What separates a good water hose from the cheap junk so often found in the big box discount stores? Here are some of the features to look for in a quality hose that will give you years of good service.
Drinking Water Safe: “Drinking water safe" is not an absolute designation since all hoses release some small amounts of chemicals. PVC and synthetic rubber hoses release small amounts of toxic or known carcinogenic compounds into the water and are not generally considered drinking water safe. Ether-based Polyurethane is the best choice for drinking water safe hose construction since it releases very little in the way of harmful materials.
Quality Construction: Look for brass fittings. Brass has the unique ability to form water-tight brass-to-brass connections. The other advantage of brass is its great resistance to corrosion. Another sign of a superior hose is the use of high-density rubberized hose kink guards on both ends of the hose to eliminate any possibility of the hose collapsing or kinking to a closed position when pulled taunt from the faucet.
Durability: According to data compiled from lab testing results provided by plastic tubing manufacturers and chemical compound manufacturers such as Dow Chemical, BF Goodrich and others, this is my best guess as to the life expectancy you might get from hoses made of these different materials.
PVC hose (these are usually the cheapest hoses) – about 1 year.
Cheaper Polyurethane compounds (doesn’t say “ether") – about 3 – 5 years.
High quality multi-layer Rubber – about 5 – 10 years.
Ether-based Polyurethane – about 5 – 10 years.
Hose Style: Most hoses are of the straight variety. Straight hoses reach to their full length but are the most difficult to store. Straight hoses can be stored on a hose reel, but it is often difficult to muscle them on and off the reel. If you want to use a reel, a Polyurethane hose is your best choice since they are lighter and more flexible. Coiled hoses are easier to retract back into their coil shape for a more compact storage. Cheaper coiled hoses tend to lose the coil memory and twist and kink into a tangled mess. There is a hybrid type of coil hose which retracts back to a very compact flat stack and is a good choice if you need the hose to stow into a small space.
Care and Maintenance: With good care and maintenance you can greatly extend the life of your hose. Even with the best UV resistant hoses, long term sun exposure is the greatest threat to long hose life. If at all possible, store your hoses out of the sun when not in use. If you live where the winters are cold, you should drain your hose before storage so that the hose material doesn’t crack due to the expansion of ice.
With these guidelines and advice in mind, you should be able to find a hose that meets your needs and will provide you years and years of good service.
Michael Kirtley is owner-manager of Nature's Tapestry ( http://www.naturestapestry.com ), a web-site with information about how to choose a quality water hose.
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