Best Hoses

[Loose Deuce]

are those blue hoses you see sometimes, made of silicone and are they the best ????

 

[FloridaAKM]

Best, but not cheap!

 

[Wildchild467]

Best hoses are the ones that don't leak.

Heck, for what I do and everything, regular rubber radiator hoses and quality clamps work fine. now if you have harsher fluids going through those lines and higher heat, that might be different. for straight on straight connections, that heavy duty hose you buy by the stick is hard to beat and will provide years and years of service. Use it on the top radiator hose connection, the who water manifold connections, intake to water pump connection and two oil cooler connections. Quality clamps and hit the road.

 

[scboolitcaster]

What distinguishes a quality clamp from a non quality clamp?

 

[Wildchild467]

Well they have some spring clamps that im not really crazy about. they do keep constant tension but if it leaks a little, you cant snug it up.

There is always the worm gear flat band style clamp and they are pretty good. once in a while they may loosen up but its rare and you just check them every once in a while. If they are always tight when you check them, chances are they are good.

Then there are some worm gear screw style, flat band with a tension spring. These are the expensive ones and they work very well. They are basically a screw down with the worm gear combined with a constant pressure spring. So you can clamp them down and they have a spring to always keep pressure on the hose as well. They are nice but you pay for them. I have the regular worm gear screw style on my truck and haven't had any problems. They work fine.

 

[Karl kostman]

The blue ones are silicone hoses and in my experience they are the best, look at a new CAT piece of equipment, the CRITICAL TO OPERATION hoses are made of blue silicone! As was stated earlier they are the best BUT they do have a price tag attached! In my book its worth it!
Karl

 

[VPed]

Not only are the silicone hoses more expensive, you should be buying clamps for silicone hoses as well. Yes, they are more expensive as well. The difference between a regular clamp and a silicone hose clamp is that the latter has extra un-perforated material to prevent the perforated (slotted) part of the clamp from contacting the hose.

 

[topo]

With some engines running hotter and higher pressure I try to change belt and hoses at 4 years

 

[rustystud]

Yes silicone hoses are the best and yes you should use "shielded hose clamps" on them ( I prefer stainless steel myself). The best clamps for the larger hoses are stainless steel "T" bar clamps.
As far as longevity of the silicone hoses goes, in my 24 years at the transit dept I only saw 2 hoses burst due to age. All our buses run silicone hose and the hoses last as long as the busses do which is usually 15 to 20 years. Usually what happens to cause a hose to be replaced is they usually must be cut off to take them off as the silicone really sticks to the metal. After a few times of being cut off the hose is too short and must be replaced. Your probably wondering why the hoses must be taken off in the first place. Well the radiators in buses don't last long (about 2 years on average). Also the heater cores get replaced a lot.

 

[brianp454]

I agree that the silicone or other hoses rated for higher temperatures than conventional rubber are a nice to have. My truck stays right at 180°F nearly all of the time and the airflow through the engine compartment should be very good, so it’s not the same as some modern commercial trucks that have engine compartments that are practically ovens that literally bake anything in there.

My truck has a couple hoses that are looking sad with little cracks. I will replace them this Summer, most likely with standard rubber hose from NAPA. I will also toss the cheapo worm gear clamps and use high quality stainless steel clamps, most likely from Swagelok or Parker.

 

[gimpyrobb]

are those blue hoses you see sometimes, made of silicone and are they the best ????

Depends on what your using it for!

All your recent posts are injection pump related. If you use it(sillycone) for diesel, it is NOT the best hose.
If your asking for coolant or intake air, then yes, its great.

 

[rustystud]

I agree that the silicone or other hoses rated for higher temperatures than conventional rubber are a nice to have. My truck stays right at 180°F nearly all of the time and the airflow through the engine compartment should be very good, so it’s not the same as some modern commercial trucks that have engine compartments that are practically ovens that literally bake anything in there.

My truck has a couple hoses that are looking sad with little cracks. I will replace them this Summer, most likely with standard rubber hose from NAPA. I will also toss the cheapo worm gear clamps and use high quality stainless steel clamps, most likely from Swagelok or Parker.

What you need to also realize is that regular rubber hoses degrade over time which silicone hose does not. If your not going to keep your truck for the long haul then just use regular hose. I'm never selling my truck, at least if I can help it. I plan on willing it to my son. In fact he was asking about it just last month. I told him I'm not dead yet ! Plus I like the added insurance of having a hose I can depend on. I have had regular hoses give out on the freeway and it's not a fun experience ! One time the hose was only two years old and it blew on the way to Spokane. This was a Gates hose, not some "cheap who knows who made it" hose either.