stainless steel spiles?

[steamvalleyFarms]

I am looking into buying some new spiles, and have seen some are made out of stainless steel, what would be the advantages of these? Do they build up less bacteria? Can you clean them better? I am planning on going with plastic but was just wondering?

[Brent]

From what I've read the stainless ones will clean better than plastic.

That said, most stainless spouts are stamped and have an open joint in the top. My own thought is that this is a channel for bacteria to travel into the tap hole, especially if you get some heavy dew and rain running down the bark of the tree.

[MapleME]

dare I state the obvious- I betcha those metal spiles will last you a heck-of-a lot longer.

[WF MASON]

A friend was up north visting Pierre last spring, he had ten buckets sitting on the ground in front of ten maples beside the road, he explained he was testing the IPL stainless spout that you use with 5/16" tubing ,he had ten new black tree saver spouts and ten of the stainless spouts run into buckets. He said each day the stainless spout would run hours earlier and hours later then the black plastic spout would , my friend looked in the buckets and the five with the stainless spouts were almost full , the five with the black plastic spouts were half full. Pierre said he would be changing out 5000 spouts each your until they all were the stainless.

[rob1640]

What manufacture is making these stainless spiles? Any idea on the cost?

[Brent]

I don't think anyone is making them today. There are millions of them, just like the aluminum buckets, that are available used.

[nymapleguy607]

Just a thought about the stailess spiles. Are the spile insides smooth or are the left rough after machining. If they were rough inside I think this would leave places for bacteria to grow. On the plus side if you could remove the taps at the end of the season and sterilize them they should perform like a new tap. I know people say you can do this with plastic spiles but I think the plastic deforms, where as the stainless would not. Like I said just a thought
Jeff

[Brent]

I've never seen a machined one. They are all stamped out on a press / roller die. They are pretty smooth on the inside but not polished.

[Dennis H.]

They do make a Stainless Steel Health Spout, look in the MaplePro catalog.

The most current one I have is a 2008 but on page 13 it shows all the different tubing fittings and right there at the top is the SS health spout part # 6609009S cost is $1.71

If you have the $$ to get them I can't see why they wouldn't be the way to go. If you go with the new check valve spouts that would be .35 for the spout and .29 for the stubby adapter so that would be .64 the 1st year and then you would or should I say you should put in new check valve spouts each year so that would be .35 each aditional year. So if my thinking is correct after 5 years you would pay for the SS spouts.
You would have a little more labor each year with cleaning but you would be doing your part in helping the enviro but not trashing plastic spouts each year.

[lpakiz]

I have a bunch of the 5/16 stainless steel spouts for 5/16 tubing. Mine are machined, not stamped. They're made of 2 pieces, the spout and the barbed fitting and are silver soldered together. They work great and and look even better.

[Brent]

Now you mention it I recall there was a thread going on these new stainless
"lifetime" spouts. One of the issues in the thread was cleaning and the sharp barbs being tough to get out of the tubing.

I've got my order in for stubbies and check valves to try this season.

[steamvalleyFarms]

Thanks for the input.

[Riverdale]

For those of you out there that use stainless steel spiles with your tubing setups, I'm wondering how you go about cleaning them? I'm looking at replacing an old gravity system that will continue to be in the future, trying to weigh plus/minus of SS steel health spouts vs. stubs/adapters, aside from cost. Any thoughts would be appreciated!