Is vinyl water lines from Home Depot suitable for beer lines?

[d_rock]

Hey folks, I was wondering if anyone uses the clear vinyl hose/water lines from Home Depot for beer line. It doesn't necessarily say beverage line, but I'm assuming it's what's used for fridge water lines and the like. Would this stuff be ok to use for beer lines?

 

[Rivenin]

i've used it, worked fine as far as tubing goes, but honestly, i'd spend a few dollars more and get some beer line ordered... there was always a plastic taste if you let the beer longer than a few days in the line. This never sat well with me... who knows what the alcohol was leaching out of the plastic.
Hell, beer line is only 40ish cents a foot.

 

[max384]

Hey folks, I was wondering if anyone uses the clear vinyl hose/water lines from Home Depot for beer line. It doesn't necessarily say beverage line, but I'm assuming it's what's used for fridge water lines and the like. Would this stuff be ok to use for beer lines?

Vinyl tubing is fine, but you want the thick-walled beverage lines. All I've ever seen in Home Depot is the thin waled stuff.

 

[d_rock]

i've used it, worked fine as far as tubing goes, but honestly, i'd spend a few dollars more and get some beer line ordered... there was always a plastic taste if you let the beer longer than a few days in the line. This never sat well with me... who knows what the alcohol was leaching out of the plastic.
Hell, beer line is only 40ish cents a foot.

Beer line is $1/ft at my LHBS, I'll just order some online. Off tastes are something I definitely don't want. Thanks

 

[BrunDog]

I agree. The HD stuff is not water/food quality PVC. Do not use it. Order legit, quality beer line from a reputable vendor.

 

[k1ngl1ves]

Check amazon. I bought a 100' box of 3/16" clear Bevlex line on clearance for $15 a couple months ago. Great deal!

 

[d_rock]

Check amazon. I bought a 100' box of 3/16" clear Bevlex line on clearance for $15 a couple months ago. Great deal!

Just ordered a 100' of 3/16" for $10.30!

 

[UndeadFred]

Or do what us cheap people do-- if it's in a keezer it doesn't need to be super flexible.

Do you know what is even better than the so called "beverage quality food grade PVC?" LDPE line. <$2 for 10 ft food grade 130 PSI rated 3/16". Almost the same stuff as the buckets are made out of. You do have to heat the ends up to put them on a 1/4" barb but it works like a treat with a standard heat gun.

10 feet of that stuff is about perfect for a home serving setup too. (Or if you want it faster, cut it to 8..it's smoother than PVC so you need a foot or two more of it...) I throw it out and replace instead of cleaning it about ever 2nd to 3rd keg.

But tell me again that I need to special order Bevlex or whatever that stuff is called?

 

[k1ngl1ves]

Or do what us cheap people do-- if it's in a keezer it doesn't need to be super flexible.

Do you know what is even better than the so called "beverage quality food grade PVC?" LDPE line. <$2 for 10 ft food grade 130 PSI rated 3/16". Almost the same stuff as the buckets are made out of. You do have to heat the ends up to put them on a 1/4" barb but it works like a treat with a standard heat gun.

10 feet of that stuff is about perfect for a home serving setup too. (Or if you want it faster, cut it to 8..it's smoother than PVC so you need a foot or two more of it...) I throw it out and replace instead of cleaning it about ever 2nd to 3rd keg.

But tell me again that I need to special order Bevlex or whatever that stuff is called?

In the post above yours, OP found Bevlex for $0.10 a foot. Obviously, we fancy lads just can't keep up with you cheap people.

 

[Rivenin]

Or do what us cheap people do-- if it's in a keezer it doesn't need to be super flexible.

Do you know what is even better than the so called "beverage quality food grade PVC?" LDPE line. <$2 for 10 ft food grade 130 PSI rated 3/16". Almost the same stuff as the buckets are made out of. You do have to heat the ends up to put them on a 1/4" barb but it works like a treat with a standard heat gun.

10 feet of that stuff is about perfect for a home serving setup too. (Or if you want it faster, cut it to 8..it's smoother than PVC so you need a foot or two more of it...) I throw it out and replace instead of cleaning it about ever 2nd to 3rd keg.

But tell me again that I need to special order Bevlex or whatever that stuff is called?

coming from the inner hippie in me, that is super wasteful... i'd much rather clean the lines the same time i'm cleaning the keg.

