Tapped Today

[Andrew Franklin]

Not sure it this will help you, but I ran 3/16 this year and it saves a lot of time over buckets to have 30 taps run to my 275 gallon totes that are 30' down from the last tap. The totes were reasonably priced from a craigslist ad in Martinsville, and my start point is with a few trees that has the run going uphill about 20' and then going down over 100', so the sap is pulled up the incline and then down..creating a vacuum that has it literally pouring out of the 3/16 line at the collection point. My buckets have just a fraction of yield compared to the trees on 3/16.

[markcasper]

Not sure it this will help you, but I ran 3/16 this year and it saves a lot of time over buckets to have 30 taps run to my 275 gallon totes that are 30' down from the last tap. The totes were reasonably priced from a craigslist ad in Martinsville, and my start point is with a few trees that has the run going uphill about 20' and then going down over 100', so the sap is pulled up the incline and then down..creating a vacuum that has it literally pouring out of the 3/16 line at the collection point. My buckets have just a fraction of yield compared to the trees on 3/16.

So if you had say 40' of rise instead of 20' from your trees on the backside of the hill, would the 3/16 still be able to pull it over the hill considering you have 100' of drop???

[mellondome]

You will probably not get a tree to push sap that high to start. How tall are your trees? If you can "prime" the tubing, then the vac will overcome the rise.

[dsaw]

One question I have on setting several tanks in the woods to collect from a potential 3/16 system is how does one prevent valves from busting when it freezes? Keep the nipples short? I know I had a rain water collection system valve bust on me a few years ago, but I think I had a 6" nipple on it. Am I safe placing 55 gal drums and adding bulkhead fittings, close nipples, and a valve?

Also, in S. IN at least, wondering if the season is over. Next two weeks after tomorrow are all too warm.

[Andrew Franklin]

What makes mine work is that I have some trees tapped on the downward slope as well...the sap flowing from them establishes the vacuum and pulls the rest up and over the crest. As mellondome said, there could be a way to prime the line to get it going, but even a few trees on the downward slope should get things going.

[mellondome]

One question I have on setting several tanks in the woods to collect from a potential 3/16 system is how does one prevent valves from busting when it freezes? Keep the nipples short? I know I had a rain water collection system valve bust on me a few years ago, but I think I had a 6" nipple on it. Am I safe placing 55 gal drums and adding bulkhead fittings, close nipples, and a valve?.

Do not let sap in the valve and it will not break.just suck out of the top of the drum.

[dsaw]

That makes sense, I was wondering how people kept valves from freezing. I guess I need to add a 12v pump for sucking out tanks if I switch to 3/16".

[mellondome]

Or make sure they are empty with no sap left in the valve.

[dsaw]

I'm remote, so I can't get out but once or twice a week, so there is no way sap won't be on the valve if it's running.

[psparr]

Use the double valve method.
Put two ball valves in a row. With both closed, open the second valve from the tank to drain the sap from the valve itself and then close it. Now open the valve closest to the tank and leave it open. That keeps the sap out of the "ball" of the valve where most it the burst valve problems lye.