Rigid vs semi rigid tubing

[dano2840]

Wondering which is better semi rigid or rigid tubing for running laterals?
obviously aemi rigid for drops, but ive never used rigid tubing, is it worth the little bit exta $? is it better?

[maplwrks]

If you are going to use rigid, 30p or 30g is the best and cheapest there is. If you are looking for superior leak resistance, go with a semi rigid. The semi seals around fittings much better than rigid. The 30p or 30g are a larger inside diameter tubing than most all of the other rigid tubings and cleans much better than most. It's a matter of preference though--I have all 30g laterals and semi drops. My next installation next year will be all semi.

[PATheron]

I use all the 4 season stuff. I think thats what your calling semi Mike? Its all cdl. I call it miracle tube becouse it seals up like you say on the fittings and if something comes down on it no prob. Stuff doesnt come apart like the rigid stuff. I think you get way less vac leaks during season with it. Thats real nice. Theron

[maplwrks]

I will be buying all of my tubing at CDL this next spring during the spring sale. The past 2 years, they have had the best prices of all the manufacturers. The D&G dealers at the Verona school had a killer price of $45.00 a roll, shoulda bought them out!!

[caseyssugarshack93]

my self i like the rigid.

just my two cents

[Maplewalnut]

I agree with the semi for lats but have experienced a problem pulling the CDL too tight (by hand). To the point where I have sections that are probably down to 1/8 inch or so. I only noticed the problem because my tubing tool would not latch on, the diamter was so small. Not sure if it is 5 year/10 year or 15 year or if it would make a difference. Seems to be where the tubing is zig zagged tight around trees. Do not have the same problem with LaPierre semi. Anyone else experience this?

[caseyssugarshack93]

Are u saying the tubing is closing to a smaller diamiter?
if so i havent had a problem but all i use is rigid.

[Maplewalnut]

Yes, some sections were reduced by more than half. My son wanted me to post a picture on here to show everyone. Looks like thats what I'll do if I can find a piece we cut out

[Amber Gold]

From what I've found the rigid installs without sags in cases where there's long distances between trees so for this reason I would use it on gravity systems. Also because it's stiffer it goes on fittings easier. Not sure what manufacturer I used, but it's opaque.

The semi-rigid tends to sag more, but it seems to seal better around fittings. Everything I have is on vacuum so I'm not concerned about the sags and more concerned with getting a good seal. For the semi-rigid I've used the IPL 4-season and Lapierre 5-year. I prefer the Lapierre mainly because it goes on fittings easier. They both seem to seal around fittings equally well.

[caseyssugarshack93]

i hurd of this happening before when pulling the tubing to tight with semi and makes a smaller diamiter. for lats id use 30p and the semi for drops. I just use 30p for everything and i havent had a problem yet.

post at picture if you can.

[dano2840]

ive heard you cant cant heat up the rigid to get it on to fittings because if you can it would help it seal better.

[caseyssugarshack93]

I never had to heat up nothing when using a tubing tool. Just lucky i guess ??

[dano2840]

thats because youve never used beaver river tubing, its not because it slipped it is because it was hard to sqeeze on there
plus once you hook up ur vac you might find alot of the ridig may have leaks near the fittings

[maplwrks]

If you've got to heat tubing to get the fittings on with a tubing tool, I would junk it. I will leak when you put the vacuum to it.

[Haynes Forest Products]

4 years ago I did a section of woods with the riged about 150 taps and the next day 10 peices were on the ground and it was random when I checked they all were split. I called Roth Sugar Bush Up and they sent out 4 new rolls out without a peep and Maple Pro called apologized. I dont like the rigid pulls of the barbs easy. I did a woods back when Denver beat Green Bay in the Super Bowl and the only colors maple Pro had back then was blue and orange did make a few neighbors testy.

[caseyssugarshack93]

i never had to heat up tubing at all and i thought if u heated it up it would pretty much ruin the tubing. Yeah ill have leaks but the rule of tumb is if the fitting can spin in the tubing then it will leak and if it wont then it should be sealed

just what i hurd never hurd of heating up tubing what do u heat it up with? are you talking about a torch or just ur hand heat ?

[caseyssugarshack93]

Dan is ur tubing tool still slipping maybe thats why u have to heat it up? maybe the tubing tool has somthing wrong as maplewrks said if you have to heat up the tubing with a tubing tool there must be somthing wrong isnt that green tubing a blend between semi and ridged didnt you say? in that case i put rigid on with ease and if the green tubing your talking about between semi and ridgid then the tubing tool should put it right on if the tubing tool can put on rigid.

[Russell Lampron]

Dan try wetting the fittings when you put them in. It makes the IPL semi rigid tubing that I use go together a lot easier. I used to have a hard time getting rigid tubing on to the manifolds that I use. With the semi rigid I hold the tubing in one hand to warm it up a little, wet the fitting on the manifold and push it together by hand. If it is warm enough outside and the sun is shining on the end of the tubing I only have to wet the fitting.

[Jeff E]

Heres another deal with tubing. I had a Wet/Dry line, and I used rigid on the dry, and 30P on the wet. The 30P was much easier to work with.

The problem came with really cold weather. The rigid had a diferent contraction rate (shrinkage) with the cold, and pulled of several fittings. The different shrinkage also caused stresses in some manifolds, breaking them. I hate rework when there is so much new work to do!

I am being careful now in where I use rigid, and how it will interact with what it is connected to.

