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Measuring Sap Flow

Keeping track of the amount of sap being collected is important for maintaining high yields and minimizing losses. This article explains how to measure sap using counters mounted on releasers.

Optimizing the Performance of My Vacuum Tubing System

When we talk about tubing systems, we have two roads to travel. One is a gravity system and the other is a vacuum system. A conventional 5/16” gravity system is not much different from running sap into a bucket. The yield is much the same as collecting sap in a bucket. When we add vacuum to a tubing system, we increase the sap yield 5% for every inch of vacuum we generate in our system. For example, if we produce 15 inches of vacuum in a line, we should be able to almost double our sap yield. The first year after installation is always the best. As time on a system accumulates, wear-and-tear hampers performance.

Plastic Tubing and Maple Syrup Quality

Maple syrup made from sap collected using improperly or carelessly installed plastic pipelines varied more in color from day to day, and was more often darker in color, than sap collected from either the property installed pipeline or clean, frequently emptied galvanized buckets. Use of both properly installed tubing and buckets, following recommended procedures, produced light colored syrup of equal quality throughout the entire maple syrup season.

Quarter-Inch Tubing: Is it a Better Option for Gravity Sap Collection?

Ten years ago, 3/16” diameter tubing was introduced to the marketplace as an alternative tubing to 5/16” diameter tubing.  However, recent research shows that sap production in 3/16” tubing drops off as soon as the second year after installation due to microbial growth. A replacement for 3/16” diameter tubing in gravity systems could be 1/4” tubing. With almost twice the aperture of 3/16” tubing (0.049 sq inches compared to 0.0275 sq inches), 1/4″ inch tubing is less likely to plug from microbes yet is still able to create a full column of sap for gravity vacuum. Quarter-inch tubing is currently not available for maple producers but can be procured from other industries and, with modifications, will work for maple production.

Remaking Maple

Overview of new method of gathering sap from sugar maple saplings.

Salvaging your Sap: Checking Vacuum Lines for Leaks

A vacuum pump attached to a well-designed tubing system will significantly boost sap flow compared to gravity sap collection, by increasing the difference in pressure between the tree, the source of the sap, and the tubing, where we want the sap to flow. A vacuum pump, however, will not deliver much, if any, vacuum to the trees if the tubing system is not tight and leak-free. This article gives basic instructions on how to check for those leaks, and how to fix them.