Avoid scars, burls and previous tap holes. Gently tap the spile into the hole with a hammer. Hitting the spile too hard could damage the wood surrounding the spile and retard the healing process. Some commercial producers used to put a paraformaldehyde tablet in the drill hole to prolong flow by inhibiting the trees ability to seal the xylem vessels. Record the time and then return the collection bag and spile and return to the lab.
Many commercial operations attach plastic hoses to the spiles under a vacuum to help withdraw sap.
Measure the volume of sap and then transfer the sap to a labeled bottle for storage. Rinse the spile, collecting sack and other materials in warm water and allow to dry. If so, describe it. The concentration of sucrose in a sample can be determined by measuring the refractive index of the sample. This measurement is based on the principle that the index of refraction of a solution containing sugar is proportional to its concentration.