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I’m a hobbyist. Been sugaring about 15 years. Run fifty taps nowadays. And I still, frequently, significantly, have leaking sap from my taps, often that weep all the way down to the ground. I...

Congrats on your retirement Van! I’ve been lurking here for years, following your reports to help guide my own tapping timing, and just generally enjoying your posts. Good luck with everything!

Great, thanks for the thoughts. So - does anyone have any recommendations for bucket spouts they do like?

Thanks, Tim. Any suggestion on bucket spouts with less complaints? Also, how bad practice is it to replace a spout partway through the season?

I feel like I go through a version of this every year, to some degree. But here's a new twist:

We put in most of our 40+ taps the last couple days. The trees were frozen, which I know can be...

Got it, thanks!

I'm tiny scale - 50 taps - so expense of peroxide isn't an issue. But if it's less effective, then that answers that. However, I'm mostly on buckets, and just some short tubes to larger buckets,...

These are all new spiles, if that helps answer the question.

So, ok, do nothing to the tap hole itself. What do people think of peroxide as a sanitizing agent? My thought is that would leave...

All plastic taps. Half are bucket spouts, the other half are zap bac

I've never done any sanitizing of the drill bit before. But after least year, wondering if there's anything more I can do...

I've read older posts on this subject, but what's the latest thinking on the best way to sanitize the drill bit, spiles, and - if advised - the taphole?

My best guess plan is to sanitize spiles at...

Just looking at the weather here... below freezing until 2/20, and that's the farthest the forecast goes. At this rate I won't be tapping til March!

Here's another question: what exactly is a problematic buildup of sugar sand? You're not talking about the free floating sand that you filter out when drawing off, right? It's when sand builds up...

First day running my brand new 2x4 smokylake evaporator with a divided pan. Fun. Roughly how often do I need to reverse the flow to keep the sugar sand at bay?

I boiled for about 3 hours today...

I have a Smokylake Dauntless 2x4 divided pan. I ran it for the first time today. I get it. It goes through a lot of wood fast. And to get the best boil you do want to run those smaller logs and...

Ok thanks, this has all been very helpful. And yes, good point about not leaving once the divided pan starts producing actual syrup. I’m sure I’ll be watching it like a hawk by then...

I'm just getting started with my first real wood fired evaporator (smoky lake Dauntless). First test boil will be tomorrow.

I've read in many places that you want to cut your wood to wrist size -...

Thanks for the words of caution. Maybe it’s waist height. I’m pretty careful. Very careful really. But can never be too careful.

I've got a hemlock tree that fell about 1.5 years ago. I'm not the best with a chainsaw, but the thing fell right on its side with the branches holding it perfectly horizontal at about chest height,...

Thanks for the responses everyone! Lots to digest. I actually have a question about what seems like the simplest system, barely qualifies as a tubing system at all:



Interesting. Even 5...

I’ve always assumed tubing isn’t for me because I only have had 20-30 taps and more importantly my land is perfectly flat. I‘m hoping to run more like 30-50 taps this year, which I was still going...

I've been sugaring for 10+ years, hobbyist, 20-30 taps, boiled mostly on my propane grill. This is a weekend home, and I boil only on weekends - and occasionally miss a weekend so it can be 2 weeks...

I've been tapping for about 10 years now. Usually about 15-30 taps, with 3 gallon buckets. I collect by pouring the buckets into 5-gallon carboys from beer brewing, carried around in a wheelbarrow....

Did a boil this past weekend, after 2 weeks hanging (some frozen, but some not)... and everything turned out fine! So I'm thinking it wasn't the buckets after all. Possibly a bad filter or two.

Thanks for your answers on this a couple weeks ago. You were right, and indeed the sap did start running again just fine!

Thanks for all your responses, I really appreciate it.

I can see why the Mason, or Leader, or Starcat might be more efficient, and thus why I may be happier with it. My one concern /...