Quote Originally Posted by Openwater View Post
why wouldn't the line freeze when the pump shuts off at 29F?

Ok Dave, so if I do this recirc line thing and put a length of 5/16 onto the 3rd point of the 3-point star fitting and the other end in my 35 gallon collection tank with some kind of in-line valve to restrict flow to a trickle, how do I keep the other end of my stiff 5/16 30p in the bottom of my 35 gallon tank? I'm always a little leery of putting any foreign objects in the collection tank for fear of introducing germs/bacteria/infections into the sap.
I figure each day when I empty the 35 gallon tank, I can just leave a little residual sap in the bottom for the recirc line to use.
I would attach something like a stainless steel fitting to the end of a small hose hose and drop it in the tank. If there is a drain, you could attach the recirculation hose to the drain valve, if you don't want something extra in the tank. Or you could connect up a rigid suction line from PEX or PVC. The sap already has bacteria in it by the time it reaches the tank.

Dave