Reason and Purpose
When I first started to consider the process of fabricating my own keezer, there was a great deal I didn’t know and many components with which I was unfamiliar. I did know that vinyl tubing has a tendency to influence the mediums it transports, and I wanted to get an idea how much influence “beer line” typically has upon its subject. It was this threadHBT60380 which first introduced me to Accuflex’s Bev-Seal Ultra Series 235, and from there I was off to the races. I’ve reached the point where the amount of information I’ve accumulated on this product is worthy of its own post, which will hopefully allow me to take a little bit of noise out of some of my other marginally related posts, instead substituting a link back here.
Description and Characteristics
Bev-Seal Ultra Series 235 tubing hoseThomasnet is a flexible barrier tubing manufactured by Accuflex. They describe it as a truly flushable dual barrier product allowing quick flavor changes, even for pungent flavors. It utilizes their trademarked Glas-Flex polymer inner barrier liner, which they claim is “flushable, glass-smooth, non-porous, non-absorbent, non-reactive, taste-free, FDA sanctioned, and NSF51/NSF61 accepted.”Accuflex Kal on the Homebrew Talk forums vouches for these characteristics with independent testing of water left sitting in distribution lines. HBT60380 At the time that thread began, this product was unavailable in 3/16″ ID – which tends to be highly suitable for the short runs commonly found in home built distribution systems – and apparently remained that way for several years.
Forum thread discussing/recommending use of 3/16″ Bev-Seal to reduce foaming, especially on shorter runs and recommendations on how to install.
For 3/16″ ID tubing, 2PSI restriction per foot (necessary for balancing the distribution system), and volume of .18oz per foot (nice to know so I can tell how many ounces of flat beer I might get in a pour after a long rest) per CHI 24-Jan-14. At least one source indicates this is far higher than the restriction rate they have found, reporting restriction of .45PSI.
Part number for 3/16″ID series is 235-05620-XX, where XX represents line numbering and/or color on the tubing.
A typical Part Number is 235-08620-XX for a 500 ft. spool of 3/8” size tubing, where “XX” indicates the number to be imprinted (use “00” for unnumbered tubing). The color coding is in the form of colored strips 120° apart, and number and color coding is as follows: XX = 01 – Blue; 02 – Black; 03 – Red; 04 – Green; 05 – Yellow; 06 – Orange; 07 – Brown; 08 – White; 09 – Pink; 10 – Purple; 11 – Blue; 12 – Black; 13 – Red; 14 – Green; etc. Thomasnet
Footnotes
Accuflex: Accuflex Bev-Seal Ultra product catalog, retrieved 24-Jan-14, LV
HBT60380: Homebrew Talk forum post documenting testing of a variety of tubing types and their impact on flavor, retrieved 24-Jan-14, LV
Thomasnet: Thomasnet spec sheet for Accuflex products, retrieved 24-Jan-14, LV