Our Top 7 Tips for Secure & Sealed Hose Installation in Your Car

Rushed or poorly planned modifications to your car can lead to more trouble (and money) than they’re worth. That’s why if you’re tinkering under the hood this weekend with some hoses and fittings, we recommend you take 5 minutes to make sure you’ve got these 7 tips and best practices front and centre in your mind.

1. Choose the Right Parts for the Task

It’s an obvious one but you’d be surprised how often it gets skipped: make sure you’re picking the right fittings and hoses for the job. For instance, if you’re upgrading your fuel system, choose a hose that can handle fuel. Similarly, you need to make sure the fittings, well, fit. So, if you’re installing a new fuel line, choose an effective barb fitting. As part of this, make sure you know if you’re going to need to install an adaptor as well. While there’s plenty of car customisation options that are plug-and-play, sometimes your plugs aren’t quite the same as everyone else’s. This is when knowing where to pick up a few different hose barb adaptors and the like makes things a whole lot easier.

2. Check Your Hoses & Fittings First

We can all get a little overconfident in our abilities. Even though you might have a good eye, be sure that what you’re working with is actually going to fit. This includes checking hoses and fittings will attach securely and safely to any parts, as well as sit easily within the engine bay itself. And, don’t forget the old adage: “Measure twice, cut once.” If you’re cutting any hose, make sure it’ll reach.

3. Keep Electrical Tape Handy for a Perfect Seal

Speaking of cutting, this is when electrical tape can be your best friend. For an excellent seal, we recommend putting a little electrical tape over where you intend to cut the hose. Not only does this give you a clear indication of where to cut (particularly if you get called away between measuring and cutting), but it also helps to reduce the likelihood of burrs or ragged edges. These can seriously interfere with the leak-free seal you’re after.

4. Steer Clear of Kinks & Twists

While you might be able to hide the rats nest of cables for your TV behind a discreetly placed cabinet that won’t fly when it comes to your car. When you’re working with hoses, you want to avoid kinks and twists as much as possible to ensure a clear flow is maintained. To do so, minimise sharp turns and bends. You might need to play a little of car part Tetris to get things straightened up, but it also makes doing further work and repairs far less of a headache.

5. Watch Where the Hose Will Rest

As you’re getting those hoses laid just so, free of kinks and twists, be sure they aren’t ending up in danger. You don’t want the hose to be overheating or in contact with other components. Otherwise, it will wear out far more quickly. So, when you’re picking up your hose and fittings, be sure to grab some support clamps too. This will keep your hose out of harm’s way and prevent it from rubbing against other parts.

6. Tighten It Just So

It’s important that any new fittings are secure. However, if you’re over-enthusiastic about tightening them, you might be wasting your money. If a fitting is over-tightened, it can damage it, making it effectively useless. So, make sure fittings are secure but not too secure!

7. Test Before Putting Them Under Pressure

It’s tempting to see just what your modifications have done for your car’s capabilities, but it pays to be cautious. Instead, build up the pressure. This way, if the hoses and fittings do start to fail, you won’t do a whole lot of damage to the rest of your car.

Ready to Start Modifying Your Car?

If you need to grab hoses and fittings for a weekend’s worth of alterations to your car, you’re in the right place. VPW has a huge range of quality aftermarket car parts, including a wide variety of hoses and fittings, all at affordable prices.