You need a fit watering tool
By Tim Ryan
if you're wrapped up
in gardening
Star-BulletinOF all the garden tools in your yard, hoses may be the one taken most for granted. To enjoy the life-giving garden task of watering, your hose must be fit for use.
Generally, hoses come in 25-, 50-, and 100-foot lengths, and range in diameter from five-eighths to one inch, said Frank Suster, City Mill's master carpenter and fix-it expert. (The diameter determines available water flow measured in gallons per minute.) Brass or plastic connectors are best with brass being more durable.
The most popular residential hose sold at City Mill is 25- to 50-feet long, five-eighths in diameter and made of a combination of reinforced vinyl and rubber, Suster said.
But back to hose care.
"The first thing to understand about hoses is to never ever leave them with kinks," Suster said. "Hoses have a memory, and a hose left with kinks will never return to an unkinked condition."What that means, Suster said, is the hose forever will twist as you pull it out, and each time you'll have to stop and try to undo the kink.
"Once kinked, it's kinked forever," Suster said.
To remove a serious kink most likely you'll have to cut out the section and reconnect the two halves with a special hose fitting. (See accompanying story.)
Here's the best way to correctly roll a hose. First disconnect it from the faucet and lay the female end on the ground. Take the male end in your hand and elevate it until water starts to drain from the female end. (The threaded end is called the male end; the other end is the female end.)
Make sure there are no kinks to impede water flow from the female end. Coil and gather the hose in your left hand and keep rolling and coiling while keeping the end in your hand elevated.
If you want to coil the hose on the ground be sure to keep the section you're working on elevated, so that all the water can flow out while you're rolling.
After all the water is drained, unite the male and female ends by screwing them together. This keeps insects and geckos from finding a home in your open-ended garden hose.
Suster personally witnessed a "hose horror" story.
"A friend had kept his hose on the ground then turned on the water to get a drink. A centipede flew into his face from the water pressure."
A coiled hose should be stored off the ground also because it has a tendency to rot if left laying around.
And don't use a nail to hang a nose because that really cause kinks, Suster said.
Storing a hose on a reel whether aluminum or decorative wrought iron is the best thing and the water automatically runs out as you roll it up, he said.
Now about protecting the end fittings. Try to buy a hose with brass couplings or a material that won't corrode.
Don't drag the male end on the ground because the threads can wear down or, worse, get bent, Suster said. And bent hose ends leak and squirt, he said.
If you do have damaged hose connectors, garden suppliers sell a large selection of repair kits.
As for hose choices, one of the first things to look for in a hose is whether it's temperature-flexible and has a non-kinking feature. Hoses that are reinforced with internal ribs make it "unkinkable" and all-weather flexible, Suster said.
As for the best long-term value, a heavy-duty Garden Variety, six-ply hose with brass couplings with proper care should last at least a decade.
Prices vary, but expect to pay at least $20 for a top-quality 50-foot rubber hose, Suster said.
"Vinyl or plastic hoses are not reinforced, and not intended to have a nozzle attached to the end to restrict water flow," he said. "These hoses will explode."
Vinyl hoses, usually under $10, are safe to attach to a sprinkler, he said.
Hoses also are rated in how much water pressure they can withstand. Inexpensive hoses are are usually in the 200 pounds per square inch (psi); medium grade ranges from 275-350 psi; and a top-of-the-line all rubber commercial grade hose is 350-500 psi.
Naturally, the wider the diameter the more water flow, Suster said.
A half-inch diameter allows nine gallons a minute; five-eighths, 17 gallons; and three-quarters, 23 gallons.
Rubber hoses are far more resistant to weathering than vinyl hoses because they are UV protected, Suster said.
If a sip of cool water from the hose is part of your gardening ritual there are hoses lined with non-toxic materials that makes them safe to drink from.
Again vinyl hoses fall short here because the sun's heat breaks down the lining which can be toxic.
Hoses safe to drink water from are stamped specifically with that feature, Suster said.
You drag the garden hose out to use it, turn on the water, and you're greeted by water coming out in every direction. You notice a huge crack in the hose. And water also is gushing out where your kid kinked the hose the last time she washed the car for you. Hose down on repair
Most of the time the problem in a leaky connection is the rubber washer in the female half of the screw-type hose couplings. When the washers wear out or age and loose their elasticity, you end up with a slow leak. (If the washer falls out, you end up with a fast leak.)
Leaks
Any hardware store that sells hoses sells little plastic bags of replacement washers. Usually, one size fits all. Pull out the old washer and press in the new one. If you still have a leak, you'll need to replace the whole fitting.To fix pinholes and small cracks, wrap them with vinyl tape. You can buy special hose repair tape, or use ordinary black electrical tape.
Make sure the outside of the hose is clean and dry. Take the tape and cover the damaged area, plus at least an inch past the damage in both directions, making tight spiral wraps with the vinyl tape. Have the tape overlap itself by about a third its width and press down tightly as you go.
Don't pull the tape so tightly that it deforms or stretches, or it will creep out of position with time.
Fittings
Major cuts or long cracks can't be repaired with tape. Either way, you'll need to buy a repair fitting or two.Use a sharp knife and cut off the leaky coupling, plus two or three inches of the hose. Make the cut straight across. Next, measure the inside diameter of the hose. It'll probably be somewhere between 7/16 and 3/4 of an inch. If you're not sure just what size it is, just take the stub with you to a hardware store.
Most repair fittings work with vinyl or rubber hoses, but some will work only with one type. Make sure your hose and fittings are compatible.
Depending on the brand, hose repair fittings may come in single sizes, or in sizes to fit two or three different diameters. If you're not sure, take out the stub you brought along with you and try it on some fittings.
If you have trouble inserting the fittings, soften the hose with hot water or lubricate it with soap.
Repairing a bad rip, crack or tear, or even a section that always kinks on you, is similar to repairing a coupling. Cut out the damaged section, and buy special fittings to put the two halves back together.
There are two ways to do this: Buy a "repair union," a single fitting with a nipple at each end which you splice together. Or if you can't find a union, the second choice is a pair of couplings one female and one male. Fasten one to the each cut end of your old hose and then screw them together.
