1/2'' Silicone tubing

I recently purchased some 1/2'' silicone tubing from Austinhomebrew. The stuff works great for transferring hot cleaner and wort through my March Pump and Therminator. Now I need a lot more but I don't want to pay $2.10 per foot http://www.austinhomebrew.com/product_info.php?cPath=178_59_549&products_id=10014 .

Does anybody know a wholesale distributor and item number for this product? I think this might be the same stuff, but I'm not sure http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/va...ry_name=7511&product_id=8415&variant_id=54038. If it is the same, its almost a dollar cheaper per foot.

Thanks in advance.

Home Depot. I buy all of my heavy duty tubing from them.

I personally have never seen food grade 1/2" silicone tubing at any HD.
I would call or email usplastics and ask about the specs. on that tubing. It appears to be the same. Maybe someone else knows for sure?

US Plastics tubing is 1/2x 5/8 which is too thin walled for pumping hot liquids. I use 1/2 x 3/4 which is probably what Austin is selling. Best price I have seen it for was $1.85 and they (smallparts.com) were out of stock last time I looked.

Not a bad price for what you are getting.

I use this from Northern Brewer.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewing/1-2-id-thermoplastic-tubing.html

Suthrncomfrt1884 said:

Home Depot. I buy all of my heavy duty tubing from them.

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I am a Lowes man!!

samc said:

US Plastics tubing is 1/2x 5/8 which is too thin walled for pumping hot liquids. I use 1/2 x 3/4 which is probably what Austin is selling. Best price I have seen it for was $1.85 and they (smallparts.com) were out of stock last time I looked.

Click to expand...

True and false... I buy all of mine from US Plastics, and it is 1/2" x 3/4" thick walled. But you have to select it and not the thin walled stuff, they have various types.\

Here is a link to the thick walled... I buy from them as I can throw it in with my fermentor orders and not pay any more shipping really.

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/va...ry_name=7511&product_id=8415&variant_id=54039

kanielb1 said:

I am a Lowes man!!

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I have never seen silicone tubing at Lowes or HD?

I have not seen it at Lowe's either. I have some of the 1/2" ID 5/8" OD silicone tubing, and it is practically useless, as it collapses when you pass hot liquid through. the 1/2" x 3/4", however, is a gift from above. Totally worth the $2/foot, just keep it clean and if should last a long time.

Yes, the thick walled silicone is excellent. When you buy it at US Plastics, it comes in 10ft lengths min. I have a little extra laying around

samc said:

US Plastics tubing is 1/2x 5/8 which is too thin walled for pumping hot liquids. I use 1/2 x 3/4 which is probably what Austin is selling. Best price I have seen it for was $1.85 and they (smallparts.com) were out of stock last time I looked.

Click to expand...

331 for 100 feet today !!! on smallparts.com
Austin is the lowest delivered price so far

Yup, Austin is the cheapest. I got mine from USplastics but that was during a free shipping promotion so the price was unbeatable.

McMaster-Carr has it for $1.82 a ft.

Boar Beer said:

I recently purchased some 1/2'' silicone tubing from Austinhomebrew. The stuff works great for transferring hot cleaner and wort through my March Pump and Therminator. Now I need a lot more but I don't want to pay $2.10 per foot http://www.austinhomebrew.com/product_info.php?cPath=178_59_549&products_id=10014 .

Does anybody know a wholesale distributor and item number for this product? I think this might be the same stuff, but I'm not sure http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/va...ry_name=7511&product_id=8415&variant_id=54038. If it is the same, its almost a dollar cheaper per foot.

Thanks in advance.

Click to expand...

Add some brewing specific stuff to an order and all of a sudden, Austin's may not be that expensive.

You've gotta quote item numbers when referring to mcmaster. They have too much stuff.

The 1/8" wall stuff is $3.31 a foot.
http://www.mcmaster.com/#51135k43/=4foxev

I use this stuff McMaster #51135K84. It's only the 1/16" but I've never had problems with kinking or collapsing.

anyone use this stuff??

$1.40/ft and safe up to 275°F. Don't see a reason to pay an extra dollar/foot for silicone....

The one great thing about silicone, is that when it gets cold out... it doesnt get stiff as a board. I used to use the regular plastic/vinyl stuff and it became so stiff and difficult to work with that I went to silicone.

IrregularPulse said:

anyone use this stuff??

$1.40/ft and safe up to 275°F. Don't see a reason to pay an extra dollar/foot for silicone....

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Only problem with that stuff is that you can't really see through it like the silicone. Otherwise, it's perfectly serviceable.

mmb said:

Only problem with that stuff is that you can't really see through it like the silicone. Otherwise, it's perfectly serviceable.

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+1 on can't see through it. I actually have a setup where the tubing from the boil kettle to the pump is the NB opaque tubing and AHBS translucent silicon from pump to whirlpool chiller. One side blind is a pain when having pump priming issues. I am willing to pay extra for translucent tubing.

The translucent properties make sense. I will be using a pump in the future (sitting in my basement waiting) so Maybe I'll go silicone.

IrregularPulse said:

anyone use this stuff??

$1.40/ft and safe up to 275°F. Don't see a reason to pay an extra dollar/foot for silicone....

Click to expand...

I use it and have had no problems. I haven't used the thermoplastic in really cold conditions so I can't say how it will change.

I also have some silicone (the thick walled stuff). As already stated, silicone is more flexible and translucent.

Up to this point I have had more issues with the silicone than the thermoplastic... specifically, if you have a fairly long hose coming straight out of a vessel the weight of the full hose can tend to cause the silicone to bend down and sorta kink, restricting the flow.

