New Line Installs - Brand New Woods

[Mead Maple]

How many taps can a 1/2 line handle appro


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[mol1jb]

How many taps can a 1/2 line handle appro


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For a vacuum setup it is recommended around 50. Most will go with 3/4 main though as it is only slightly more expensive and can handle around 200 taps on vacuum.

[Mead Maple]

So 3/4 on natural vac (gravity pull 3/16) would easily handle 200. But I feel like if you are going through all the trouble anyways then why not just go 1 inch and never have to mess around going forward.

Is the general consensus to use 5/16 taps and drops and run 3/16 line to main?


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[steve J]

Paul you have seen mine set up and although I am using 3/4 I actually have two different main lines coming from opposite direction to a holding tank so I am not even close to maxing the capacity of 3/4. Depending how you set your woods up you may have more than one main line and could go well beyond 200 taps.

[maple flats]

How far is it and what is the slope where a mainline might start? Do the math, especially is there is slope all the way to the collection point. Might be better and cheaper to run the 3/16 all the way to the tank. To do that it must all have at least 2% slope and more is better. The cost of a mainline, the labor to install it, then the saddles and potential leaks at the saddle all come into question, but if the land levels out you can't run 3/16 farther without mechanical vacuum. A mainline also needs slope and needs real good support if that slope is fairly flat, the steeper the less issue the slope becomes.

[Mead Maple]

Flats, I have over 200 feet of drop from the top of the bush to where the sugar house will be located. There is plenty of anchor/support points for mainline so I just need to know what the best option is. Not sure if I will ever run a small pump as of right now. With my 2x8 I am thinking I i will be in the 150 or a few more range. If I ran the 3/16 all the way down it would be much easier I agree. Maybe for this year I just run all the 3/16 down to the sugarhouse and next year since it is so late I will put up the mainline


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[maple flats]

with what you describe I think the 3/16 the full distance would be better as long as the slope (200' fall) continues thru where you think a mainline might start and then all the way to the sugarhouse. Under those conditions 3/16 all the way will work better and likely cost less to install.

[Mead Maple]

Unfortunately this year because of a late season house site I am currently working on and being in addition to my 40 hour per week job I am late getting this started. This might just be better either way since if I choose to run a mainline in the years to follow all I will have to do is terminate the 3/16 where I would like the main to begin. Do we have a general consensus as to 3/16 all the way to tap or are people finding the 5/16 drop/tap to function better? With everything I read about pull back in general and that only being exacerbated with 3/16 I was wondering if a 5/16 tap and drop with CV would give me the best all around performance and least chance of blockage which seems to be the biggest complaint with the tap and T when using 3/16


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[Super Sapper]

I would use the 5/16 drop as it gives you more options and will not hinder the vacuum with the elevation drop you have. It will also lesson the pull back into the hole. Use an inexpensive spout the first year and then go to the CV the next year. I would plan on changing the drops every 2 to 3 years also.

[DocsMapleSyrup]

I just listened to Dr. Tim Perkins and Stephen Childs today at the technical sessions at the International Maple Syrup Convention. There were questions abouit 3/16" tubing and the benefits and problems after a few years. The best practice seems to be a 5/16 drop to a 3/16 line and approximately 25 taps. There was a variety of data presented and it appears that after the first year, the production starts to decrease secondary to buildup in the "T"s where the drop ties into the lateral line and where splices happen in the line. A combination of non-sodium bleach for cleaning and new spouts with drops and "T"s every 2-3 years, seems to be the way to go in order to maximize yield. They both said there was a lot of information about the 3/16 lines at UVM and Cornell.