Automotive AC Hose

1. Radiator Hoses
Radiator hoses are responsible for transporting coolant to your vehicle’s engine. This is an essential job because it prevents your vehicle from overheating. However, the engine gets incredibly hot, and you need a hose that can stand up to those high temperatures without degrading or breaking down. While rubber hoses are standard for radiator hoses, silicone hoses have a greater resistance to heat, and they are more durable and longer lasting. It’s for this very reason that replacing your coolant hoses with silicone hoses gives you more peace of mind.

2. Vacuum Hoses
Replacing the standard rubber vacuum hoses in your vehicle with silicone hoses is beneficial in many ways, but one of the biggest reasons is the resistance silicone provides to the extreme conditions vacuum hoses are exposed to. Over time, the exposure to the high temperatures in your vehicle can cause rubber vacuum hoses to start to leak or crack, which can create a whole host of other issues in your vehicle. Silicone, on the other hand, is not susceptible to this kind of damage because it can stand up to extreme temperatures better than rubber.

3. Manufacturing
Silicone hoses are perfect for many different manufacturing applications, and in many different industries. Whether you need hoses in manufacturing applications for the beverage, dairy, food, biotech or pharmaceutical industry, you’ll benefit from the strength, durability and flexibility that silicone hoses provide. Best of all, here at Flex Technologies, we manufacture custom silicone hoses to your exact specifications, and we can create the perfect silicone hose for you, no matter what size or shape you need.

4. Coffee Machines
Silicone tubing is perfect for coffee machines for two main reasons — it does a better job of resisting the heat and it’s not prone to leaking. Whether you’re using a standard coffee maker, an espresso machine or a cappuccino maker, silicone hoses provide the reliability and durability you need. Furthermore, silicone hoses are food safe, and they won’t absorb any of the chemicals in detergents or any other cleaning supplies you use to clean out your machine.

Whether you’re using a hose for home brewing, in your vehicle’s radiator, in an aquarium or on the dairy farm, silicone is a tremendous, durable option that is designed to last.

Make sure that you have the right tools.

The first step to cutting silicone hoses properly is ensuring that you have the right tools at your disposal. No matter what kind of silicone hose you’re cutting, you’ll end up with a better result if you use a hose clamp to hold it in place while you work. A t-clamp or a liner clamp should work well. Additionally, make sure that you have a ruler or tape measurer so that you can ensure that you are cutting the hose at the perfect length. If you cut it too short, there’s no getting it back.

If you’re cutting an unreinforced silicone hose that’s smaller in diameter — up to approximately eight millimeters — you can use pliers, scissors or wire cutters to cut the hose. And, if you’re cutting a reinforced silicone hose that’s smaller in diameter, you can use a sharp blade or a parcel knife to cut the hose.

Regardless of what the diameter is of the hose you’re cutting, it’s important to ensure that you protect yourself. The best way to do this — apart from going slowly and being very careful with your blade — is to wear protective gloves throughout the process.

A Few Notes to Keep in Mind

1. When cutting a silicone hose, don’t roll the hose, as you run the risk of cutting your fingers.
2. Ensure you use the right clamp — serrated clamps, standard worm gear clamps and wire clamps are never appropriate for silicone hoses.
3. Always use a very sharp blade when cutting silicone hoses. This will give you a cleaner, more professional result in the end.
Make sure that you are always pointing the blade away from yourself when cutting.
4. Never try to cut a silicone hose using a hacksaw or any other cutting tool that has teeth, as this will leave you with frayed ends instead of a clean result.
5. If you use a little bit of soapy water on the blade, it will make cutting easier and keep the blade sharper for longer.

Your Step-by-Step Guide to Cutting Larger-Diameter Silicone Hoses

1. Using a ruler or tape measurer, determine the appropriate hose length necessary for the application, and then mark the spot with a permanent marker. To clean off the marker once you’re done cutting the hose, simply use a little bit of rubbing alcohol — it will come right off!
2. Place your clamp on the hose perpendicular to the mark you made. Make sure that the clamp is straight. Tighten the hose clamp, ensuring that it’s tight enough to hold the clamp securely but loose enough so that it doesn’t distort the hose’s shape.
3. With the blade pointing away from you, insert it into the hose, right beside the clamp, and then cut along the edge of the clamp slowly and carefully.
4. There is an uneven edge on the clamp, located near the adjuster. In order to ensure that you end up with a clean result, slacken and rotate the clamp before cutting this area.
5. When you’ve cut the entire circumference of the hose, remove the clamp, wipe off the mark from your marker with rubbing alcohol and voila!