Tapping 2019

[boondocker]

With the weather being crazy this year and me being a month behind on everything I hope I can have everything ready to go in time. I started working with everything the same time I always do, but this year I had a wild idea of adding 300 more taps and adding a R/O system. I got everything plummed in on the R/O and had to change around some tanks, change the feed line to the evaporator, added a permeate tank and do some rearranging in the sugar house. I have 3 of the 4 sugar bushes ready to go with the exception of tank placement and replacing old taps. The new system all I have got done so far is get the main line wire up , tightened and trees marked. I feel a bit overwhelmed this year, I am always ready by feb 14th and usually all tapped in by the 22nd weather dependent. This year the weather has me nervous that I won't be ready but I can only do what I can do. Anybody else in the central Maine area behind the 8 ball? I keep checking the long range forecast on Accuweather and I don't see any significant warm ups and it staying like that so I am staying positive that I will be ready. So I guess I just wanted to check in and see what everyone is doing and jump start the Maine page.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

We have started tapping in the large operation we work for, mainly due to time constraints and the fact that there is vacuum there. For our own operation, we will hold off until the end of month. We caught the end of February run last year then had a 3 week freeze. I’m not sure if that was worth it or not. The longer March days and higher sun angle make March into April a lot better for sugaring than February where we are. We do new taps every year but being on gravity our window is considerably less than vacuum.

[bagpiper]

Hi All,

I'm down in very southern Maine about 15 miles from the coast. I'm tapping tomorrow afternoon when the trees have warmed up a bit. I've got about 100 on vacuum, so I'll get those done before the snow moves in Tuesday night. The ground is almost bare right now, so good time to walk the lines. I'll most likely hold off on the buckets until the 1st week of March. Good luck everyone!

[turnerburner]

Finished installing new drops and tapping tonight. Got the lines rerouted to the new sugar shack. Only a few loose ends to take care of and we'll be ready to go. I know it’s early but I’m hoping to get some sap out of this weekend warmup.

[abbott]

I've decided this brief warm up isn't enough to be worth it. By the time all the taps are in, vacuum leaks are found, and lines flushed (if it even runs enough to truly flush the lines) I doubt there will be much sap left to boil. Looks like back to cold next week. Next time it warms up will be a go for sure.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

My thoughts exactly abbott. Hoping to tap the first weekend of March or maybe even the following week if it stays cold. We caught the end of February run last year but I'm not sure a few gallons of syrup was worth it. Had a 2-3 week freeze afterwards and I'm afraid we may have lost more than that on the back end being a gravity setup. Good luck this season.

[Smrdc1974]

Same here boys and girls.... I am eager to get going and start tapping here in the midcoast region (Durham). But, I don't see the trend that I am looking for yet. Sure, I am missing a little run over the next two days. Then it will be trending colder into first week into March. Hopefully this is not a drawn out season like 2017 was. Last year was text book perfect for my operation (31 gallons produced) in five weeks on my 2x4 mason. So, moral of the story, I am waiting for the "weather trend" that will favor the start of the 2019 season.

[ZenBoiler]

...I'm afraid we may have lost more than that on the back end being a gravity setup...

What do you mean by this? What is it about a gravity system that makes you say this? This is my first season operating a gravity system, so I'm trying to learn all I can. We will have 100 taps on 3/16 lines with about 100 feet vertical from last tree to sugar shack. We're all set up, thinking about tapping this weekend...

[Hillwalker]

Good for all you guys with low snow totals. I still have lots of buried lines up here at 1300 feet in Central Maine. More snow coming tomorrow. Another foot? There is about five feet of snow in my Sugar bush as I write. I tapped early last winter and ended up with solidly frozen blocks of ice in my storage containers that lasted for weeks. Very frustrating to see all that sap sitting there with no way to access it.

[Mvhomesteader]

I think I'll tap Thursday morning after the snow storm. I've only got 24 to do this year, so more than last year (15) but still not too many. The past few years i have tapped around that time and it seems to work out fine. A lot of my trees are in a south or southeast facing slope so they get some solar gain early. Hopefully I'll be on the front end of an early run even if it cools off for a few days next week. Good luck to all!

Update 2/14: I got half in this afternoon. Nothing was running, but all were dripping and a few a somewhat aggressively. I'll get the rest in over the next few days and sit back and wait.