Therminator Leak

How do you guys connect the wort-in side on your Therminator?

I've been having the issue that I cannot get a good seal on the inlet side for the wort loop, resulting in well aerated hot wort, not to mention a few instances of hot wort shooting everywhere. I'm used a barbed fitting and tube, but the connection loosens dramatically when heated. I've tried using worm-drive clamps, but this hasn't sealed well, most likely due to uneven pressure on the tube. My next thought was to try nylon snap grips (link below), but I figured it would be better to ask around before sinking more money.


http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-hose-clamps/=gckq7n

Sounds like the ID of your tubing is too large. Have you double checked this? Can you replace the barbed fitting with another that will fit?

The tubing fits snugly onto the barb at ambient, and I've never had any problems until pumping hot wort through it. I will mention that I'm using vinyl tubing, which become very flexible when heated. Perhaps a different tube material?

You need high-temp tubing, such as thick-walled silicone or thermoplastic.

After doing a little bit of reading, I've now come to the conclusion that using vinyl tubing for my brewing, while convenient, is not the best idea for a number of reasons, particularly for transfering hot fluids. That being said, what works well for you guys? Thermoplastic is a very broad category, does anyone have a specific thermoplastic material?

Also, does anyone have feedback on whether or not using reinforced tubing is worth the extra cost?

I use this for all of my high temp transfers.

Or this

Thanks for the input guys. I used silicone tubing and it worked like a charm.

+1

3/8" ID Silicone tubing fits snug and secure over a 1/2" hose barb. I don't even use clamps to hold them on in my gravity setup.

Double check the size on your worm clams too. I snagged a couple #16's from my office instead of the #06 and when fully clamped down, they kind sandwich into a diamond shape rather than cinching down in a nice circle. The gaps could be allowing the tubing to expand and let air in.