Artificially warming trees
I tried looking online before asking here, to no avail.
Has anyone ever tried artificially warming the trees to get a better flow? I was thinking that you could, theoretically, put black trash bags around the roots and base of the trees to melt snow around the roots, warm the base, and warm the trunk under the spiles...
Not sure if anyone has ever experimented with this before. This season has been such a slow start, I've been thinking of ways to jump-start it earlier next year.
Patience, maple jedi. The solar forces will be with us soon.
60ish taps on buckets
D&G Sportsman 18x63
Turbo RB15 RO Bucket
Sounds like someone who can't wait. The way sap flows is when the tree freezes it pulls the sap up in the tree, and "think" of it as filling the trunk, then as the trees warms it drains down and out the tap. It doesn't get pushed up from the roots to your tap(s) and out. For your idea to work, you'd need to thaw and warm the trunk above the tap hole, for several feet. I just don't see it ever working satisfactorily.
Dave Klish, I recently ordered a 2x6 wood fired evaporator from A&A Sheet Metal which I will be converting to oil fired
Now have solar, 2x6 finish pan, 5 bank 7x7 filter press, large water jacketed bottler, and tankless water heater.
Recently bought another Gingerich RO, this one was a 125, but a second membrane was added thus is a 250, like I had.
After running a 2x3, a 2x6, 3x8 tapping from 79 taps up to 1320 all woodfired, now I'm going to a 2x6 oil fired and a 200-425 taps.
Thank you for the explanation. Not impatient - just more curious than anything. I am going to try it with a couple of trees next year just for fun. I’ll report back with findings.Originally Posted by maple flats
Remember the guy a couple years ago who posted here saying he was going to be visiting for a few days only, so he planned to light torches or something under his trees to make them run? He was dead serious, too. What ever became of that guy?
GO
2016: Homemade arch from old wood stove; 2 steam tray pans; 6 taps; 1.1 gal
2017: Same setup. 15 taps; 4.5 gal
2018: Same setup. Limited time. 12 taps and short season; 2.2 gal
2019: Very limited time. 7 taps and a short season; 1.8 gals
2020: New Mason 2x3 XL halfway through season; 9 taps 2 gals
2021: Same 2x3, 18 taps, 4.5 gals
2022: 23 taps, 5.9 gals
2023: 23 taps. Added AUF, 13.2 gals
2024: 17 taps, 5.3 gals
All on buckets
I seen him yesterday at the hardware store buying more torches.
There's an old 1970's British sitcom I like to watch called "Dad's Army." In the show Corporal Jones often comes up with kind of "out there" solutions to problems and Capt. Mainwarring responds "I think you're getting into the realms of fantasy now Jonesy." Kind of reminds me of that.
I think you're going to find that the variables that affect sap flow go well beyond warm roots. Trying it isn't going to hurt anybody of course. I just hate to see you wasting a lot of your time...and trash bags.
16x24 Timber Frame Sugar House
Mason 2x4 Evaporator
90 trees on buckets
similar to Red Green
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330-206-1606
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Service Tech/repair for all brands and electronics
don't take life too serious, nobody gets out alive anyways!
Now that's a great comparison.
If you try it, I wonder if the little micro climate you create between the black bags and the tree will get some unwanted insect damage or other harm to the tree itself.
Dave Klish, I recently ordered a 2x6 wood fired evaporator from A&A Sheet Metal which I will be converting to oil fired
Now have solar, 2x6 finish pan, 5 bank 7x7 filter press, large water jacketed bottler, and tankless water heater.
Recently bought another Gingerich RO, this one was a 125, but a second membrane was added thus is a 250, like I had.
After running a 2x3, a 2x6, 3x8 tapping from 79 taps up to 1320 all woodfired, now I'm going to a 2x6 oil fired and a 200-425 taps.
Does the tree actually have to "freeze" to pull the sap up? I assume this is created somehow by negative pressure in trunk, but how critical/specific is it to actually reach 32 deg to pull sap up the trunk? Or is it more due to the temperature swing/differential within a 24 +/- hour period?
2020 - 1st year - 13 black walnut taps - 4 bottles syrup
2021 - 50 taps, 22 black walnuts/28 red maples - 4 gallons syrup
2022 - 54 taps, 11 black walnuts/41 red maples, 20 on solar shurflo vacuum - 8.5 gallons syrup
2023 - 47 taps on 45 red maples, 43 on solar shurflo vacuum
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