Down to 8 last night.  About 40 today and sunny.  The sap ran.  We hope to collect tomorrow.  But the weekend weather gets messy.  Warmer and rain.  Rain will settle the snow, but also leave a lot of water. 

Tractor started this morning without a problem.   Put out 50 taps.  Left the tractor running in woods while we worked.  Came back to house for more buckets.  Shut off the tractor.  We did this to see if problems starting would return.  There were problems.  The engine turned over but would not fire.  Drained the battery and needed to charge it.  Hit it hard with starter fluid.  Finally it started to fire.  It didn’t start right away but it was trying.  A few more attempts and it was running.  It should not be this hard to start.  Plugs, points, coil all replaced now.  This is frustrating.

Put out 168 taps today.  That gives up 468.  We will find 7 more so we have 475.  We tried 75 of the smaller 5/16” plastic spouts.  Broke the first bit before we finished the first tap hole with it.   Seemed to be a flaw in the metal used in the bit.   But we did have another.  These spouts seem to work well.  The aluminum pails hang well on these spouts.  Sap flowed well.  And a smaller hole is easier on the tree: it heals over faster.  We tapped smaller trees with this spout: 10”-12” diameter.   We were staying above 14” diameter with the 7/16” stainless steel spout. 

Tomorrow we prepare the building and collect.