Tips to Extend the Life of Your Garden Hose

Dealing with a leaky or damaged garden hose is annoying and can be expensive. If you’ve invested in a drinking safe garden hose or a heated garden hose, you want to make sure that you get your money’s worth. While it’s not difficult to repair a garden hose that’s sprung a leak, it can cost you a pretty penny to buy garden hose fittings and clamps to put it back together again. It’s so much easier to avoid the problems in the first place – and it isn’t that difficult at all. These tips can help you extend the life of your garden hose through season after season of use.

Start with a Quality Garden Hose

There are hundreds of cheap hoses on the market. Just walk down the aisles of your local big box store or hardware store and you’ll see garden hoses in all lengths and diameters in a range of prices starting at less than $10 for a 1/2 inch garden hose with cheap  garden hose fittings to more than $80 for a good quality 1 inch water hose with multiple layers of reinforcement to make the hose more flexible and tougher. Which one is the right one for you? That’s something you’ll have to decide, but in general, you’ll want a lightweight garden hose with heavy-duty brass garden hose fittings. The higher quality you can afford, the longer your garden hose is likely to last under normal conditions.

Turn Off the Water

Don’t just turn off the hose valve and leave the water running at the faucet for long lengths of time. Constant water pressure inside the hose will weaken it over time.

Coil Your Hose When You’re Done with It

It’s tempting to just leave your hose where you last used it, especially if you use it in the same place day after day. There are a couple of problems with that. First, you’re letting water just sit inside the hose where it can breed bacteria and weaken the inner walls. Second, you’re offering a delightful, shady, moist, cool shelter for garden insects that you’d rather not have nesting in your garden hose. Third, and worst of all, it leaves your garden hose laying on the ground where it can be walked on, driven over and, horror of horrors, become just one more casualty of the lawn mower. If you invest in a good quality garden hose reel, coiling your hose is a simple matter of turning a crank. As it coils, the hose will automatically empty itself, so that you’re not letting water sit in it for days.

The better you treat your garden hose, the longer it will last. Considering how expensive a good-quality hose can be, it just makes sense to take some precautionary care to keep it in good repair.

Garden Hose Accessories That Make Your Life Easier

Now that you’ve got the right garden hose, do you have everything you need to make your gardening life easier? There are a number of garden hose accessories that can help you store your hose safely and extend its utility for all types of uses. These are some of the most useful accessories that you can use with any 1/2" garden hose or 3/4” garden hose.

Garden Hose Nozzles

The nozzle you choose to use can turn your gardening and yard chores into a piece of cake. You can choose from nozzles with pistol grips, straight grips or textured grips to make it easier for you to hold and turn the nozzle to different settings. High quality garden hose fittings make it easy to use just about any type of nozzle that fits your needs. The best of those available allow you to set the water anywhere from jet stream to light mist.

Garden Hose Fittings

Garden hoses are most likely to fail at the nozzle end, where the fittings can wear through the hose material. Replacement garden hose fittings are handy to keep on hand for quick repairs, or you can try replacing the standard fitting on the hose with one that swivels or revolves when you’re attaching it to the faucet, saving a lot of wear and tear on the hose.

Garden Hose Reels

Garden hose reels are among the most important of all accessories you can buy to go with your garden hose. Keeping your hose off the ground helps prevent rot and mildew, makes it easier to drain the hose after use and helps keep bugs out of the hose body. There are dozens of different styles of garden hose reels, including wall-mounted reels and portable metal garden hose reels that you can roll with you to anywhere on your property.

Garden Hose Sheaths

Do you get tired of green and blue garden hoses? These days, you can buy a garden hose in any one of a variety of colors, including the typical many shades of green, black and blue garden hoses. If that’s not enough color for you, though, a couple of manufacturers have come up with the ultimate garden hose accessory – garden hose sheaths. Made of thin polyurethane that slips over any standard 1/2 inch garden hose or 3/4 inch garden hose, the garden hose sheaths come in a variety of lively prints that are guaranteed to bring some chic color and style to your garden or patio.

Three Features of a Quality Garden Hose

Spring has sprung and it’s time to get your yard in shape.  Whether that means planting rows of tomatoes, beans and peas or getting the fertilizer out and whipping your grass into shape, you’ll need a high quality garden hose to help you with your tasks.  But ask any experienced gardener and they’ll tell you that a bad garden hose can make life on the lawn miserable, while a quality garden hose can make it bliss.  Here are four features to look for when buying your next garden hose.

The Right Material

Just like in most things, if you buy a cheap garden hose, you’ll likely be stuck with a hose that kinks up, bends and cuts off the water, or has leaks popping up all over it.  What’s worse, some hoses use toxic substances that make it dangerous to drink water from it, fill up your kid’s pool or water your vegetable garden.  When buying a garden hose, you’ll be able to choose from vinyl, rubber or one that uses both materials.  You’ll get more wear out of a rubber hose, but keep in mind that they are heavier, so if you have to haul it all over the yard, that may not be your best option.

