SharkBite vs Apollo

[rsegreto]

I agree, for the arches the only reason I'm going with tubing is for the light diffusion. Otherwise I would just use one of the Boscoyo pixel arches. Clear tubing would be the same as using the pixel arches and you'd be able to see the individual nodes just like the pixel arches.

-Russ

[1pet2_9]

If we found the right material, I would want to use this not just for arches, but I would want to do the hot sand thing to meld translucent pipe into shapes, have it cool down and remember the shape, and use that to completely replace all wrought iron frame ornaments.

[algerdes]

Good work.

So is the reason I almost never see anybody give any real consideration to clear polyethylene tubing pretty much entirely because people want the light diffusion?

That is pretty much it.

FYI- For all the years that I attended Expo, LOR displayed a clear tube tree. It looked great standing there in the vendors' area. Of course that was inside, and we were literally only feet from it.

Personally, I like the diffused look for the outdoor display. Our viewing distance this year was about 30 feet with a 5 meter flat tree made of 16 tubes of PEX using 30/10 5050 strips. "Marvelous" was one of the comments I got from a seasoned Christmas Lighter. (Big smile when hearing this comment on my part!) I thought it was great, as well.

[jchuchla]

I can't speak for others but for me light diffusion is a big factor. That applies even more because our property is small (the arches will be 2' from the pedestrian walkway) Ideally, I would go for the 2" pipe from McMaster as it has great light diffusion and it looks big. But it is also big to store which matters in my area with very limited space. So as I said, I probably will to with the 1" McMaster pipe as it has reasonable light diffusion and ok diffusion when the LED are mounted to the back. You will still see the individual lights but I think people will care more about the overall display and not even notice those individual lights.

It's smart to think about storage of your props in advance. I store my arches in arch form, not straightened out. When storing them like that, it wouldn't take up much less space if they were 1" vs 2". But of course, that's all relative.