How to Square the End of Rubber Tubing

A square cut end is vital to properly sealing a length of rubber tubing to a connector.

Rubber tubing is a vital plumbing component on your vehicle. To ensure that the rubber hose connections on your vehicle do not leak, you need to make sure that each cut end of the rubber tubing is perfectly square. An un-square end of rubber tubing will not fully seat on a connector and the clamp that holds the rubber hose in place may not secure the entire surface of the tubing. To cut the end of the rubber tubing square, you need to have a square reference line.

Things You'll Need

• Folded piece of paper
• Rubber tubing
• Fine-point red marker
• Utility knife

Instructions

1. Wrap the folded piece of paper around the rubber tubing and slide the paper to around 1/2 inch in from the end of the tubing.

2. Align the sides of the folded piece of paper. When the sides of the folded paper are even, the paper is square to the sides of the rubber tubing.

3. Drag the fine-point red marker along the side of the folded piece of paper.

4. Remove the paper from the rubber tubing.

5. Cut along the red marker line with the utility knife to square the end of the rubber tubing. Work slowly, if you wander away from the marked line, you will need to remark and re-cut the end of the rubber tubing.