The Right Fittings

Have you ever had a hose that sprung a leak at the fitting?  It’s irritating because when that happens, the person using the hose usually ends up drenched by the time they’re done watering the lawn.  The right garden hose fittings are important, and in order for yours to last longer and be more durable, look for a garden hose that uses solid brass fittings.

The Right Reel

No one likes to see a garden hose sprawled out all over the lawn, but unless you have the right garden hose reel, storing your hose can be more hassle than it’s worth.  Look for one of quality that allows you to wrap the hose up easily.  If you don’t want to have to store your hose, opt instead for a coil garden hose.  When it’s not in use, it handily coils up and stores away neatly.

Don’t let a cheap garden hose spoil your gardening fun.  Enjoy your time outdoors by making sure that you get the right hose for the job you’re doing.  Whether that’s a coil garden hose, a drinking safe garden hose, or just a high end hose that won’t kink or break, you’ll reduce the hassle and concentrate instead on the pleasure of your lawn.

Garden Hose Reels and Other Storage Ideas

Spring is springing up all over. If you haven’t already done so, it’s time to check over your trusty garden hose and make sure it’s fit for another season of use. If it’s not, springtime is the second-best time of year to find a great bargain on a high quality garden hose – even specialty hoses like a coil garden hose, a drinking safe garden hose or a heated garden hose. The only better time to replace your worn-out garden hose is at the end of the growing season – but that means you have to put in another season of fighting with a hose that’s too short, kinks easily and tangles up with just about everything. There’s an enormous variety of garden hoses on the market these days, so it should be easy to find exactly the right length and diameter one you need for your garden.

Whether you buy a new garden hose or want to get a little more life from your current one, you definitely should be storing your hose properly. Whether you’re using a 1-inch water hose for heavy duty applications, or a standard 1/2 inch garden hose or 3/4 inch garden hose , storing it the right way will prevent a lot of the problems that can shorten the life of one of your handiest, trustiest gardening tools. Here are some tips on how to properly care for and store your new – or old – garden hose.

Garden Hose Reels

A garden hose reel is the best solution for storing your hose when it’s not in use for a number of reasons.

-          Coiling your garden hose onto the reel helps you empty its entire length, which prevents interior rotting.

-          A wall-mounted garden hose reel keeps your garden hose up off the ground so you don’t accidentally run it over with your riding mower.

-          A portable garden hose reel makes it easier to move your hose around your property without dragging the entire length of the hose behind you.

-          Rolling up your garden hose on a hose reel gets it up off the ground, out of contact with dirt, mold and insects that might crawl into it for a cool place to rest.

There are a number of styles of garden hose reels, including stainless garden hose reels and brass garden hose reels. A word of caution: avoid cheap plastic or aluminum garden hose reels that can bend, buckle or break – and may puncture your garden hose.

The better you treat your garden hose, the more likely it is to last for many years, giving you your full money’s worth.

It’s Spring – Get Out Your Garden Hose

Despite unexpected Midwest blizzards and a recalcitrant Punxsutawney Phil giving out the wrong prediction – blame it on old age – spring actually has arrived. It’s time to bring out your garden hose and get your house and yard in shape for the upcoming season. Here are six things you should do to get yourself, your property and your garden hose ready for the warmer months to come.

Inspect Your Garden Hose

If you’re a diligent, responsible gardener who takes good care of all your tools, your garden hose probably spent the winter in a warm, dry cellar or storage shed. Even then, there’s a chance that your garden hose didn’t come through the winter well. And if you’re like many of us, your hose may just have spent the winter under a blanket of snow. Either way, it’s a good time to give it a good inspection and decide if it’s worth using again this year. Look for cracks and breaks in the plastic or vinyl and check the garden hose fittings for wear.

While you’re at it, consider how well your trusty hose served you last year. Did it reach everywhere you wanted it to go? Did you spend half your gardening time tugging on your garden hose to get it around corners or make it release kinks and bends? If so, it may be time to invest in a new hose that meets your needs. A heavyweight 3/4 inch garden hose won’t kink and curl, and is far less likely to be damaged if you happen to run over it with your lawnmower.

Buy a New Garden Hose

Likewise, consider how you use your garden hose to decide whether you need one of the new specialty hoses on the market. If you water edible garden vegetables or fill kids’ swimming pools with it, for example, you may want to invest in a drinking safe garden hose just to be on the safe side. A coil garden hose makes gardening in small spaces, like patio gardens and container garden beds, much easier by making it easier to maneuver around and store your hose when it’s not in use.

Invest in a Garden Hose Reel

Protect your garden hose by investing in a garden hose real that you can mount on the side of your house or roll with you wherever you need it. You can buy reels in many different configurations and to fit hoses of all sizes from a 1/2 inch garden hose to a one inch water hose.

Wash Your Siding and Windows

Get rid of the grime left behind by the winter with a good hose down for your whole house. There are a lot of attachments available that will turn your garden hose into a great cleaning tool  to spray with soapy water and rinse clean.

Clean Out the Gutters

Rake out your gutters and give them a good wash-out with your hose.

