Most often used in the dental, medical, industrial, pneumatic, robotic, electronics, and food industries, plastic tubing is used to transport fluids and harsh chemicals, house electronic and robotic wiring, and perform a variety of other uses. Plastic tubing is made from quality materials such as PVC, nylon, polyethylene, and polyurethane. It is generally very durable and can be flexible or rigid, soft and ductile, corrosion resistant, or have any of a number of other qualities, depending on application. Plastic tubing is available for coiling, bonding, cutting, and special packaging.
Plastic Tubing Company Links
Freelin-Wade specializes in plastic tubing for industrial, pneumatics, dental, promotions, and more. They are known for the flexibility and durability of their plastic tubing, and provide options for custom tubing.
Polyconn stocks a wide variety of plastic tubing, speciality tubing, pneumatic air hose and acessories. We have multiple materials, durometer levels, an array of colors and an assortment of sizes to match your pneumatic application. If you can't find the Metric Tubing or Tube and Hose you need, we'll source source it for you!
Plastic Tubing Videos
Plastic Tubing Advantages
Using plastic tubing in place of metal tubing or other alternatives gives a number of advantages. In general, plastic is much lighter than metal and many other materials. It is also far more flexible—in situations where metal tubing would need to be bent or reshaped to fit around corners or other obstacles, plastic tubing can easily be curved to fit in the required location. Plastic tubing can be considerably more durable than metal. Whereas a dropped object could easily dent a metal tube, impairing the flow of fluids through the tubing, plastic tubing can bounce back from such an impact, with little to no adverse affect. Certain varieties of plastic can be significantly more resistant to chemicals and other potential harmful factors, such as water/moisture, abrasion, and extreme temperatures. Plastic is a relatively easy material to work with, which enables plastic tubing manufacturers to produce tubing in a wide range of sizes, thicknesses, and lengths. The material’s ease of use also allows many manufacturers to offer “custom” tubing that can be made to fit the needs of almost any application.
Plastic Tubing Materials
Because “plastic” refers to a wide range of materials, plastic tubing can be manufactured to utilize the inherent benefits of the specific material used. By knowing the strengths and weaknesses of each different plastic material, manufacturers can create tubing for high specialized purposes. Nylon, for example, is highly chemical resistant, and is available in a number of classes that exhibit different levels of flexibility and strength. Polyethylene is an ideal material for plastic tubing, as it has a high level of resistance to environmental stresses such as chemical exposure, UV light, aging, and vibration, all of which can cause cracking. PVC is a very flexible material, and its smooth finish prevents sediment accumulation and bacterial action. A wide range of “specialty plastics” exist as well, each with its own unique characteristics and advantages that make it ideal for specialized plastic tubing applications.
