Shurflo Below the Tank
Ok, I'm embarrassed to ask this...
Can I set a Shurflo below the tank so that it pulls vac on the mainline and pushes the sap up about 3-4' and into the tank. All the setups I've seen, including my own, have the pump above the tank. I'm reconfiguring a tank and pump location and doing this would make everything a million times easier.
Sean
Woodville Maples
www.woodvillemaples.com
www.facebook.com/woodvillemaples
Around 300 taps on tubing, 25+ on buckets if I put them out
Mix of natural and mechanical vac, S3 Controller from Mountain Maple
2x6 W.F. Mason with Phaneuf pans
Deer Run 250 RO
Ford F350
6+ hives of bees (if they make it through the winters)
Keeping the day job until I can start living the dream.
Yes it will work
'12 15 jugs - Steam pans
'17 125 3/16 - 18" x 72" drop flue on homemade arch
'18 240 3/16 - Deer Run 125
'19 450 3/16 - Converted RO to electric/added a membrane
'20 600 3/16 - Maple Pro 2x6 Raised Flue, added AOF/AUF
'21 570 3/16 - Built steam hood, Smoky Lake filter press
'22 800 3/16 - Upgraded RO to 4 4x40
'23 500 3/16 - Re-plumbed RO, new "Guzzler"
'24 500 3/16 - Steam Away, DIY 8x40 RO
On one of my Shurflo lines I have the pump pushing sap up from the mainline 5' to a 3/4" line that crosses a trail and then dumps into a tank. It does not seem to have any negative affect on the vacuum that the pump is producing.
Gary
16' X 24' Sugarhouse
2' X 6' Leader Inferno Arch with Revolution Raised-Flue Pans, Smoky Lake preheater and hood
Deer Run Maple gas-powered 250 RO
WesFab 7" filter press
Kubota 1100 RTV with tracks and 125 gallon tank for transporting sap
800 taps on gravity and vacuum
Very supportive wife who is the best coworker
http://mapletrader.com/community/sho...ing-Sugarhouse
I would be afraid of the line freezing unless you drain it when the run stops
Awesome. Thanks for the feedback. That's going to improve a lot of issues I'm having with the new spot for the end point and new tank. I'll get a better slope at the very end where things flatten out, I can move the line away from a high traffic area around the sugarhouse, and I can dump into a bigger tank. Win-win-win.
For freezing lines, I have that happening now and it's not an issue for the pump. I have a valve and a bypass just upstream of the pump box. My original plan was to switch the main to gravity just before freezing each day to keep ice away from the pump, but what has ended up happening a bunch is the temp plummets before I can get to the valve and the line and the valve are already frozen solid. The next day, things thaw and the pump gets going again. The bypass is still really helpful for when I have to clean the pump filter or do maintenance, but it doesn't work for its original intent. What does help with freezing worries is the light bulb in the box that clicks on when the temp gets below freezing, but I'm also learning some producers skip that and have no issues.
Actually, this might change the way I set up another spot that I'm adding a Shurflo to this year. If I can lower the pump, I can lower the mainline and pick up some trees downhill of the mainline that I've had to skip when this was a gravity setup.
Thanks again,
Sean
Woodville Maples
www.woodvillemaples.com
www.facebook.com/woodvillemaples
Around 300 taps on tubing, 25+ on buckets if I put them out
Mix of natural and mechanical vac, S3 Controller from Mountain Maple
2x6 W.F. Mason with Phaneuf pans
Deer Run 250 RO
Ford F350
6+ hives of bees (if they make it through the winters)
Keeping the day job until I can start living the dream.
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