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i wait until after v day to tap anything.. maybe a bit longer depending on the forecast. depending on your operation it maybe be easier or harder to make the right choice.... i like to wait till it looks and feels right to me, even tho it was tee shirt weather in my area for a few days my test taps didn`t do any great so the wait continues.... my reasoning is that there is nothing worse than dealing with frozen releasers and keeping flu pan from freezing in prolonged cold to start with nevermind all the other headaches down the line to get to finished syrup. choose your window wisely , because impatinces can turn into a headache till the weather gets better atleast with sugaring that is . good luck
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Flowing good today, needed those extra freezing temps where it didn't flow for 3 days. My sugar jumped to 2.5% from 1.4%. Can't wait till I own some actual land with sugar maples on them. Second year sugaring to get the process down till I move. My yards like a small scale experiment testing different methods, tapping times, line sizes, etc. I used 5/16 last year and switched to 3/16 with probably a 3 ft drop total to test the theory that 3/16 shouldn't be used. I sustain 21in on shurflo pump and my output has increased. Even have some taps with looped lines at messed up angles just to see if it would flow good and even those are sucking sap good. Wish I had more trees to do multiple experiments. I'm addicted to the methods of madness as I am to making it.
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Hung 16 buckets for starters. A few running slow. Looks like maybe 4 day window before a long cold snap. If buckets look good midday tomorrow will put out more taps maybe on a 3/16 line.
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Good luck guys! It definitely looks like now's the time to start. If I could I'd have tapped on Weds, but I'm going to have to wait until March. Though it does look like there's a cold snap coming. Hope it doesn't last long.
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Just checked, looks like after this run, it's supposed to be cold at least through the first full week in March. Bummer. On the other hand, it's not like they've never been wrong before. ;)
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Bottled almost 3 gallons today
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Hey I'm curious - anyone in Western MA who did tap early: Looking back, it appears that in the foothills of the Berkshires at least, the first week of February should have been a fantastic run, based on recorded temperatures. Did y'all see that, or was everything too frozen up for it to run like it would with those temps later in the season?
Thanks!
Gabe O
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Replaced my old rotted out stovepipe that had some holes as big as three fingers. My gallons per hour evaporation rate went up by 20%!
I started late, but last week (my second week this year) was huge for me. Most of my five gallon buckets were overflowing. And sugar level this year is the best I've seen in four years of sugaring. Hoping to get another week or so before wrapping things up.
How's everyone's season going?
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Boiling an 80 gallon run right now. Cautiously optimistic about a run early next week
Attachment 19879
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Here in Savoy things are going great. Last week was a great run, and this coming week looks like it might be perfect for sap flow. My woods trails into my sugarbush are still covered in snow so I can easily collect sap with my snowmobile without mucking up my trails too bad.