Isoprophyl alcohol

[Beerclouds]

I use alcohol to clean my laterals and main line...it takes about 20 gallons to fill....my question is.. ..can i reuse this alcohol for next year or go with new stuff?....

[jrgagne99]

I would think you could re-use it for a few years. Nothing will grow in it I think.

Question- how to you displace all of the air from your tubing network, without the alcohol leaking out through the drops?

[DrTimPerkins]

I would think you could re-use it for a few years.

You could likely reuse it, but it might get diluted to some degree. With IPA, you want it to be between 50-70% for best kill efficacy. Below that or above that it is less effective (a good example of where too strong is not better).

Nothing will grow in it I think.

Actually, IPA is not effective against spores of fungi and mold. Does nothing to them at all. Kills the vegetative forms, but not the spores. So once the IPA is gone and sap is in the line, the spores will germinate and growth begins.

[BoerBoel]

Do the drop lines/laterals/main lines need to be completely filled with IPA? I was told to insert about 50 ml each drop and the vapours would clean everything when sealed.

[DrTimPerkins]

Do the drop lines/laterals/main lines need to be completely filled with IPA? I was told to insert about 50 ml each drop and the vapours would clean everything when sealed.

In order to sanitize the lines in this manner a cleaner should be considered a "gas phase sanitizer." As far as I have been able to determine, IPA is not considered a "gas phase sanitizer" anywhere in the world other than the maple industry in Canada. So according to the recommendations there, a small amount of IPA is injected into each drop, these are plugged, and the vapors purportedly do the sanitizing. IPA liquid (in a 50-70% solution) is quite effective at killing the vegetative forms of a wide range of microbes, but does not kill spores of fungi or mold, and will not physically remove biofilms.

In using IPA, note that it has poor compatibility with some materials used in maple operations, including polycarbonate (some fittings and clear covers on releasers, etc.) and milk hose. It will cause clouding in these materials.

IPA in the U.S. is regulated by the EPA (it is classified as a "pesticide") and is not permitted for use in maple tubing. More info can be found at: https://mapleresearch.org/search/?_sf_s=isopropyl

[TapTapTap]

It is an interesting conundrum of law that we can't use IPA for maple production in the US but CA syrup made using IPA cleaning can be sold in US. So if a US producer was found using IPA, their syrup could be confiscated and destroyed but might be replaced in the US market with Canadian product.

[DrTimPerkins]

It is an interesting conundrum of law that we can't use IPA for maple production in the US but CA syrup made using IPA cleaning can be sold in US. So if a US producer was found using IPA, their syrup could be confiscated and destroyed but might be replaced in the US market with Canadian product.

When you look closely, food laws are full of these odd-ball type things.

The only place IPA is used in food manufacture in the U.S. is in pizza-crust for some strange reason. Not considered an ingredient, but rather as a processing aid.

The main thing is, if a U.S. producer uses IPA, they are using a non-registered pesticide in the manufacture of maple syrup, a violation of EPA rules. Your syrup can be declared adulterated, and you'd most likely have to prove it was safe to avoid confiscation and destruction. Steve Childs and I have each spent a lot of hours reviewing the regulations around sanitizers. Strange as it might seem, I confirmed this interpretation through the EPA. I have no idea why maple equipment dealers would carry it in the U.S. Seems like a major liability if a producer was caught using it and they turned around and pointed at the dealer and said "they told me to use it."