Wash Down the Walkways and Paths

Sand and salt can leave stains and residue on brick and concrete steps and pathways. Wash them down with a high-pressure stream of water from your garden hose to make them look bright and new.

By the time you’re done sprucing up your property with the help of your trusty garden hose, you’ll have left the winter behind and be looking forward to a wonderful gardening season.

Five Garden Hose Facts to Remember This Spring

Is there any tool in your backyard that gets less attention and regard than your garden hose? Even the most avid gardener and householder is prone to take the lowly hose for granted. The recent spate of television ads for expanding garden hoses and the coil garden hose notwithstanding, most people simply expect that their garden hose will be there when they need it, and will perform as expected. They accept the kinks and leaks as inevitable and gamely soldier on, irrigating and sprinkling their gardens with hoses that don’t quite live up to the job they should be doing. The truth is that you have a right to expect good service from your garden hose – that it will not break, kink or leak, and that it will be light enough for you to move it from one place to the other without breaking tender seedlings when you drag it over them. Whether you’re keeping your current garden hose or looking for a replacement, these facts will help you have a more enjoyable, easier gardening season.

Length is Important.

It’s a commonly held assumption that longer is better because it gives you more reach.  In fact, a garden hose that’s too long is nearly as awkward and ineffective as one that doesn’t reach where you want it to go. A longer hose can be heavy and difficult to maneuver, and can reduce water pressure at the business end. Choose a garden hose that’s just long enough to reach the areas where you’ll use it most. If you occasionally need more reach – say, to get to the driveway once a week to wash your car – buy a second short hose that you can use to extend its length. It won’t cost much more and your daily gardening chores will be much more comfortable.

Diameter Makes a Difference.

The difference between a 1/2 inch garden hose and a 3/4 inch garden hose is twice as much water delivered to your target in the same amount of time. If you have low water pressure, opt for a wider diameter hose to increase water flow.

Proper Storage Increases Garden Hose Life

It practically goes without saying that if you treat your garden hose right, it will treat you right. There are many different types of garden hose reels on the market that make it easy to drain your hose after use, and store it out of contact with the ground, both of which will decrease wear and tear on the material of which your hose is made.

It’s Worth It to Pay for Quality

The aisles of your local home improvement store are chock full of cheap garden hoses in many different lengths – but indulging your budget can seriously cramp your style. A cheap hose may make it through one or two seasons before springing a leak or worse. Invest in a high quality garden hose that will last you for years – and be much easier and more comfortable to use.

There’s a Garden Hose for Everything

If you have a special watering or irrigation need, do a little research to find the right garden hose to meet it. There are specialty garden hoses for nearly any use you can imagine. If your hose will be transporting potable water, choose a drinking safe garden hose. If you’re working in a small space, choose a coil garden hose that stays out of the way. You can find a heated garden hose for use in cold climates and weather, and flat soaker hoses for irrigating vegetable beds.

The right garden hose can make a surprising difference in your daily gardening chores. Shop around and find the best hose for your needs and see how much more fun your gardening is this summer.

Is Your Garden Hose Safe to Use?

As most of the country starts pulling out of the winter freeze and preparing for spring, any gardener’s thoughts are lightly turning to thoughts of seedlings, raised beds and equipment. If you’re not thinking about replacing your garden hose, you should at least be considering it. Among other things, recent research and studies have suggested that your garden hose could be hazardous to your health. Here’s what you really need to know to decide if your current hose is safe to use and meets all of your needs.

Do You Or Your Kids Drink From The Water Hose?

The inside of your garden hose may be coated with toxic chemicals that are used as preservatives or to maintain flexibility in the rubber. Those chemicals, including lead, can leach into water left standing in the garden hose for as little as 5 minutes – and in amounts large enough to cause problems. If you use your garden hose to fill toddler pools or if you or the kids are prone to taking a drink from the hose, you should consider replacing your hose with a drinking-safe garden hose. Not sure if your garden hose is drinking safe? In most cases, drinking-safe hoses will be stamped with the information you need to know.

Do You Water Edible Plants with Your Garden Hose?

Most scientists agree that there’s no danger to watering your edible plants – herbs, vegetables and the like – with a standard garden hose, but some experts are uncertain about the effects. If you’re not using a drinking-safe garden hose, always rinse produce from your garden well before eating it. Even then, they point out that plants take up minerals and nutrients from the soil. If you’re watering your plants with lead-contaminated water, the lead will remain in the soil and could be taken up by the plants. A drinking safe garden hose will eliminate that concern.

All Sizes Available

As more consumers become aware of the possible hazards associated with lead and other chemicals in PVC hoses, manufacturers are responding by providing drinking safe hoses in many sizes. You can usually find 1/2 inch garden hose, 3/4 inch garden hose, 50-foot garden hoses and other popular sizes in drinking-safe options.

There’s no need to fight the crowds or face confusion in the aisles of your local big box home improvement stores. You’ll find great deals for garden hoses of all types and sizes online at manufacturers’ and distributors’ websites. Don’t take chances with your family’s health. Replace your old garden hose with a drinking-safe garden hose today.