Where to buy black silicone tubing?

I've been purchasing clear silicone tubing from US Plastics (1/4" ID/3/8" OD) to use with my Extreme but would like to find it in black to hide the buildup of resin. I haven't been able to find any yet.

I like silicone because it is super flexible and can take the heat at the elbow but could switch to something else as long as it is very flexible and doesn't break down as fast as latex.

Anyone know where I can find any?
 
Medivape,

MileHighLife

Blower of glass, grower of grass
I was looking into this once. On amazon and have "performance vacuum hose" or something like that. Stuff is intended for cars but it says its good up to 500 degrees F. I don't know enough about silicon so I just went for the clear white surgical tubing.
 
MileHighLife,

Tom Funk

Well-Known Member
Hi Medivape,

There was at least one person using black high temp silicone over the cartridge of the thermovape evolution. If my memory serves me correctly, they posted a link to where it was purchased in that thread.

Best of luck finding what you're after.

TF
 
Tom Funk,

Tweak

T\/\/34|<
While not pure silicone, 7th floor offers black tubing in 3', 10', and 20' lengths.

"It is far better than silicon tubing because it does not collect all the dirt and oils from you hands. The hose is made just for us to give to you. It is made in 3/8 inch inner diameter so it can slip on and off your wand or any other accessories. Comes in clear, black, blue, green, or red."

hoser-9302.jpg
 
Tweak,

MileHighLife

Blower of glass, grower of grass
Maybe they've changed materials since I bought my dbv but the original tubing on my unit was not flexible at all, had permanent kinks in it and was permanently wrapped in a tight circle. Since I upgraded to silicon I've had none of these issues.

I love 7th floor products but why do they not say what their tubing is made of? They say its "the best on the market" but their reasoning is because stuff doesn't stick to it. I like to know what materials my gear is made out of especially if it heat is passing through it. Here is blended vinyl tubing on Amazon that meets FDA requirements: http://www.amazon.com/Vinyl-Tubing-Clear-Flexible-Length/dp/B001D9SXRY/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1378492446&sr=8-10&keywords=vinyl tubing. The working temp for this tubing and all other blended vinyl tubing that I've seen is 0 - 180 degrees F. Silicon tubing has a heat rating of 450 degrees F.

Not trying to start an argument or anything but I did some of research before upgrading my whip. At first I bought some flexible acrylic tubing because the temp rating is pretty high but it was identical to my original hose in rigidity so I ended up going with silicon.
 
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MileHighLife,

vap999

Well-Known Member
I doubt that there is a real-world market for black opaque-colored silicone tubing; and if there were black silicone, you may not want to use it. The commercial selling points for silicone are that it is transparent, so connections and flow can be readily confirmed; flexible (due to the normal 30%-40% un- and partially-polymerized silicone monomers (silicone oil) content of commercial silicones, which is what makes silicone flexible and tacky); and non-toxic. And how would the tubing be opaquely-colored black? I can't think of any food-grade black dyes, with many or most dyes suspect (e.g., carcinogens); and if carbon black pigment is used, well that has high polyaromatic hydrocarbons (carcinogens) content, with carbon black being soot from partially-combusted organic materials.

To resolve your basic problem, wanting to hide resin build-up, why not wrap your tubing with tape, or at least the section where condensation/build-up occurs? Such as basic black electrical tape, bicycle handle-bar tape, or select from a wide variety, including colors, of silicone tapes, probably available from the same sources as tubing. Or if there is no mouth or flowing air contact, simply spray or otherwise paint your tubing black.

If high temperature exposure is not a concern, consider thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) tubing, which is now replacing silicone tubing for many bioprocessing and other ultra high-purity uses. TPE, unlike silicone, is a thermoplastic, i.e., can be melted and heat-welded to make strong joints; and is cleaner, in the sense of lacking all the non-fully-polymerized gunk of silicone. For example, see http://tubingandfittings.eldonjames.com/category/flexelene-tubing, which includes colored tubing; and http://www.advantapure.com/advantaflex.htm. Many others make and sell TPE tubing, and probably cheaper too (food vs. biopharmaceutical grade). C-Flex is another established brand.
 
vap999,
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max

Out to lunch
would like to find it in black to hide the buildup of resin
Then you won't know when you need to clean or replace it. The longer you use dirty glass or tubing, the more inefficient it becomes, since it'll attract more condensation.

The Extreme, like most whip vapes, does just fine with even food/beverage grade tubing. By the time the vapor reaches the tubing, the temp is quite low.
 
max,
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nopartofme

Over the falls, in a barrel
To resolve your basic problem, wanting to hide resin build-up, why not wrap your tubing with tape, or at least the section where condensation/build-up occurs? Such as basic black electrical tape, bicycle handle-bar tape, or select from a wide variety, including colors, of silicone tapes, probably available from the same sources as tubing. Or if there is no mouth or flowing air contact, simply spray or otherwise paint your tubing black.
This could be another option worth pursuing: a braided whip sleeve.
 
nopartofme,
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