Long warm spell and mold concerns

[mellondome]

Sounds like the issue is that you have sap staying in your lines due to no slope. And hot days will grow stuff in sugar water. Vacuum is not used to move sap. It is used to create pressure differential in the tree to get more sap. If you have to use vacuum to move sap in your lines, then you dont have enough slope for tubing. You may need to look at using ladders and creating a stepped tubing layout. Slope 100ft to almost the ground and ladder it up and start again.

[Lazarus]

I may very well have to rerun it. As I mentioned, it was professionally installed at a pretty high cost per tap, and I left the design up to the installers who were aware of the lack of any slope. We're running a 7.5 HP vacuum pump and without it, no sap hits the extractor. I was also advised that I didn't have to clean the lines and I could just untap them and put them in the keepers so they didn't even get air dried last year.

Before I go to the expense of running ladders (at one every 100 feet that's 85-95 ladders - not sure that's cost effective) I'm going to try a thorough cleaning with peroxide, flush with water and air drying and see if that helps. Even with the lack of cleaning they started the second season not looking bad, but obviously were starting at a disadvantage and it was a terrible warm season.

This is standard CDL 1" mainlines and 5/16 laterals, blue. They are not soft materials like the drops.

[Lazarus]

Just a final update on this. I have hit these lines with everything that I can think of. I have even tried manually scrubbing them on the inside which in itself is extremely difficult. I spent 8 hours and maybe got a couple hundred feet. The lines are literally black all the way around and this stuff has turned into something resembling tar.

At this point I believe the only thing that I can do is replace every mainline and completely redesign the system. Over 7,000 feet of mainline is going to have to go and I'm going to have to switch to a ladder system. So much for professional installation. The English language does not have the right words to describe how angry I am. This installation is only 2 seasons old. Unbelievable.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

I don't think anyone will blame you for the frustration. Installers should have known better and if they were truly "professionals" than they would know if ladders were needed. Sorry to hear that, but yes with mold that bad everywhere you may never get it out. And if you did, sounds like it is the install causing it. Sorry man, good luck!