Make sure trees are ready to be tapped. Maple season occurs during the spring when nights are below 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0 degrees Celsius) and days are starting to get warm. This causes the sap to start flowing in trees. The maple season is over when this temperature pattern ends. At this time the color of the sap will become darker. If sap is collected after the season is over it will be low in sugar content and have an undesirable taste.
Select trees. There are many different types of Maple trees. Various types have different sugar content; the higher the better. The Sugar Maple has the highest sugar content. The maple tree has a distinct five point leaf. Typically, a tree should be at least 10 inches in diameter before it is tapped.
Purchase taps. These are also known as spiles.[1] Online is the easiest place to buy taps. Most taps are the same, but the collection containers differ quite a bit. Determine what style of collection container you will use: a bag, an attached bucket, a ground bucket, or a tube network (usually used by advanced syrup-makers). If you don't feel like buying a bucket, a clean milk jug will work fine. Avoid buying and installing a tube network if you haven't tapped before. Tap the tree. Drill a hole on the side of the tree that receives the most light, above a large root or under a large branch. The hole should be the size of your tap. It should also be around 1 to 4 feet (30 to 120 cm) above the ground and a 1/2 inch (1.25 cm) longer than your tap. The hole should be at a slight downward angle. Attach a collection container. It is best to cover containers to keep out rainwater and bugs. Tap more trees. 40 gallons of sap makes just one gallon of syrup, which is why store-bought maple syrup is so expensive. A good number of trees to tap for a beginner is 7 to 10; you'll get about 10 gallons from each tree per season, so you'll end up with a few gallons of maple syrup.
Collect the sap. Over the course of a few weeks, check the collecting containers every few days. Transfer the sap to sealed buckets or other large containers for storage. Keep collecting sap until the season has ended. Now you're ready to turn the sa