mono--how old is too old?

[ivanputski]

I think that it dries out and gets brittle... so instead of a long stretch, you get a dry "snap" Is all the time and effort spent on finally hooking that fish of the year worth fishing old line? not for me. There's a hundred ways to lose a good fish once hooked... I never want neglect of my own gear to be the reason. When in doubt, throw it out

[MarkB]

Light and heat could damage mono, but other than that I see little reason to worry. If I had any question, I'd just tie it off a section and give it a good pull. I know when 25# line breaks off when I lose a jig in the canal - it's damn hard to do. If I start pulling and it breaks off easily, I'd replace it. Otherwise, I'm using it, no matter how old it is. I see no reason to throw money away just because of a theoretical problem. I wouldn't fool around with 30 year old line that's been sitting in the attic, but if it's a few years old and looks and feels good, I'm using it.

Eight years? Look at it, feel it, give it a tug test. Unless you're made of money.