MAPLE SIRUP PRODUCERS MANUAL 



19 



Figure 31. — Collecting sap by hand is expensive. Usually 

 two pails are used to collect the sap from the sap bags 

 or buckets, and the sap is carried by hand to the 

 collecting tanks. 



buckets. The only objection is that a bucket 

 with holes on both sides holds less sap than a 

 bucket with one hole because it hangs from the 

 spout at an angle. 



Some producers empty the buckets by rotat- 

 ing (spinning) them on the spout. This requires 

 the use of a cover attached directly to the 

 bucket and a spout on which the bucket is hung 

 by means of a hole in the bucket. More sap may 

 be spilled when buckets are emptied by spin- 

 ning than when they are lifted free of the spout 

 and tree. Spillage of sap when transferring it 

 from bucket to gathering pail and from pail to 

 collecting tank may account for an appreciable 

 loss of the sap crop. Plastic tubing eliminates 

 this loss (fig. 32). 



Sap must not remain in the buckets more 

 than a few hours before it is collected. During 

 short runs that produce too little sap to war- 

 rant collecting, the buckets must be emptied, 

 even though this is time consuming and expen- 

 sive. The sap left standing in the bucket will 

 ferment and spoil and will spoil other sap to 

 which it is added in the collecting or storage 

 tanks. 



PN^728 



PN^7 



Figure 32. — No labor is required when tubing is used to 

 collect sap. 



Collecting Tanks 



Collecting tanks vary in size according to the 

 needs of the sugar grove. The tanks usually are 

 provided with a strainer, baffled to prevent loss 

 of sap by splashing, and a drainpipe. 



The method of hauling the tank is governed 

 by conditions in the sugar grove. The tank can 

 be mounted on any of several types of carrier, 

 including stoneboat or skids, 2-wheel trailer, 

 high wheeled wagon gear, and underslung rub- 

 ber-tired, 2-wheel trailer (fig. 33). 



High-mounted tanks should be avoided be- 

 cause of the labor required to lift the sap (fig. 

 34). Usually an additional worker is needed. 



A rig of excellent design has a low-mounted 

 sump tank and a self-contained, power-driven 

 pump to lift the sap up to the large tank (figs. 

 35-38). 



A new type of collecting tank being widely 

 adopted employs vacuum (suction) for filling. 

 Tanks to be filled by suction must be airtight 

 and structurally strong enough to withstand an 

 external pressure of 15 pounds per square inch 

 (1 atmosphere). Tanks larger than 300 gallons 

 require internal bracing. The vacuum can be 

 obtained by a separate pump or by connecting a 

 line from the manifold of the truck or tractor 

 engine (fig. 39). To prevent sap from entering 

 the engine manifold, a float check valve is 

 mounted on the tank and the vacuum line is 

 attached to this (fig. 40). The check valve is 



