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Thread: Good pump to push or pull sap up hill

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Apr 2018
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    craftsbury Vermont
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    1

    Default Good pump to push or pull sap up hill

    I’m looking around and trying to find a good powerful pump that can either push or pull,preferably pull up hill a elevation of 250 to 300 rise. Will be tapping 1800 trees using 3/16 line. 2200 gallon sap tank at bottom of hill. Can’t really drive directly to tank cause of ruining logging road. So best idea is to pump up hill to our landing. Any ideas or questions to help me find a good pump. Looked into well pumps and others but the up hill and GPM kinda low. Don’t want it to take forever. Also no electricity. So gas powered.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2006
    Location
    Northwest Pa
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    902

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    I have a two stage high pressure pump I use to push sap up a 100ft rise about 6-700 ft long and pushed 20gal per minute tthrough a 1inch line Sold the business still have the pump 5.5hp briggs engine powers the pump Like to sell it

    Jim
    Maple consultant for 50 years

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    DeKalb, NY
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    1,707

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    You will have to push the sap up. Physics says that you can't suck water or sap up more than 25 to 30 ft. I played with pumping sap for years and finally found the best solution was a deep well submersible pump powered by a generator. I only lift sap about 100 ft but I send it about a mile in distance so there is significant head to overcome.
    Jim's 2 stage pump may also work well. The only gasoline pumps I used were single stage.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    Oneida NY
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    11,566

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    Depending on your elevation above sea level and the barometric pressure at the time you will not pull sap up more than 24-25' to maybe 28-29' lift, more lift than that it must be pushed.
    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.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Location
    Bruceton Mills, WV
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    66

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    I use a Gould’s 18GBS15 pump (that is 18 gpm (at no restriction) stainless, 1.5 Hp) hooked to a generator to pump through 1200 ft of 1 in pipe with an elevation rise of about 100 ft. I get about 10 gpm with this setup. 250-300 ft rise is a lot of static pressure.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    Thetford, VT
    Posts
    453

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    You'll be pushing it, not pulling it as mentioned. I know you said 250-300 rise. What is the distance you are going or this this just to the top of the hill.

    Go to Honda's website and use their pump select feature. It will be a good guide for you. We used it to choose a pump for 1 1/2". We found the 1 1/2" pump was the most efficient (not much gain for going bigger, but really couldn't because of the 1 1/2" hole on the tank). We are pumping about 26 gallons per minute with a 750 foot run and a 65' rise. We used the pump select again to choose another pump to have at another sap shack. We learned we could have a 2" hole (and others) installed in the tank prior to delivery. The 2" pump is supposed to attain 42 gallons (or so) per minute. That is with a 1200 foot run with a 65' rise through 2" pipe.

    Both pumps are Honda high pressure gas pumps (they have a lower pressure version of the same size).

    Good luck,

    Mike
    Tapping since 1985 (four generations back to early to mid 1900s). 200-250 taps on buckets and then tubing in the mid 90s. 2013- 275 taps w/sap puller 25 gal. 2014-295 taps w/sap puller 55 ga. (re-tapped to vacuum theory) 2015-330 taps full vac. 65 gal, 2016-400 taps 105 gal, 2017-400 taps 95 gal. 2018-additional 800' mainline and maybe 400 new taps for a total near 800 taps. 2x6 Leader WSE (last year on it) supported by a 250 gph RO.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jul 2013
    Location
    Buxton Foreside Maine
    Posts
    248

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    your going to have to pump it up hill for sure. Smaller line equals less line left in the pipe but less flow due to friction loss. Larger pipe = less friction loss and more flow but more sap left in the pipe that you will have to run back into the tank to save it so it does not freeze in the line unless you bury it.
    2014 125 taps 16 gallons
    2015 210 taps 49 gallons
    2016 164 taps 75 gallons new 2X6 leader max flue and homemade AOF/AUF arch
    2017 1500 taps 196 gallons RO added additions to building new tap lease
    2018 1588 taps 276 gallons
    upgrades for 2019 season 3 phase vacuum pump, stainless tank in woods, tubing replacement

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Location
    Merrill,Wisconsin
    Posts
    218

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    Right now Iam using a 1/2hp 12gpm deep well pump in a MES releaser and pumping sap 2800' with a rise of 50'

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Location
    Bruceton Mills, WV
    Posts
    66

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    I do not think any of the Honda pumps will do 250-300 ft of static head. You will need some type of multi-stage pump. I have pump curves from some of the Honda Pumps and some of the Gould Pumps, if you need them.

  10. #10
    Haynes Forest Products Guest

    Default

    Will a vacuum pull it that far up into a releaser or vacuum tank??

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