what hose clamps are safe?

a metal clamp will fail if exposed to saltwater, and may not be all that reef friendly either. plastic is the way to go.
 
nylon cable ties. As stated, plastic safe, anything else...not.

Even the best stainless will degrade, and I bet in such a small environment would destroy the water.
 
plastic ones are best but cable ties will do fine .if its not submerged stainless clamps will be fine. also if your using the correct size hose on a barbed fitting and its submerged you dont even need one .if there is a small leak it will not effect a thing because its underwater in the sump.
 
Cable ties (AKA zip ties) are useless as hose clamps unless you are using VERY thin tubing. Try it out and see. If you have standard vinyl hose held on with cable ties, you will be able to pull the hose off just as easy as if they weren't on there at all. The plastic ones you can get at marinedepot or other sites work great. If possible, use some pliers to tighten them on. Just don't over tighten otherwise you might crack the pipe.
 
buy the good 3M zip ties they work great .cheap ones are just as you said ,useless at best . just be sure and get ones that do not have a metal lock tab inside as that will eventually rust and become a problem .and yes the marine depot are really the best for in water applications .
 

Similar threads

Back
Top