Hot side tubing alternatives to silicone.

[day_trippr]

You should check McMaster-Carr again. I see 1/2" ID Santoprene tubing available in a number of lengths much less than a roll (5, 10, 25, 50 foot lengths).
Also, if they provide a per-foot price, don't be afraid to actually order that way. I've bought various random lengths of things like silicone profile gaskets by the foot from M-C....

Cheers!

 

[SanPancho]

You should check McMaster-Carr again. I see 1/2" ID Santoprene tubing available in a number of lengths much less than a roll (5, 10, 25, 50 foot lengths).
Also, if they provide a per-foot price, don't be afraid to actually order that way. I've bought various random lengths of things like silicone profile gaskets by the foot from M-C....

Cheers!

no kidding? huh. i have a grainer down the road a ways so to be honest i dont even bother to look at mcmaster anymore since it'll always get expensive due to shipping. i guess if i didnt have to buy 50ft at a time i might be able to justify it.

either that or just wait until we head down to SoCal to visit my folks as they're a few stops down the freeway from mcmaster.

 

[Bassman2003]

I just purchased from McMaster and the price for the 15mm Santoprene was $1.70 per foot. I purchased 2 x 10 foot sections and they had a 25 foot length. Maybe a 5 too. Shipping was very expensive, stupid expensive but the other option was buying 50 ft. from US Plastics (with their shipping which is unknown to me but probably high) or shorter sections of the expensive Tygon. I needed other items from McMaster so Santoprene won. The O2 specs are the same for either - magnitudes better than silicone.

 

[Bad Bubba]

I want to thank everyone who participated in this. I contacted most of the manufacturers of the different tubings. I heard back from Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics who makes the Tygon tubing and other plastics brands. While they did not give me exact permeability data they said that both Tygon E-65-F and A-60-F would be at least a 10-fold improvement compared to silicone for oxygen permeability.

Santoprene seems to get some love but I obtained no data. Ditto for the EJ Beverage product.

So far this has turned out to be more of a rabbit hole than I expected. If I find out more concrete data I will let you know.

I will probably purchase one of the Tygon products mentioned above (food grade and good to 275F) and not worry anymore.

 

[Bad Bubba]

I just purchased from McMaster and the price for the 15mm Santoprene was $1.70 per foot. I purchased 2 x 10 foot sections and they had a 25 foot length. Maybe a 5 too. Shipping was very expensive, stupid expensive but the other option was buying 50 ft. from US Plastics (with their shipping which is unknown to me but probably high) or shorter sections of the expensive Tygon. I needed other items from McMaster so Santoprene won. The O2 specs are the same for either - magnitudes better than silicone.

In your video on your 4 batches on LODO brewing, was that Santoprene that was hooked up to your Anvil Foundry.

 

[Bassman2003]

Hello, no that is good old silicone in the video. I spoke with a rep at US Plastics and he said Santoprene and A60-F have identical properties. So you can see Santoprene and Tygon A60-F as being interchangeable.

 

[Bad Bubba]

Hello, no that is good old silicone in the video. I spoke with a rep at US Plastics and he said Santoprene and A60-F have identical properties. So you can see Santoprene and Tygon A60-F as being interchangeable.

Following up on this, how do you find the Santoprene to work with as far as flexibility and tightening around barbs? What wall thickness did you get?

 

[Bassman2003]

The Santoprene is kind of kinky. It will work around bends but the radius before it kinks is larger than silicone. But that is probably due to the wall thickness. I ordered from McMaster Carr and got the 12mm ID and 15mm OD tubing which is a little smaller than 1/2". This actually makes the grip over 1/2" barbs to be a great fit. The walls are pretty thin for this tubing compared to thick silicone. Maybe some heat loss but I am not sure. Seems fine though. That is why the price is lower ($1.70 per foot). I am pleased with the tubing.

 

[Bad Bubba]

The Santoprene is kind of kinky. It will work around bends but the radius before it kinks is larger than silicone. But that is probably due to the wall thickness. I ordered from McMaster Carr and got the 12mm ID and 15mm OD tubing which is a little smaller than 1/2". This actually makes the grip over 1/2" barbs to be a great fit. The walls are pretty thin for this tubing compared to thick silicone. Maybe some heat loss but I am not sure. Seems fine though. That is why the price is lower ($1.70 per foot). I am pleased with the tubing.

Have you done any DO measurements with the Santoprene?

 

[Bassman2003]

No, I do not have a DO meter. Santoprene is a world better than silicone when it comes to O2 penetration. If it makes a difference in the end product is up for debate. If you do a constant recirc during the mash then I think it is a good choice. If it is used for one off transfers then I do not think it matters.

 

[David Coy]

I was hoping people on this forum could help me with my quest. I am looking to replace my silicone tubing because of the concerns with oxygen diffusion through the tubing. My set up really requires that I use a flexible tubing/hose. I have been doing a some research but have not found anything definitive. Many materials seem to have low permeability but do not perform well at temperature. I have found some mention of Santoprene but have found little about it formulation. I saw on one forum that someone said it was the same as EDPM. I have also found some high temp hose from EJ Beverage but no mention of its permeability.

So my question is what are others using for tubing to prevent oxidation. Any recommendations and where to source.

Resurecting a thread a bit, but I just found this while searching for another of their products. Does anybody have feedback about PEX with an oxygen barrier? Vevor has a crazy 300 ft roll of 1/2 inch PEX with an oxygen barrier for $69. Has heat tolerance as it is suggested for radiant floor heating (says it is perfect for potable water use too). I haven't worked with PEX much, is it flexible enough?

What should I be looking to clarify with the vendor? They seem to respond to questions - mostly helpfully.

Less than 25 cents a foot! Even looks like you can get it in both red and blue if you order two rolls.

https://www.vevor.com/pex-tubing-c_...-red-radiant-for-in-floor-heat-p_010619865573

 

[mashdar]

Not all pex is food grade, and the O2 barrier stuff for mechanical systems is almost never NSF/food grade. There's no telling what coatings etc they might use on that stuff. Others may differ, but I wouldn't put hot acidic wort through it and then drink it.

 

[SanPancho]

if its safe for potable water then its fine but only up to the heat rating. if i recall, pex is usually only rated for like 180f. so not really fully usable for brewing. also, its not flexible at all compared to normal brew tubing like silicone, vinyl, etc. and pex al specifically needs different expander tool to make connections as opposed to barbs and rings like pex a/b.

it might sound crazy, but look into buying a 25 or 50' roll of 1/2 stainless tubing, lots of them on ebay. then just need stainless compression fittings and you're good to go. but obviously that's more of a hard pipe solution vs flexible tubing.

 

[Unicorn_Platypus]

what's the O2 barrier like on Loc Line. It's rated to 170, so might be OK for mashing, just not boiling.