Help need shurflo expert

[mol1jb]

Where should the vacuum gauge be at? I put it on the end of line and only got 13. Never thought to put it by the pump?

In my shurflo on 3/4 main I commonly pull 15”. And when I get around there I call it good. You cant just look at others pulling 20s” and say that should be me too. It takes an extremely tight system and there are many variables to different bushes. I have lots of squirrels that I cant eliminate being on Park District grounds. And with all that I think 15” is great.

[raptorfan85]

After playing with mine and getting it somewhat dialed in, I can usually get around 20-22"at the manifold. I have 3 runs of 26,20 and 14. I usually get around 15"-18" at the end of each run and I'm pretty happy with that.

[bmbmkr]

Shurflo 4008, 62 taps, 5 laterals 3/16, all have 5/16 drops , 3/16 transitions to 5/16 at the 1/2" PVC manifold. Started at 10", fixed some leaks got it to 14", found 2 more leaks the next day, pulling 24" now. I'm pumping into a single 5/16 that runs downhill about 75' to the tank. The other day I had to take the battery back to the shop to recharge it/ When I brought the battery back a few hours later, gravity was pulling 5" without the pump running. I was afraid pumping into 5/16 was going to bottleneck it. I will have the pump on top of the tank next year, I ran out of tubing this year!

Update Trees were frozen last week Mar 4-8. I cut 12 Red maple drops out ( trees budding)and spliced the tubing back together. Turned the pump on Friday afternoon about 2 pm, the sap didn't start flowing until about 10pm, Saturday was warm and didn't freeze Saturday night Sunday morning at 8 AM 140 gallons and still flowing. Monday AM another 125 gallons. [ATTACH=CONFIG]19587

[Stiets]

Great post love all the vacuum info. So far my vacuum setup has been great. This is my second year with it. I am getting 15" at the pump with 3 lines having 20 taps on each line. Getting 15",22",25" at the ends. The with 15" has a small clump in one spot. Wondering if I have a small leak at the pump since I am getting less pull there and more at the ends. Does that seem correct? Or should I change out the gauges at the end of the lines since they sat outside during the off season.

Also I went with a "T" configuration for the manifold. The blue line is the recirculating line. Any thoughts if an inline configuration would be better like the one above?? Thank you
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[mol1jb]

Great post love all the vacuum info. So far my vacuum setup has been great. This is my second year with it. I am getting 15" at the pump with 3 lines having 20 taps on each line. Getting 15",22",25" at the ends. The with 15" has a small clump in one spot. Wondering if I have a small leak at the pump since I am getting less pull there and more at the ends. Does that seem correct? Or should I change out the gauges at the end of the lines since they sat outside during the off season.

Also I went with a "T" configuration for the manifold. The blue line is the recirculating line. Any thoughts if an inline configuration would be better like the one above?? Thank you
Attachment 19657Attachment 19658Attachment 19659

If you are running 3/16 for your lines with slope you should have a higher vac reading at the end of each line than the pump. The vac reading at the pump should be in addition to the natural vac your 3/16 lines produce. What do you mean by small clump?

[Stiets]

If you are running 3/16 for your lines with slope you should have a higher vac readi.....What do you mean by small clump?

Sorry about that. Yes 3/16" tubing. It should of been a small "climb" up hill like 6" before in drops again. The bush is pretty flat with only a small drop in elevation. That's why I went with the vacuum setup. I will check for any leaks around pump and manifold today after work. Thank you

[Biz]

You may have a leak. Last night I saw 21" at the pump side of my Shurflo setup with 90 taps on three 3/16" lines, sap running well. When I first set it up I saw 14", then when I walked the lines I found major leaks near the end of both lines (oops, forgot to drive in a couple taps...). Check for fast moving bubbles.

Dave

Great post love all the vacuum info. So far my vacuum setup has been great. This is my second year with it. I am getting 15" at the pump with 3 lines having 20 taps on each line. Getting 15",22",25" at the ends. The with 15" has a small clump in one spot. Wondering if I have a small leak at the pump since I am getting less pull there and more at the ends. Does that seem correct? Or should I change out the gauges at the end of the lines since they sat outside during the off season.

Also I went with a "T" configuration for the manifold. The blue line is the recirculating line. Any thoughts if an inline configuration would be better like the one above?? Thank you
Attachment 19657Attachment 19658Attachment 19659

[Stiets]

Maybe my gauge is bad by the pump. I checked for leaks in the lines and did not see any fast moving bubbles. I tightened all the clamps at the pump no change still at 15". I did notice that I am getting more at the end of the lines. They are now at 28",25," & 18". All more than the day before. I am thinking I still have some trees waking up since there is still a little snow cover frozen areas in the bush. Overall I am really happy with the vacuum setup compared to buckets. Not going to get hung up on chasing inches of vacuum. I got 50 gallons off 60 taps yesterday with second year tubing new taps. Thank you Biz and mol1jb for the help.

[mol1jb]

Maybe my gauge is bad by the pump. I checked for leaks in the lines and did not see any fast moving bubbles. I tightened all the clamps at the pump no change still at 15". I did notice that I am getting more at the end of the lines. They are now at 28",25," & 18". All more than the day before. I am thinking I still have some trees waking up since there is still a little snow cover frozen areas in the bush. Overall I am really happy with the vacuum setup compared to buckets. Not going to get hung up on chasing inches of vacuum. I got 50 gallons off 60 taps yesterday with second year tubing new taps. Thank you Biz and mol1jb for the help.

Its not uncommon for me to pull 15” at the pump when sap flow is light. Once flow picks then vac raises up to around 20”.