Sight Gauge Tubing

[Dick B in KY]

What are you using for sight gauge tubing? My Tygon tubing has become cloudy and discolored to the point of being hard to read. My fuel is 93 octane auto fuel ( non ethanol), up to this point.

Dick B

[cap01]

ive replaced mine with more tygon c-210-a . this has lasted a several years , has changed a little but still good . ill will replace it when it gets bad again . i use only non alc gas . there is probably a better tubing out there , i don't know what it is .

[Dave S]

Dick,

Chuck hints at an issue with "Tygon"...the name is simply a brand name; and there are many, many versions of tygon - literally hundreds.....the stuff is primarily used in laboratory applications and it is made in many types - resistant to specific chemicals, pressure, temperatures, etc. Some of it is reinforced.

I simply ordered new stuff from Kitfox when it yellowed out - I figure it will simply get replaced every few years - not very expensive in any case.

Dave S

[kitfox2009]

I got stuff from a local small engine repair shop. Yellow on one tank and blue on the other just to see which is easier to read. So far yellow wins out! I use "marked" non-ethanol off road (boat) premium fuel.
Don

[Dorsal]

Anybody know the tubing size off the top of their head? I need to replace mine (again) but that info is up at the hangar.

[cap01]

checked my notes and I'm using tygothane c-2101a 1/4 in. ID. this stuff still gets discolored. every few years I replace the tubing when I do the condition check.

[Dorsal]

Thanks Chuck, I have the same experience with the stuff, fortunately replacing it is not difficult.

[kmach]

sources for this tygon c-210 ?

[Paul Z]

I have been replacing mine every year at the Annual Inspection. I have found it yellows really bad when using auto fuel or MoGas, I quit using auto fuel or MoGas after an issue with it stripping either mold release or epoxy out of my tanks. I sloshed and started using 100LL exclusively. Since I started using 100LL, they don't yellow as fast. I replaced with tygon c-210 sight gauges from John. I went and looked at it on e-Bay, and I also ordered a 50 foot piece of tygon c-210 off of e-bay. Now I have already cut and installed the copper wire & slosh restrictors in and ready for next year. I've got enough for the rest of my life.

[dholly]

My SLSA manufacturer recently changed requirement for wing tank sight tube replacement from Tygon C-210-A to Tygon LP-1500. It is compatible with E-10 ethanol blend fuel.

[jrevens]

After reading about the issues with the fuel sight tubes, I did some research awhile back and bought some of the LP-1500. I played with it a little, with mixed results. It is a little stiffer and more prone to kinking than the C-210-A... it didn't make those 90 deg. bends nearly as well. I went so far as to make a form to contain the tubing & keep it from kinking while I heated it in the oven to see if I could get it to maintain it's shape. When I got it to a temperature that it would do that fairly well, it clouds up some, which may or may not be acceptable. I don't know what the heating might be doing to it's other properties. I couldn't get an answer from the distributor about whether it could/should be heat-formed or not. I ended up using the tubes that came in my kit, but I sure don't like the probability of having to replace them that often... there's got to be a better way.

[gregsgt]

I'm using the yellow tygon f4040a. Works great and lasts longer than the clear stuff.

[Dave S]

Greg has it spot on.........the 4040a version/formulation is specifically designed for use with fuels and lubricants......the 4040a is the "Mastercraft" brand of "tygon". There is an equivalent "Tygon" brand of "Tygon" (if that makes any sense) which is the same stuff as the 4040a mastercraft brand....they are both yellow. As mentioned...there is a "blue" type which also is intended for fuel.

I go back to my original, earlier response on this thread. Tygon is not tygon......there are hundreds of types and it is sold under multiple brands.......both the base material and incuded plasticizers are formulated differently to create the hundreds of different applications....specificatiuons and application data is also available with ihe site......jrevens managed to find the formulation which doesn't have a load of plasticizers in it - therefore it kinks easy and is hard to form although the lack of plasticizers will probably reduce the problem with the tubing getting dark.

For others who have worked as lab rats, you are probably familiar with the company Cole Parmer......it's a laboratory & industrial supply house.....www.coleparmer.com (http://www.coleparmer.com)

On a lousy day for flying.....hit the site.....search on "tygon", and you can find a version of this stuff for just about any purpose you can think of....including the limited number of versions intended for fuel and lubricants. (disregard & don't be confused the gazillion types of tygon designed for peristaltic pumps)

Greg's got the right one.....it's not a perfect world and nothing will last forever; but the 4040a (and other brand equivalents of the same stuff) will out perform the others on longevity.

Dave S

[gregsgt]

I've built high performance outboard motors for years and I've always used the 4040a for the fuel connections to the carbs and I've never had to replace any of the lines. The clear tygon I could never get much more than a season out of.

I was a little worried about the visibility of the fuel through the yellow line but found that I can see the fuel level just fine. I use the same 4040a for the vent line from the header tank to the wing tank.

I don't know much about the other options out there but I've never had any complaints over all the years I've used the 4040a. It will easily bend around a radius too.