Any Ideas on how to stretch rubber hose ends?

[Evening Shade]

Hey guys I just wanted to see if anyone had any tips on how to stretch the ends of ballast hose to make them easier to get on the brass barb from the hard tank. I recently installed a piggyback kit and the hoses were hard as heck to get on the brass barb from the hard tank overflow. I will be adding a kit to the bow of the boat in the future and would like some tips to make it easier. I tried heat, grease, blood, sweat, and even a few tears I think. I finally got the hoses on when in threw in a few curse words! I was thinking that something like the exhaust pipe stretcher that muffler shops use would work great, but don't know if there is anything like that small enough to fit 1" ballast hose.
Any thoughts?

[rcazwillis]

Heat up the end of the hose before pushing it on the barb. Heat gun from home improvement store will work well.

[Evening Shade]

I tried a heat gun. Worked ok on one side, but the other side was a whole other story. That side was still difficult to get on. In fact, heat may have made it more difficult because the warm rubber hose would collapse when I tried to push it on the barb. Part of the problem is the location. Its hard to get much leverage to push the hose on the barb.

[rcazwillis]

Would it be easier to unscrew the barb, install the hose, and screw the barb back in. I did this on the inlet side of the water strainer when I replaced all the coolant hose on my 2002 Sante. Not all spots are accessible enough to easily unscrew the barb.

[Evening Shade]

rcazwillis, I actually thought about doing just that, but the hose that goes on the barb was attached to a T piece in the piggyback kit with crimp clamp rather than a screw style hose clamp so I would have had to destroy the crimp clamp and use a hose clamp which I didn't have the right size.

[nautiques4life]

If you are using the factory hose I had a hard time too, I eventually got it but it was fairly hard work- especially depending on the location/access. Bow was easier somehow, didn't have any problems with that one actually. If you are having that hard of a time, just buy extra hose from wakemakers and swap it all to that- that way it all matches anyways, plus with a little heat that hose slips on real easy.

[swatguy]

Heat gun does it for sure. It's and art and takes practice. You want to heat it just enough where it's pliable and not too much where it's collapses. My guess from doing a ton of installs is you're heating the hose too far up the line making it weak. Just heate the first 1.5inches. Also wear gloves so you can grip the hot hose. Use a small amount of dish soap on the barb. Twist the hose as you push it on and viola. Again. Take your time hear the hose evenly and keep the heat towards the end

[Evening Shade]

Swatguy, I will try your suggestion next time. Someone at work recommended inserting needle nose pliers in the hose and pulling them open to stretch the hose. I think I will try this with heat and dish detergent next time.

[Silver Surf]

Take a small piece of wood (2x4) & a decent size hammer into the boat. Put the tip (1") of the hose on the block of wood and smash it flat a few times with the hammer then quickly slide it onto the barb.

I learned it from a old school drag racer when I was building my car at a friends shop. When he first told me I thought it was a shop prank. He went and got a hammmer and smashed the hose on the shop floor Ive been hooked every sense.

[rcazwillis]

Soapy water as a lubricant will help more than you think, too.

[swatguy]

Take a small piece of wood (2x4) & a decent size hammer into the boat. Put the tip (1&quot of the hose on the block of wood and smash it flat a few times with the hammer then quickly slide it onto the barb.

I learned it from a old school drag racer when I was building my car at a friends shop. When he first told me I thought it was a shop prank. He went and got a hammmer and smashed the hose on the shop floor Ive been hooked every sense.

Well that's a new one. I almost just want to go buy a barb and give that a go.

[seth]

Heat gun and dish soap is your answer. Heat it up and lube it up with some dish soap, slides right on and cleans the inside of your bags!!!

[Evening Shade]

Thanks for all the great tips!

[Evening Shade]

My replacement piggyback kits came today. I used dish soap and a heat gun and they went on the barbs like a charm! Thanks again for the tips. The dish soap seemed to work way better than the Vaseline and white lithium grease I tried before.