Don't forget this kind of tubing has the PET liner so any plastic you smell is likely the outer formulation that makes it supple and bendable.
fwiw, I received rolls of both 4mm ID and 5mm ID EVA line this afternoon and while there was a modest "plastic" smell upon opening one of the packages I just gave it another sniff test 8 hours later and I'm not picking up anything. I then opened the other package and it's a repeat of the first.
All that said, I'll note I've never picked up the "vinyl" character from solid PVC beer lines that some are sensitive to, so ymmv.
Otherwise...the bend radius on this stuff is fantastic! It's nothing like the Bev Seal Ultra 235 tubing - this is like 2"!
Cheers!
I have both in my system, which is all based on 1/4" barbs (4mm for beer to keep the tubing runs short, and 5mm for gas, because it's easier to fit and I don't want/need the resistance on the gas side).Strictly for ease of use with my existing, 1/4" barbed gas system, so I can avoid replacing all those QDs and manifolds with MFL versions. 5mm has to be easier to stretch over those barbs than 4mm...
Cheers!
I have both in my system, which is all based on 1/4" barbs (4mm for beer to keep the tubing runs short, and 5mm for gas, because it's easier to fit and I don't want/need the resistance on the gas side).
Definitely easier to fit the 5mm on the 1/4", but 4mm is doable if you want the extra resistance to keep runs short.
Have you noticed any difference bewteen the John Guest, Doutight, and DMfit fittings?Agreed, this stuff should be on everyone's wish list.
I changed out all of my beer and gas lines - and I mean ALL of them - to the EVAbarrier tubing. That's a 6 tap keezer with low and high pressure external CO2 primaries plus a beer gas feed from another cylinder, through a 6 way manifold, all of the internal and external lines switched and all but the manifold outputs fitted with PTC connectors; and three full size fridges each with 4-way CO2 manifolds being fed by three primary regs on two cylinders.
In the end I used up all of the 39' of 4mm for the beer lines in the keezer, and two full rolls of the 5mm for all of the gas lines across all four units. And installed a poopyload of PTC fittings from John Guest, Duotight and DMfit.
Totally worth it. The first pour has no stale taint to it at all, and the beer line lengths are much more manageable. I'm running 6' on five faucets including my nitro faucet, and 9' for my high-carbed Saison (there's your 39 feet ) so only a turn or so looped atop the kegs after the flow meters. Also, the thinner OD (vs the 7/16" Bevlex 200) leaves more room in my air-cooled tower column for return air which can't hurt.
Now I just need to find someone who needs a crap load of 1/4" swivels and worm clamps. I must have around 100 of each...
Cheers!
Have you noticed any difference bewteen the John Guest, Doutight, and DMfit fittings?
Because nobody wants taint in their beer!no stale taint at all
.....Brass cuts like butter...
Cheers!
I'm not using clamps. The 4mm is not easy to get to fit and when it does, it isn't going anywhere. YMMV.this 4mm EVA stuff...using it on 1/4 barbs, is a hose clamp needed or it the fit tight enough to hold on it's own? I'm currently using otiker clamps on my 3/16 bevlex lines but not even sure those are really needed at typical serving pressures.
[...]Another thing, could you use the larger 5mm line as the beer line? Seems slightly larger than 3/16 ID line, so I wonder if there would be leaking issues if that were used. That and having to use longer lengths.
Traditionally, 3/16" ID lines are used with 1/4" barbs. The extra ~64th of the 5mm line ID should still be within the working range of the same barbs...
Cheers!
I ordered some EVA barrier line (the larger diameter) and some PTC fittings for the ball lock ends. I plan on changing out all my lines if this works out. The gas side has Bevlex 204 lines. I'll probably just leave it since it's not touching the beer.
Even if it's not touching the beer oxygen will still diffuse through the line and as soon as you pull the next pint you'll be pushing it into the keg where with time it will oxidize the beer. If you have enough line left (I'm assuming the gas lines will be much shorter since they don't need to be balanced) since you already did half the work it would still be worth it to replace the gas lines too.
I haven't closely followed all the recent threads on the topic... would someone be kind enough to summarize the options for oxygen-barrier lines if you already have 1/4" steel barbs in place? Hopefully an upgrade is possible without getting new shanks and ball-lock fittings. I'm definitely tired of my cheap Home Depot vinyl tubing as a serving line.
Thanks!
This answer was too fast and too easy. There must be a catch!
Thanks!
This answer was too fast and too easy. There must be a catch!
I can see that point, but then again I would think there's more pressure from the co2 inside the lines than from the oxygen (air) outside it.
I did replace my shanks, but that's because my others weren't stainless steel.
That’s a common misconception but Vale is right on this. It’s the difference between partial pressure of oxygen in your gas and oxygen in the atmosphere that pushes the oxygen through the lines. The other gasses are not really making any difference in the diffusion process.
Oh yeah, there is the catch -- replace or modify the shanks. Mine aren't 2-part, the barb can't be removed. Seems pretty straightforward with the right shanks, thanks.
Yeah, the HD tubing is garbage for sure. Embarrassed I let it stay this long.
Edit:
Got a link? I have had mixed luck ordering "stainless steel" parts so if you have shanks you can vouch for I wanna know about it!
I finally have all of my pieces put together, but I surely wish I'd known about this option before I made about four false starts at getting all of this right on my simple system. I strongly suggest others consider the option Bobby offers.If you buy the EVAbarrier tubing from me, I offer to pre-flare the ends that need to go over barbs. I use a heat gun and a swaging tool. You will want to use Oetiker clamps in that case.
.off topic: Where did you get the insulation that's in your tower? That looks like packing foam, but can't seem to find it on Amazon.
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