[caseyssugarshack93]

ARe you talking about the 30p mainline,I never used it and for the rigid im guessing your talking about the black mainline. Thats what i use and what i do for connectioons is double clamps on both ends of the connection and wire. havent had a problem yet But i dont have a wet dry system either jeff.

Hope everythings working goood for you jeff and everyone

[Jeff E]

Your right. 30P mainline, and the rigid is black. I have seen the double clamp on other images, and that is the way to go, for sure with the black.

[caseyssugarshack93]

i double clamp mine and then hook a peice of wire at one and then go across the the otherone then do that 2 times and good to go. I use the black mainline cause the blue is just to expencive for me.Id like to do one bush with it just to see if i like it.Maybe next year.

[Jeff E]

You wire the clamps together over the joint?

[ennismaple]

I tried one roll of rigid and it definitely stays tighter from tree to tree than the semi. However, the semi holds the fittings much better and I prefer it. We've used both CDL and Lapierre semi rigid and I don't really have a preference. I've heard some horror stories about Lapierre semi that I won't repeat - I haven't had the same problems.

[caseyssugarshack93]

i take a peice of wire and go in a x pattern arcoss the joint for extra help to keep the joint from pulling apart

[maple flats]

I used black mainline in previous years but this year I am running 30P. I have always used 30P except a few rolls of LaPierre for my laterals and drops. I prefer the 30P. But I have not yet added Vacuum. I will be adding vacuum in a year or 2. What I am putting in right now is the wet half of a wet dry line, dry to be added when I get the vacuum.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Beaver River, that's a name from the past. Wish I could still get it. I have some that has been up several years and still looks like new. It is the best tubing I have ever used. I like the Lapierre clear tubing also, but it is hard to work with like the Beaver River.

I guess the Leader tubing is good. I used 30P for all my drops but won't do that again because something in my woods seem to have a fetish for the 30P and chews it is to pieces. I have to say it is by far the easiest tubing to work with I have ever used.

What is 30G, the new memory flex??

[Sugarmaker]

Using mostly all 30P for short run main lines with mix of 30P and Leader Memory flex drops. I pulled the 30P good and tight last year and had good luck. we will see how it acts for year two. It has had a rest in the rafters of the sugar house for a year.:)

Regards,
Chris

[mapleman3]

I just bought 5000 feet of CDL semi rigid, I hope it works good on my gravity system, I will be running in cold weather... real cold, so I will have to pull extra tight. it will warm up and sag I'll have to go back and tighten up. I guess I'll use end rings so I can adjust tension.

I did go with black pipe for one bush and 1/2 blue main for another smaller area... it's a colder area so I figure I can use the black to help thaw quick or it may not thaw till noon or later!!! it will be interesting to see how the blue 1/2 main will do

[caseyssugarshack93]

I use all black tubing ( wanna try some blue) should have a good sugaring year if everything goes good and the weather. last year was crazy for me.

hope everything works good for you mm3

[Haynes Forest Products]

The other reason I dont like the rigid is when you come to the maine line you cant do a nice loop from the mainline clamp to the star fitting. The stars are poorly made and dont take to side stress. Semi is the way to go.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

I use the "Y" forks for entrance into the mainline, so semi or rigid don't matter to me as I don't have any loop to worry about but I agree that rigid is more difficult to loop.

[caseyssugarshack93]

I dont know i use rigid for everything and i havent had a problem but i havent hooked my vac to it yet and i use the saddles and my loops are 10inches and it works good for me. i never used semi i get my supplies from mike parker 18000 tap bush and when i first started out i asked what tubing they use and he keeps in stock rigid tubing and that what he told me to use for that lats and drops thats what he does so i go by what he sells me and he sells me the rigid tubing and nothing elts. never used the semi.

[PATheron]

Guys- I use all cdl 4 seasons 5 year. I think I tend to pull mine a little tight but it doesnt seem like it when I do it. Anyway after hearing you guys talk about it stretching I called CDL and asked them about it. They said that its pretty hard to over do it. Im pretty sure he said dont go over 3 to 5% stretch and he said 10% is asking for trouble. Well I went home and took 100' of line and ran it out on the ground like I was doing a lateral and ran it from the last tree to the mainline. It was pulled out on the ground. Then I pulled it in like I was doing a normal lateral. I ended up with 2' of tail. So that tells me Im normally pulling around two percent. Now it was cold and maybe when its warm Im a little heavier so maybe 3 %. Anyway no prob. Well within what they say. Then I took the line and pulled it over my shoulder as I went and did it as hard as I could that way. I had 3' of tail or 3%. He told me he doubted I was pulling it hard enough to effect it and thats how it appears to me from what hes saying. Ive watched in places where its tight around trees and cant see any distortion. The only place I have noticed that is where you go around the tree and maybe over a small shoot of the tree, say a two " deal, if the lat is tight it will flatten somewhat againt that. Even then it doesnt look like a lot but I dont do it becouse of that. If I cant get the roll through there I change it when I cut the drop in. Anyway that was my experiance for what its worth. I think maybe the 4 season 5 year could be stretched too much, maybe, if it was installed in the real warm weather. Then I guess a guy could pull too much by mistake, maybe that happens. Another thing and I could be wrong but Matt has some 10 year 4 season and that seemed to be heavier built and I dont think you could over do that. The 5 year is just more elastistic. I guess 10 below kind of makes a guy ramble on. Theeron

[maplwrks]

30G is Leaders 30P, but green in color

[Dave Y]

Brandon,
If you want some Beaver River call Mike Puffenburger in Bolar Va. I think he still has some. A friend of mine who deals with him had some in his truck the other day.