Who invented heat shrink tubing

You will likely want to find one that is handheld and easy to use, but make sure to use the appropriate temperature range depending on your shrink tubing. Remember, different materials can withstand different heat levels! Some applications may not be able to fit through shrink tubing, making heat shrink tape a better choice. It provides the necessary bonding and protection with added flexibility and versatility. Here at cable ties and more, we carry a wide selection of heat shrink tubing and heat shrink accessories for your unique needs.

Before installing heat shrink tubing, you should educate yourself on how to shrink heat shrink. There are more than a few ways that heat shrink tubing can be shrunk to its recovered size.

However, to properly install heat shrink begins by feeding the cable or hose inside the opening of the heat shrink either by hand or using an electrical wire fish rod to get the tubing to the end of the run.

Once the heat shrink fully encloses the wire or hose, you can start applying high heat from Heat tools. Finally, sit back and watch as the shrink tube recovers down to a snug fit on the cable or hose that is now insulated internally. Our website uses cookies to improve your experience and record usage statistics. By using our site you consent to cookies as described in our Privacy Policy. View Categories. View Products. Additional Information. He made use of radiation chemistry which is what the company is named for to create the two main products the company is best known for: Heat shrinkable tubing Lightweight aircraft cable Even though Raychem was the company that created the original heat shrink polymers, today, an array of manufacturers sell them.

How is Heat Shrink Tubing Used? Some of the specific ways you can use heat shrink tubing include: Provide electrical insulation wire repairs, splices, covering terminals, other connectors, etc. Identify components via custom color, printing , etc. Bundle loose items usually wire harnesses and wires Change the surface finish of something Color-coding Thermal insulation Strain relief Environmental seal to protect from chemicals and moisture A protective covering that safeguards from denting, scuffing, peeling, chipping, cutting, abrasion, and low impacts As you can see, the uses for heat shrink tubing are vast.

The most commonly used include: Kynar Fluorinated ethylene propylene Polytetrafluoroethylene Neoprene Viton for corrosive or high-temp environments Polyvinyl chloride Polyolefin Along with these polymers, some special-application heat shrink also includes an adhesive lining that assists in bonding the tubing to the underlying connectors and cables.

Learn more about some of the most common materials used here. Polyolefin Heat Shrink vs. PVC Heat Shrink As mentioned above, polyolefin is the most common material used for heat shrink tubing. Heat Shrink Ratios? Common ratios for heat shrink tubing include: Shrink Ratio The tube will become half of the original size when any heat is applied. The Wall Thickness The modern heat shrink sleeves are available in several thicknesses.

The Stiffness Each sleeve available has a different degree of flexibility. Sealing Ability When properly applied, heat shrink tubing will seal the interface between the tubing and an object. Shrink Temperature Most polyolefin materials have a recommended shrink temperature of around 90 degrees Celsius.

Heating Methods The most common way to shrink heat shrink tubing onto something is by using a small, hand-held heat gun.

Heat shrink tubing is available in a variety of colors and sizes. It also comes with a wide range of protection levels, including heavy wall, multiple wall, and single wall. Additional Information [2] Heat shrink tubing comes with a range of different ratios. Here are the most common ratios and their uses: ratio: These tubes shrink to half their original size when heat is applied ratio: These tubes shrink to one third of their original size when heat is applied.

These tubes maintain high flexibility even at low temperatures. They also meet stringent international specifications. A common shrink ratio is It is inert to most chemicals and solvents. Additionally, it is very resistant to extreme levels of heat, cold, and ultraviolet radiation, thereby making it an excellent material for heat-shrink tubing applications. They are manufactured in a wide range of colors including clear , which can be used for color-coding wires. While identifying the inner diameter you should consider both the maximum and minimum perimeter of the object that you are going to cover.

The Shrinkage ratio is the ratio between Inner diameter-supplied and inner diameter-recovered, the tubes are available in various ratio options like 2 to 1, 2. What the heat shrink ratio says is that the Shrink tubes can shrink down to half of its original size, the shrink tubes can shrink down to one-third of its original size. The shrink tube with a high shrinkage ratio is suitable for objects like connectors as it can encase the body of the connector and still be able to shrink down to a smaller diameter, like a wire or a cable.

Generally, the thickness of an object gets reduced if it is stretched, the more you stretch the thinner the object gets. In the case of a shrink tube, it is vice versa, as the tube is shrunk down the thickness of the tube increases.

So, look at the datasheet of the heat shrink tubing and choose the best thickness that suits the environment of your application. Apart from these parameters, you must also carefully choose the material, working temperature and shrinkage temperature as they denote the features of the heat shrink tube.

The heat shrink tubes are available for all kinds of cables associated with both high and low power applications, know your application better and choose the appropriate heat shrink tube for it. The most popular material used for making heat shrinks is Polyolefin. The Polyolefin based material has lots of advantages over other types of heat shrinks. They are Flexible, fast shrinking, excellent durability, high flame retardant, high UV resistance, Excellent chemical and Electrical properties.

These types of heat shrinks are mostly used for mechanical protection, insulation, and marking. The Polyolefin heat shrinks are comparatively costly to be used in all kinds of applications, for applications where the budget matters you can use the PVC heat shrinks. After World War II, it was discovered that exposing plastics to radiation would allow you to intentionally alter the molecular structure without them melting.

A process called covalent bonding between the atoms of the polymer allowed it to experience plastic memory. This means that when the plastic is cross-linked and expanded in shape, it will instinctively return to its original size when exposed to a specific amount of heat.

You may want to heat shrink your tubing, but only a certain amount. So how do you know how much it will shrink?

All heat shrinking tubing is provided with a shrink ratio that will tell you how much it can potentially shrink.

The ratio is decided based on how small it will become compared to its original size. For example, if your heat shrink ratio is , the tubing is capable of shrinking up to one-fifth of its expanded size.