 

[UndeadFred]

I did see that and figured there would be smart a$$ed comments about it.. but I typically only spend 15 cents a foot on the stuff (less if I buy a 50 foot roll, it's under 10 cents a foot that way) and I can pick it up on the way home. Also Bevlex is still PVC and I'd rather use the Polyethylene anyway, though I am not one of the "you are going to die from the leaching out" guys.

And.. super wasteful? Eh, I only do it if one sits for a long time and gets nasty.. so far I've done it once after 3 kegs.. and then I turned it into a gasket for another project.... washing lines out once they get nasty is a real PITA...

You do have to run an extra 1-2' of the LDPE though ... it's so much smoother internally than the PVC 10' at 10 PSI is just about right... I use PVC for my gas lines, however as it really doesn't matter...

 

[wilserbrewer]

Kal did a pretty thorough comparison linked below. Seems that the generic tubing readily available was actually better than some of the beverage tubing available...YMMV
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=60380

 

[PGEduardo]

Or do what us cheap people do-- if it's in a keezer it doesn't need to be super flexible.

Do you know what is even better than the so called "beverage quality food grade PVC?" LDPE line. <$2 for 10 ft food grade 130 PSI rated 3/16". Almost the same stuff as the buckets are made out of. You do have to heat the ends up to put them on a 1/4" barb but it works like a treat with a standard heat gun.

10 feet of that stuff is about perfect for a home serving setup too. (Or if you want it faster, cut it to 8..it's smoother than PVC so you need a foot or two more of it...) I throw it out and replace instead of cleaning it about ever 2nd to 3rd keg.

But tell me again that I need to special order Bevlex or whatever that stuff is called?

I bought some of this stuff from a vendor here and hate the stuff. Too stiff, and having to heat gun/ream out both ends to get it to fit over the barbs was a HUGE PITA. Not to mention that due to how stiff it is, I ended up with small leaks since the hose clamps couldn't really squish it down much.

Some people don't mind this stuff, but I've got about 20 feet left if anyone wants some for free before it goes into the garbage can...

 

[Jawbox0]

I bought some of this stuff from a vendor here and hate the stuff. Too stiff, and having to heat gun/ream out both ends to get it to fit over the barbs was a HUGE PITA. Not to mention that due to how stiff it is, I ended up with small leaks since the hose clamps couldn't really squish it down much.

Some people don't mind this stuff, but I've got about 20 feet left if anyone wants some for free before it goes into the garbage can...

My main problem with this stuff were cracks. Every place I'd used this line eventually cracked and I lost some beer to it. Flavorwise I loved the line, but it just didn't hold up.

 

[UndeadFred]

I've had no problems whatsoever. But I only use it inside of the keezer. The Heat Gun works fine. I do run Vinyl on my Picnic tap but I am going to replace that soon since I got two used 525SS's cheap recently... I think as long as it is properly coiled up and not moved much (by being properly coiled up) it is fine inside of the keezer. But that's me.

By the way, the way I open it up to put it on the barb is with a step drill bit. You get a fairly perfect shaped connection that way once you go about three steps in. I have had the stuff NOT leak without hose clamps when my system wasn't physically optimal... (I now use MFL tailpieces.. )

 

[UndeadFred]

Kal did a pretty thorough comparison linked below. Seems that the generic tubing readily available was actually better than some of the beverage tubing available...YMMV
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=60380

I think I am very sensitive to the PVC flavor. I agree with that post 100%. My original line was Bevlex from the LHBS. I didn't notice any difference from two other brands of PVC line. Thanks for posting this since I'm taking a beating once again...

 

[d_rock]

This is what I ended up getting. Will have it on the keezer by the weekend and I'll be sure to report back with a review for you guys. Can't beat the price, hopefully it doesn't taint the beer. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00E6BCXQ8/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

 

[brewcat]

I think I am very sensitive to the PVC flavor. I agree with that post 100%. My original line was Bevlex from the LHBS. I didn't notice any difference from two other brands of PVC line. Thanks for posting this since I'm taking a beating once again...

Have you tried the ultra barrier silver beer hose?

 

[UndeadFred]

Have you tried the ultra barrier silver beer hose?

Apparently not since I don't think if I've heard of it. I will have to search it up. There are plenty of times I'd like a more flexible line. I actually tapped a stout last night and my bread ties came undone on the coil and I didn't notice it and at the end of the pour the solid line was banging against the wall of the keezer.

I actually think you guys cursed me!