Rubber Air hoses cracking?

[mrjaw14]

I've had two air hoses I've needed to replace this year. They're both rubber. They're both 2-3 years old, but haven't seen a lot of hard use. it seems more like dry rot cracking the entire length of the hoses. My PVC hoses of similar age are just fine, but stiffen in cold weather to almost not being usable.

You guys having difficulty with rubber hoses cracking, or are there particular hoses to get or stay away from?

 

[jkwilson]

Do any welding around them or have large electric motors nearby? Ozone can be tough on rubber.

 

[MLB0611]

Cheap rubber hoses crack real fast, no matter what, goodyear or gates hose seem to be the best.

Or go with a Flexzilla hose best of both worlds, but very expensive

 

[rlitman]

Black rubber hoses can be susceptible to oils and solvents too.
Solvent resistant rubber hose is often (but not always) red.

And yes, cheap Chinese hose cracks, no matter what. I've had even worse luck with PVC though.

 

[firebox40dash5]

There's a rubber hose laying around somewhere that's probably 6-8 years old, and sat outside for a few of those years and still works fine. Pretty sure it's Goodyear or quality Napa (meaning probably Goodyear anyway, or something decent).

Contrast that with the crappy rubber hoses that came on our cheap hose reels, that were cracking and spitting off their ends in under a year, indoors.

I love my Flexzillas so far, had them about a year and the only problem I've had is the aluminum fittings being too soft. You can buy their Pro line, which comes with reusable compression-type ends, or buy the ends separately. I bought like 10 of the ends because 2 of mine rounded out, and I figured it's cheap insurance. I don't think $40 for a 50' 3/8" is that bad considering alternatives, and they're great hoses IMO. If you've got a bunch, you can also try to find a spool of plain hose and make your own hoses with the reusable ends.

 

[mrjaw14]

what's interesting is that I had a 25' 3/8" rubber hose that came with my craftsman compressor, so it's my oldest hose, stored the same way as the others isn't cracking at all. It's made in China. The other two hoses were cheap ones. One red one black.

Didn't know the differences in rubber hose quality back then unfortunately. From here on out I guess it's goodyear or gates or bust!