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Thread: May Journal

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jan 2010
    Location
    Covington, New York
    Posts
    1,680

    Default May Journal

    This morning I finished splitting the little bit of wood required to fill all my wood racks again. Been working at it a little at a time since the season ended. With the racks filled, and with the RO now, it is probably a 3 to 4 year supply of wood. I also have a few trees bucked up on the ground, and three trees on the ground that need to be bucked up. Needless to say, I have wood coming out my ears!

    Not much else to do to get ready for next year. Biggest decision for next year is what spouts and drops I want to go with for the second year on the lines. A lot of talk about bad experiences with CV spouts this year and has me nervous about those. I'd like to change all my drops to 2 barb T's as well, to reduce "pull aparts" next season.
    Noel Good
    1998 to 2009: 15 taps on buckets, scavenged fire pit and pans
    2010: New 2x4 SS flat pan w/preheater
    2015: New to me Lapierre 18x60 raised flue, new shack, new everything!! 59 taps 23.75 gallons
    2016: 85 taps 19 gallons
    2017: Purchased 2.5 acres and tubed half with 3/16. 145 taps total 49.25 gallons
    2018: 200 taps (162 on 3/16ths 38 on buckets) New NextGen RO 63 gallons
    2019: 210 taps 73.5 gallons
    2023: 210 taps 89.75 gallons
    www.wnybass.com

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Dec 2002
    Location
    Rock Creek, NC
    Posts
    5,807

    Default

    I've still got 3 tanks to wash before my clean up is done. Hopefully I'll get that done this weekend. I've got some repairs to make on the releaser and RO and I need to redo some of the bricking in my arch. The refractory cement didn't set up too well in the below freezing temps last January.

    Noel I didn't have any problems with the CV2's and will be using them again next season. A lot of producers had a lot of problems with lines coming apart last season and it was with all types of taps and tubing. CV's were getting a bad rap because they are very popular.
    Russ

    "Red Roof Maples" Where the term "boiling soda" was first introduced to the maple world!

    1930 Ford Model AA Doodlebug tractor
    A couple of Honda 4 wheelers
    Four chainsaws and no chickens!

  3. #3
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    UVM Proctor Maple Research Center, Underhill Ctr, VT
    Posts
    6,391

    Default

    We used about 50% CV2s this year (~2,500 taps). We had ONE pop off all season. Cold night, quick thaw the next morning. On that particular drop, spout was on the southeast side of the tree and the dropline ran around to the north side. I think there was still ice in the drop when the tree thawed.

    We had a lot more mainline stainless fittings come apart this year than ever before (very rare in most years). Our lines cross under a road. Both the wet and dry lines froze, the sap started to run and built up in the lines way up the hill, and trees were adding to the load on the system -- pressure finally blew apart the lines.

    I think when fittings do come off it is more of a matter of either a mismatch of sizes on fittings and tubing (some manufacturers/fittings tend to run a little big or a little small), tubing aging and loss of elasticity (happens more with rigid tubing), or quality control issues in tubing size. We use a small tubing sizing tool to check each roll and reject any that are too big or too small.
    Dr. Tim Perkins
    UVM Proctor Maple Research Ctr
    http://www.uvm.edu/~pmrc
    https://mapleresearch.org
    Timothy.Perkins@uvm.edu

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Location
    Peru, Maine
    Posts
    1,044

    Default

    We just finished pulling taps in the big bush last weekend. We have all of our stuff cleaned up and put away but the new to us 2x6 is coming a week from Saturday. We have a lot of work to do in the shack to get ready for boiling on the bigger rig next spring.
    We noticed the same thing as Dr. Tim with fittings. While we didn't have any blow apart, we have replaced several over the years mostly from moving mainline around. With CDL tubing, the plastic fittings are a much better fit than the stainless ones. The OD's definitely vary between the two. Then you can get 2 of the same fitting, one from CDL and one from a hardware store and again get variances.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Southern Ohio
    Posts
    1,349

    Default

    Hey thought I'd add my May journal comment, although it has no application to Maple:

    1st two weeks of May....Turkey hunt until I drop in exhaustion
    rest of May.....Fish, fish some more and then fish even more, occasionally mow some grass or do a little around the house just to keep the queen form getting too upset

