quick tubing question.

[red maples]

So I know that your laterals should be approx. 4-5 %slope for gravity tubing. if I have a long stretch between trees on relatively flat ground should that stretch of tubing still be at 4-5% slope or if say the last tree is 20+ feet out is it ok to go less of a slope or as long as most of it is 5% and the end tree is higher than the saddle??

[mapleack]

I'd either use a step ladder or skip the tree. You can get sap from it as long as its higher than the saddle, but, the low spot will freeze and you won't get any sap til it thaws. Later in the season that low spot will be a breeding ground for bacteria, which will be getting dumped into your mainline, contaminating it from there on down to the tank.

[mountainvan]

20 ft isn't far. if you want put a post in between. I would tap the tree.

[Haynes Forest Products]

RED MAPLES When I read all the things you need to do to have a tubing system that is lets say built to spects I sit back and wonder how the heck I got 350 gallons of grade A syrup that I was paid top dollar for off of 1125 trees over a 2 week span.

Now I know you might say CHUCK just think if you did it all by the book:rolleyes: But its not in my nature to do everything by the book. When I first set foot in the woods I tap things were in shambles and The old guy that owned the bush was a dear friend that needed help so I baught tubing and with friends we went around the wood repairing lines and getting sap out the end.

By todays standards I should just quit/give up or spend $8000.00 and start over............NOPE im just going to keep taping the woods with the undersized mains drops and sags in the 50ft unsupported latterals and Keep the lines air tight and suck the hell out of the trees and burn, scorch or out right set fire to my pans and all the time doing it with a cool beer and a smile on my face.

Im not saying is shoul'nt be done right but lets not sit here say DONT DO IT BECAUSE I DID THAT AND IT KIND OF WORKED BUT IT HAD ITS UPS AND DOWN. I would rather tap 100 trees and get 150 gallons of sap a day then tap 60 trees and get 120 gallons. I know it doesnt make sense its just me having fun living and learning.

[red maples]

I love it!!!! you said it brother. As my wife says "Most of the time the destonation is the journey"

but anyway there are support trees that I can zig zag the line through so there is no sags but will it hurt if the slope is say approx 2% or less as long as the line is higher than the previous tree. I hope its not too confusing.

Basically less of a slope in 1 section that is 20 + ft to the last tree but still has supports. part of the reason I am asking is it is in a swamp so hopefully I can get a latter in there in feb and it will be frozen. but in april when I pull the tap I may have to scale the tree which I can do to.

[Haynes Forest Products]

Yes it will work do your best. If you taped a tree and the tube had a big bag in it as a drop of sap went in one would come out and at night it would freeze and then tahw and the sap would flow again. Would the sap spoil if the sap stoped running for a few days........I dont know because it might freeze and stay fresh and if it does spoil will 1 pint of spoiled sap ruin 20 gallons of good sap NO. Do your best keep it tight so you only have 1 OZ of bad sap in 20 gallons THATS PROGRESS.

[Homestead Maple]

RED MAPLES When I read all the things you need to do to have a tubing system that is lets say built to spects I sit back and wonder how the heck I got 350 gallons of grade A syrup that I was paid top dollar for off of 1125 trees over a 2 week span.

Now I know you might say CHUCK just think if you did it all by the book:rolleyes: But its not in my nature to do everything by the book. When I first set foot in the woods I tap things were in shambles and The old guy that owned the bush was a dear friend that needed help so I baught tubing and with friends we went around the wood repairing lines and getting sap out the end.

By todays standards I should just quit/give up or spend $8000.00 and start over............NOPE im just going to keep taping the woods with the undersized mains drops and sags in the 50ft unsupported latterals and Keep the lines air tight and suck the hell out of the trees and burn, scorch or out right set fire to my pans and all the time doing it with a cool beer and a smile on my face.

Im not saying is shoul'nt be done right but lets not sit here say DONT DO IT BECAUSE I DID THAT AND IT KIND OF WORKED BUT IT HAD ITS UPS AND DOWN. I would rather tap 100 trees and get 150 gallons of sap a day then tap 60 trees and get 120 gallons. I know it doesnt make sense its just me having fun living and learning.
Your yield last season sounds like mine, I had 1,031 taps and made 374 gals. You did very well.

[abbott]

Last year i had a section of tubing with 40+ taps on it running into a barrel. The slope of the hill was 4-5% over the whole 600 feet. I averaged 11 gallons of sap per tap. Whats the catch, you ask? It was all small tubing - no mainline. Some places didn't have more than 1% slope - i just zig-zagged between trees. I did use a couple of posts where the tubing stretched more than 50' between trees. Did it sag and freeze during the season? I don't know - i was too busy trying to keep up with all my sap and i never checked.

That said - start by tapping the easiest trees to get. If you want more taps, find a way to get to the harder trees.

[Sugarmaker]

After just a few years with tubing I agree that you tap what you have, get some amount of slope. Find a few more trees to tap also cause you will have free time from gathering buckets. Have less back strain and less time servicing buckets, More time smiling and boiling!

Chris

[mtnmeadowmplfarm]

If this one tree is in a low spot why dont you put it on a separate lateral to avoid creating a sag in an otherwise properly sloped lateral.

[3rdgen.maple]

Red tap the darn thing. You cant pass up a maple. Worse case senerio build a small ladder out of 2x4's and leave it by the tree. Tap it higher and when time comes to pull the tap climb the ladder and pull it. If you are really worried about sagging why can't you just drive a post in at each end run a wire to them and zip tie the line to it.

[PATheron]

More sap is always better, thats my motto. Last year I was out of time and money and had two rolls of 5/16 left and a bunch of good used drops. I ran a thousand foot lateral and put 100 drops on it and hooked it to my pump. What the heck stuff wont make you any money stuck in the shed. Sure looked like quite a bit of sap was going through it even if it wasnt to code. Theron

[red maples]

I ran the tubing and there's a drop there!!! it was there before I started this thread. Don't worry I am a true mapleholic I'll worry about how to tap it when the time comes. If there is a maple to be tapped and I have access to it will get tapped like 3rdgen said, " no maple left behind":D I just wanted to see what thoughts were on the subject.

I was ordering a few things on tuesday and thought wow what if I run out of taps and T's mmm better get a few more just in case so I bought another 100 of each. just in case riight!!!!;)

When I was marking trees on my neighors lot I found about 40 more trees than I expected!!!

I was only planning on 200 + a few buckets but putting in laterals and already up to 90 or so taps and I am only 1/3 done. I may be up around 250 + a few buckets when I am done!!!