Buying the Best Maple Taps and Spiles

Choose the Best Maple Taps (updated 2024)

Find the best maple taps (also called maple syrup spiles) and other Maple Tree Tapping Equipment for harvesting sap in your backyard to turn into delicious maple syrup. I’ll show you how to decide what maple taps to use and find the best maple spiles for sale. You can also look for maple tree spiles for sale at your local feed store or try to find them used.

Check out these articles if you are looking for a complete list of Maple Syrup Supplies or General information about Making Your own Maple Syrup and the Best Maple Evaporators.

We’ve been tapping our own maple trees and making maple syrup at home for over 10 years and have experimented with the best maple supplies and decided on a few maple taps that work best.

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Contents

Quick Look at the Best Maple Taps (Maple Syrup Spiles)

Scroll down for more details on each on the top maple taps or take a quick look at the taps here. You can also see some more general information on how to select the best maple taps below.

Title

Price

Highlights

Check Prices

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Sturdy and made for a lifetime

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Easy to use and less expensive - comes with some tubing

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Holds sap bucket without a hook, sturdy

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Get the Traditional Maple Tapping look with these classic spiles

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Very sturdy for years of use

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Small and easy to use

What are Maple Taps or Maple Syrup Spiles?

Maple taps are small tube-like tools that are inserted into a drilled hole in a tree. Sap collects in the hole and passes through the spile into some type of collection device. This can be a bucket, tube, or bag. They are basically maple syrup spouts that direct the sap out of the tree for you to collect. You will want to choose the right spile for your set up and the right container for collecting maple sap. If you find used sap spiles for sale it’s important to make sure they aren’t bent and that you clean them well before using them.

How to Select the Best Maple Taps?

Since there are several options when selecting the best maple syrup spiles, the best spiles for you will depend on several things on your backyard farm. There are pros and cons for each spile based on the material (durability), the your maple tapping set up, concern over tree health, and how it looks.

Your Complete Maple Setup

The type of tap or spile you should buy depends on how you plan to set up you maple sap collection. One option is to hang buckets from the spiles on the trees. This gives you a more traditional look but does involve collecting sap from each tree daily. You are also applying weight to the spile so sometimes a spile will fall out or might damage the tree.

Another option is to put in spiles that connect to tubing. These taps are typically smaller and connect to tubing. Large maple farms run these tubes all through the woods, so you could set up a small, gravity fed tubing system, or simply run the tubes into a 5 gallon bucket at the base of the tree. This is a good description of how to set up this system.

The final option is to hang maple taps in your trees that connect to bags. These bags are usually disposable and replace buckets. This is probably my least favorite option.

Maple Syrup Spile Material (plastic versus metal)

The taps listed in this article are made from plastic, aluminum and stainless steel. These are usually more expensive but last longer. Most of these taps require a 7/16 drill bit to make the hole in the tree. Some of the aluminim maple taps we’ve used will bend or become misshapen when you are putting them into the tree. On the other hand, plastic spiles are usually cheaper and smaller making them easy to use, especially if you are using tubing. I have seen picture of wooden spiles but they are probably not the best option for getting started.

Tree Health

Different spiles require different sized drill bits to fit into the tree. Most larger taps used for buckets require a 7/16 drill bit, while the smaller plastic spiles usually need a 5/16 drill bit. The smaller the hole you drill, the less overall damage you are doing to the tree, although a healthy maple tree of the correct size will have no problem being tapped every year with either spile size.

Aesthetics

The final consideration is how it looks. If you want the traditional maple tapping look, select metal taps with hanging buckets. If you are less concerned about the looks and want to use bigger buckets to collect sap, choose the smaller taps that connect to tubing.

See our top tips on making maple syrup.

The Best Maple Taps

6 Stainless Steel Spiles with Hooks

About half the maple taps we use on our home are these spiles. They are easy to use and sturdy. They also give the classic look of metal maple syrup buckets hanging off trees so we use them on the front of our house along the road. You will need a 7/16 drill bit for these spiles.


Hookless Aluminum Spouts (6)

This simple maple syrup spout is made to hang a bucket without the use of the hook. The bucket simples sits on the top of the spile. They can be run right through the dishwasher for cleaning and are designed to be used with a maple syrup bag.


Stainless Steep Taps with Hook for Bucket

I really like this sleek design and am planning to order these taps this year to replace a few of our older taps. These are slightly smaller and use a 5/16th drill bit which I like. Since they are made from stainless steel and are quality metal that will last for decades and won’t bend when hammered into the tree.


Stainless Steel Maple Taps for Tubing

These spiles come in a set of 25 and go directly into the tree and attach to tubing so you can run several taps into one 5 gallon bucket. These are an alternative to the typical plastic spiles that are usually used for tapping trees with tubing. Like the other stainless steel spiles these will last for years. You will need to purchase tubing to go with these.


Set of 10 plastic Spiles with Drip Tubing

This is a ready to go kit of drip tubing and small spiles to get you started. With this set up, it’s quick and easy to get started and you can purchase 5 gallon buckets to direct the tubing into to collect your sap. These spiles also need a 5/16th drill bit.


Set of 25 Small Plastic Spiles

This set of maple sap taps is excellent if you already have tubing or plan to purchase a roll. They are simple to use and small. We’ve used these spiles for several of our taps and simply run a few taps into one 5 gallon bucket. They are more durable than other plastic spiles.

Other Equipment you Need for Tapping Your Trees

Drill Bits: You will need to check the correct size drill bit for your spiles. Most large metal spiles need a 7/16 bit and the smaller spiles need a 5/16 drill bit to make the holes.

Buckets: If you decide to get maple taps that use buckets, you will need to purchase buckets with lids. You can get either plastic or metal buckets. You can purchase buckets online or in person at your local store.

Tubing: if you decide to use spiles that use tubing, you will need to purchase tubing. The further you plan to run your tubing, the more you’ll need. Purchase maple tapping tubing.

Looking for more inspiration? Follow along with me on Pinterest

Maples taps and the best maple spiles

2 thoughts on “Choose the Best Maple Taps (updated 2024)”

  1. Pingback: Maple Syrup Supplies (The Best Maple Syrup Equipment to Make Your Own at Home in 2022) - The Backyard Farming Connection

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