Ed

Edit: I use clear polycarbonate QD's so while the thermoplastic hose is not translucent, I have kind of a small sight glass at each connection.

fishersci.com

The Pol said:

True and false... I buy all of mine from US Plastics, and it is 1/2" x 3/4" thick walled. But you have to select it and not the thin walled stuff, they have various types.\

Here is a link to the thick walled... I buy from them as I can throw it in with my fermentor orders and not pay any more shipping really.

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/va...ry_name=7511&product_id=8415&variant_id=54039

Click to expand...

What fermenters are you buying?

Dog House Brew said:

What fermenters are you buying?

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6 galllon Winpaks

$15, they are excellent

Excellent thread - just when I was looking for replacement tubing!

I am currently replacing PEX tubing with silicone. The PEX is opaque, and far too rigid to easily sanitize.

Those of you using the silicone tubing, what kind of clamps are you using to attach your fittings? I want to ensure that I don't tear into the tubing, as the USPlastic site warns: "Care is recommended in the selection of fittings and clamps for Silcon...unlined metal clamps could tear into the wall"

I'm currently using an ear style clamp on the PEX:
http://www.micromatic.com/images/3/300x300/1317.jpg

I didn't know if a standard adjustable hose clamp would work okay for the silicone solution.

What are you using?

I use standard clamps... I have never had a problem.

colkrausen said:

Excellent thread - just when I was looking for replacement tubing!

I am currently replacing PEX tubing with silicone. The PEX is opaque, and far too rigid to easily sanitize.

Those of you using the silicone tubing, what kind of clamps are you using to attach your fittings? I want to ensure that I don't tear into the tubing, as the USPlastic site warns: "Care is recommended in the selection of fittings and clamps for Silcon...unlined metal clamps could tear into the wall"

I'm currently using an ear style clamp on the PEX:
http://www.micromatic.com/images/3/300x300/1317.jpg

I didn't know if a standard adjustable hose clamp would work okay for the silicone solution.

What are you using?

Click to expand...

I have been using worm clamps - although you are not supposed to.

Silicone tubing works much better with fewer, larger, barbs. This has to do with the properties of soft tubing. If you clamp too hard the tubing will likely actually lose contact with the barb fitting and you will have a leak. On top of that the tubing will squish out the worm drive clamp.

The trick is to use the right barb fitting in the first place. In many cases you won't even need to use a clamp. However, I DO use clamps and put a very very light torque on a worm clamp for good measure.

To chime in late, I use the thermoplastic tubing from Northern brewer. I love the stiffness and the feel of the tubing. I prefer it to the silicone just for how well it holds shape and resists collapsing. Both are fantastic options. I have no need for translucency.

Here is an article on barbs:

http://www.hydraulicspneumatics.com/200/Issue/Article/False/6482/Issue

colkrausen said:

Excellent thread - just when I was looking for replacement tubing!

I am currently replacing PEX tubing with silicone. The PEX is opaque, and far too rigid to easily sanitize.

Those of you using the silicone tubing, what kind of clamps are you using to attach your fittings? I want to ensure that I don't tear into the tubing, as the USPlastic site warns: "Care is recommended in the selection of fittings and clamps for Silcon...unlined metal clamps could tear into the wall"

I'm currently using an ear style clamp on the PEX:
http://www.micromatic.com/images/3/300x300/1317.jpg

I didn't know if a standard adjustable hose clamp would work okay for the silicone solution.

What are you using?

Click to expand...

We are using the water tube type connections with no clamp. In this way we can easily change the tubes as needed. The long end on the water tube type connection is easier to handle and works just fine with no leakage.

I have some 1/2 in pex tube connectors and they work fine but are just a little more difficult to slip the tube on and off.

Colkrausen

I cant get my picutres any bigger. mmmm...must be doing something wrong.

This is the fitting we like the best


This is a Pex tube fitting which also works with no clamp

Wow, there it is... no clamp. And no leaks?

What are the dimensions, ID and OD of your tube, and the size of that pex fitting?

Being able to pull the hose off the barb quickly would be a nice feature to have.

I use standard ear clamps, no issues.

Bobby_M said:

Yup, Austin is the cheapest. I got mine from USplastics but that was during a free shipping promotion so the price was unbeatable.

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Bobby - random question; but with your build - about how long were the hoses and how many total (just trying to get a ballpark # for a typical single tier build).

In checking recently - still looks like Austin Homebrew is the best price for silicone tubing.

I use large zip ties on the silicon I'll get a pic this weekend and when you need to remove just use a diagonal cutting plies cheap and secure

springer said:

I use large zip ties on the silicon I'll get a pic this weekend and when you need to remove just use a diagonal cutting plies cheap and secure

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I do this too for the one hose in my current setup. It's on of the tan high temp ones and it goes from my BK ball valve to my CFC. You want to be careful cutting it off. Mine as a few nicks on each end. None that are through the hose but just something to be aware of when cutting zip times each brew day. Maybe have a spare hose on hand just in case.

I don't take the hose very often no nicks as of yet but it may be that I use the mini Snap on side cutters I can get it in between the tube and the clamp. I saw at Lowe' reusable/releasable zip ties I think I will pick some up this weekend

springer said:

I use large zip ties on the silicon I'll get a pic this weekend and when you need to remove just use a diagonal cutting plies cheap and secure

Click to expand...

I use zip ties and a tie wrap gun:





Zip ties are dirt cheap and I got the tie wrap gun for about $8 at Harbor Freight. The zip ties don't chew up the tubing like the worm clamps do and I've had zero problems with leaks.