hose clamps

[abitking]

can i use the metal hoseclamps from homedepot?
or are there better safer ones?

[Onlypro]

Yes. The metal hose clamps at home depot will work fine in a watercooling system.

Dont over tighten them.

[poMONKey]

when i first got clamps they were the plastic, pinch together ones... during leak testing, it was so leaky, i stopped the pump and went out to buy the metal ones...

overtightening could definately be a prob... those metal clamps have the little rectangle cutouts for the worm drive thinggy to catch... i tightened one of my clamps so tight the first time, my tygon was bulging out of those holes... tygon is tough, but anything will split ;)

gl

[ILikeMy240sx]

oh yea, and get stainless steel metal clamps. You wouldnt want any rust there...

[Sneakytermite]

Put some tape around the hose before you put the metal clamps on. It should help somewhat.

[Bleed]

when you said tape, would an electrical tape be okay?

[ILikeMy240sx]

Originally posted by Bleed
when you said tape, would an electrical tape be okay?

Yup electrical tape was what he was talking about

[poMONKey]

Originally posted by Sneakytermite
Put some tape around the hose before you put the metal clamps on. It should help somewhat.

damn... great idea! i'll be doing that next time...

[Minjin]

If you're concerned about cutting into the tube with the clamp, use clamps that aren't fully slotted. They aren't quite as strong as a fully slotted clamp, but they'll suit your application just fine. I recall bmw had some good ones for fuel lines at their dealership...

Mark

[FIZZ3]

Most important things I recently learned about steel hose clamps and zip ties:

- zip ties are a pain in problematic areas where you have water or air leaks, because you cannot tighten them well enough. They are usable if you have not mounted the system yet and/or can reach eveything easily. You'll need to be able to hold the tube and pull the zip tie with some force.

- steel clamps need to be of the right size. If not, it will not close the tubing properly. I found that 15mm clamps work excellent on 1/2" ID tubing (5/8" OD). 22mm clamps are fine for this tubing on barbs bigger than 1/2" ID, like the 15mm bends I use. 22mm on 1/2" ID barbs + 5/8" OD tubing is not recommended. ;)