work and it keeps the sap much cooler.

[caseyssugarshack93]

yeah peter made us all laugh a few times, i run mosly black and im pretty sure mike parker runs mosly black too, im going to try the 30p mainline just to try it but i like the looks of the black and blue

[caseyssugarshack93]

Homestead, what size r/o do u have and do u like the lapierre turbo modlel? im trying to decied to what kind i want to go with springtech or lapierre.

[Homestead Maple]

I have a 600 Turbo but not the new generation model. I have a buddy that has the Spring Tech and comparing the two, I noticed that his plumbing on the machine uses larger diameter pipe but it doesn't seem to make a difference in the over all performance, his wash tank is part of the machine where mine is seperate of the unit and I had to plumb it to the unit but my tank is stainless and larger than the one on the Spring Tech which is plastic. We compared or discussed at times, the flow rates that we were getting through the machines this season and the Lapierre processed more per hour. I think (and could be totally wrong) that the Lapierre is a true 600gph machine and the Spring Tech was a 500, both under the same operating conditions. My machine when I bought it was roughly $2,000 less than the Spring Tech, which was a factor for me. I also liked the fact that the membrane unit with the recirculation pump is seperate from the main unit and I can move both easlily if I need to but some may say "how often do you need to move it". Because it is seperate I can add another membrane easily. I don't store my membrane in the machine and use the storage unit that came with the machine, which to me is handy. I haven't needed any service on it in three years but getting help from Lapierre USA when I first got it was not easy. The operation manual is not as easily understood as the Spring Tech. I've heard some concerns about the feed pump on the Turbos but mine is a Grundfos and they are a qulity built pump. I've had no problems. A question people might ask is "would you buy another one" and my answer would be definitely, "yes". I may not have received the service that some have gotten but Russ Lampron helped me with anything I needed to know and there's plenty of help on the Trader. I rambled quite a lot but I really like the Lapierre and I don't think to many others that own them have been disappointed with them.