Category 04 · Milk line

Clear milk hose cut to the foot, from $1.10.

Tubing: $1.10 to $5.40 per foot Full 100 ft coil: a further 10% off the band Assemblies: per assembly Indicative only. Freight and Wisconsin sales tax extra

The one number that matters

Order hose by the inside diameter.

Clear milk hose is sold by ID. The nipple on the claw, the stall cock, the receiver inlet: all of them are sized for a bore, and the hose has to grip that bore tight enough to hold vacuum without being forced on with boiling water and a screwdriver. The OD only matters when a clamp or a hanger has to close around it.

The mistake we see every month is somebody measuring the outside of an old tube, ordering that number as the ID, and getting hose a full size too big. It slips off the nipple under vacuum halfway through milking. Cut a clean end, put a steel rule across the hole, and send us that.

Clear PVC yellows and stiffens. Once it has gone cloudy you can't see milk film inside it, and you can't see whether the wash reached it either. Most parlours change long milk tubes every six to twelve months; short tubes near the claw go sooner because they flex on every attachment.

Clear PVC milk tubing, indicative band per foot
ID	Cut length	Full 100 ft coil
5/8 in	$1.10 to $1.60	$0.99 to $1.44
3/4 in	$1.40 to $2.00	$1.26 to $1.80
1 in	$2.10 to $3.10	$1.89 to $2.79
1.5 in	$3.80 to $5.40	$3.42 to $4.86

Indicative band, not a quote. Quantity breaks from 25 ft apply on top; the estimator works them out as you type. The desk confirms the price once it knows your ID and length.

Hands cutting clear milk tubing from a coil — Cut square with a hose cutter, never a knife. A ragged end leaks vacuum at the nipple.

Item 04.1

Clear PVC milk tubing

Food-contact clear PVC, sold by the foot and cut to your length at the counter. Four IDs from 5/8 to 1.5 inch. Buy the full 100 ft coil and the per-foot band drops another 10%.

The clarity is the point. You can watch milk flow from each quarter, spot a blocked short tube, and see after a wash whether the line is clean. We don't stock tinted or opaque milk tube for that reason.

PVC has limits. It softens above roughly 150°F, so it isn't the hose for a hot discharge line or a wash return sitting in hot water. For that, look at the EPDM assembly below. If you're replacing short milk tubes at the claw, the liners and claws page lists the claw nipple sizes.

Price basis Per foot, $1.10 to $5.40 by ID Full 100 ft coil, a further 10% off

Tubing specification
Material	Clear food-contact PVC
IDs stocked	5/8, 3/4, 1, 1.5 in
Sold as	Cut length by the foot, or a full 100 ft coil
Suits	Long milk tubes, receiver and stall connections, low-pressure transfer
Not for	Hot discharge lines, pumped pressure, tanker hookups

Send a part inquiry

Milk discharge hose assembly with stainless tri-clamp ends

Item 04.2

EPDM milk discharge hose assemblies

Food-grade EPDM hose with a reinforced wall, built up with stainless tri-clamp ends and pressure tested before it leaves the building. For pump discharge, tanker loading and vat transfer, where PVC would kink or balloon.

We build to your length and your clamp size. Tell us the ferrule size at each end, which isn't always the same, and whether the hose will lie on the floor or hang from a hook between uses. A hose that hangs in a loop on a single hook will take a set at the bend within a season; two hooks or a saddle keep it straight.

EPDM handles hot water and the usual alkaline and acid washes. What shortens its life is being dragged across concrete with the ends open. Cap the ends, keep it off the floor, and a well-built assembly outlasts several sets of PVC.

Price basis Per assembly Depends on ID, length and end fittings

Assembly specification
Hose	Food-grade EPDM tube and cover, reinforced wall
Ends	Stainless tri-clamp ferrules, sized to your line
Testing	Pressure tested before dispatch
We need	Hose ID, finished length, ferrule size at each end, hot or cold duty
Clamps and gaskets	Not included unless asked; see gaskets and seals

Send a part inquiry

ID/OD chart for milk hose

Wall thickness varies by maker by a millimetre or so. When the OD matters, for a clamp or a hanger, send us the reading off your old hose and we'll check it against what's on the shelf.

Nominal inside diameter against typical outside diameter
Nominal ID	ID in mm	Typical OD, clear PVC	Where it usually goes
5/8 in	15.9 mm	about 22 to 24 mm	Long milk tube from claw to milk line on most parlours
3/4 in	19.1 mm	about 26 to 28 mm	Larger-bore long milk tubes, high-flow claws
1 in	25.4 mm	about 33 to 35 mm	Receiver connections, short transfer runs
1.5 in	38.1 mm	about 47 to 50 mm	Low-pressure transfer to the tank; use EPDM if pumped hot

How a hose order moves

Tell us ID and length
For tubing, the ID and the total feet. For an assembly, the ID, finished length and ferrule size at each end.
We confirm and price
A written reply with stock, the price and the lead time. Tubing is almost always on the shelf.
Cut or built
Tubing is cut square at the counter. Assemblies are built and pressure tested, which usually adds a day or two.
Coiled and shipped
Loose-coiled, never folded, and ends bagged. Details on how ordering works.

Straight answers on hose

Garden hose
We don't sell general-purpose hose for milk contact. If it isn't food grade, it doesn't go on the line.
Old offcuts
No short lengths of unknown age from the end of someone else's coil. You get fresh hose from a coil we can date.
Untested assemblies
Every discharge assembly is pressure tested before it ships. No exceptions for a rush.

Hose inquiry

Send the ID and the feet.

That's usually all the desk needs for tubing. For an assembly, add the ferrule size at each end. Photos of the old hose next to a ruler go to [email protected], or ring (608) 355-8791.

Name *

Phone *

Email *

What you need

Delivery address or town and ZIP *

Spec

For tubing leave ends blank. For an assembly give the ferrule size at each end.

Notes

Foremost Farms may contact me about this inquiry. I have read the privacy policy and the terms.

Inquiry only. The desk replies with stock, an indicative price and a lead time. Nothing is charged online.