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Location
    Walpole, NH
    Posts
    1,364

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    I have my pans soaking with cleaner. Need to get them drained, rinsed and pressure wash the bottoms. Everything else is cleaned up and put away. Now, to get next year’s wood all split up.
    Sugaring for 45+ years
    New Sugarhouse 14'x32'
    New to Me Algier 2'x8' wood fired evaporator
    2022 added a used RB25 RO Bucket
    250 mostly Sugar Maples, 15% Soft Maples. Currently,(110on 3/16" and 125 on Shurflo 4008 vacuum, 15 gravity), (16,000 before being disabled)
    1947 Farmall H and Wagon with gathering tank
    2012 Kubota with forks to move wood around

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jan 2010
    Location
    Covington, New York
    Posts
    1,680

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by DrTimPerkins View Post
    We used about 50% CV2s this year (~2,500 taps). We had ONE pop off all season. Cold night, quick thaw the next morning. On that particular drop, spout was on the southeast side of the tree and the dropline ran around to the north side. I think there was still ice in the drop when the tree thawed.

    We had a lot more mainline stainless fittings come apart this year than ever before (very rare in most years). Our lines cross under a road. Both the wet and dry lines froze, the sap started to run and built up in the lines way up the hill, and trees were adding to the load on the system -- pressure finally blew apart the lines.

    I think when fittings do come off it is more of a matter of either a mismatch of sizes on fittings and tubing (some manufacturers/fittings tend to run a little big or a little small), tubing aging and loss of elasticity (happens more with rigid tubing), or quality control issues in tubing size. We use a small tubing sizing tool to check each roll and reject any that are too big or too small.
    I guess I was more concerned with reports of the balls getting stuck open or closed.

    I am still considering 5/16ths drops into the 3/16ths lines as well. Have not heard too many pros and cons on this.
    Noel Good
    1998 to 2009: 15 taps on buckets, scavenged fire pit and pans
    2010: New 2x4 SS flat pan w/preheater
    2015: New to me Lapierre 18x60 raised flue, new shack, new everything!! 59 taps 23.75 gallons
    2016: 85 taps 19 gallons
    2017: Purchased 2.5 acres and tubed half with 3/16. 145 taps total 49.25 gallons
    2018: 200 taps (162 on 3/16ths 38 on buckets) New NextGen RO 63 gallons
    2019: 210 taps 73.5 gallons
    2023: 210 taps 89.75 gallons
    www.wnybass.com

  8. #8
    Join Date
    May 2011
    Location
    Chatham NH
    Posts
    1,309

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by wnybassman View Post
    I guess I was more concerned with reports of the balls getting stuck open or closed.

    I am still considering 5/16ths drops into the 3/16ths lines as well. Have not heard too many pros and cons on this.
    I ran 400 ,5/16 drops on 3/16 tubing this year the tubing was one season old.. I think that the CVs did their Job, I got good sap flows until I turned the pump off because the sap got buddy.
    Nate Hutchins
    Nate & Kate's Maple
    2022 1000 taps?
    3x10 Intensofire
    20x36 sugarhouse
    CDL 600gph RO
    A wife and 2 kids.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Nov 2015
    Location
    Merrill, Wi
    Posts
    341

    Default

    Got a sun burn pulling taps... Sugar house is all cleaned up, finishing up the evaporator tomorrow. Walked the next two parcels we are tapping for 2019 and got that squared away. Now we're back to cutting and splitting wood!
    Maple Man 85
    Anthony & Rebecca Renken
    2017=200 taps
    2018=4000 taps (goal) 3000 taps (actual)
    2019=7000 taps (goal)
    30x45 Sugar House
    4x16 Leader Vortex
    www.northwoodsmaplefarm.com

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Dec 2002
    Location
    Rock Creek, NC
    Posts
    5,807

    Default

    I washed my last 3 sap tanks yesterday. Now on to the repairs and upgrades.
    Russ

    "Red Roof Maples" Where the term "boiling soda" was first introduced to the maple world!

    1930 Ford Model AA Doodlebug tractor
    A couple of Honda 4 wheelers
    Four chainsaws and no chickens!

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