A garden hose is an essential tool for watering your plants, washing your car, or fun for your children.
To ensure its longevity and optimal performance, proper maintenance and storage practices are crucial.
Buy investing in a medium to high quality hose pipe and then spending a bit of time looking after it, you can avoid unnecessary waste if it were to break!
By following these guidelines, you can keep your garden hose in excellent condition and avoid common issues like leaks, kinks, and premature wear.
Cleaning
Ensure your hose pipe is cleaned if you are to put it away. Sometimes the hose can get wet and bits of debris or soil can stick to it. This can then cause damage when the hose gets tightly coiled back together.
It’s also important that you ensure no sharp objects such as rose thorns are left in a place that the hose may drag over – these can cause punctures.
Check for Damage
Before storing your garden hose or before the first use of the year, inspect it for any signs of damage.
Look for cracks, leaks, or splits along the length of the hose.
Check the connectors and fittings for any loose or damaged parts. If you identify any issues, it’s important to address them promptly by repairing or replacing the damaged components.
Preventing Kinks
Kinks in a garden hose can restrict water flow and potentially damage the hose.
To prevent kinks, make sure to remove any twists or loops from the hose before use. When watering, straighten the hose out fully to allow the water to flow freely.
If you notice a kink, carefully unravel it to avoid damaging the hose.
Proper Storage
Storing your garden hose correctly is vital for its longevity.
Avoid leaving it exposed to harsh weather conditions, such as prolonged sunlight or freezing temperatures, as these can cause the hose to deteriorate.
Instead, choose a storage location that is dry, shaded, and protected from extreme temperatures.
A hose reel or a wall-mounted hose hanger is an excellent option for organised storage. These are also often placed on house walls that will provide some protection against extreme frosts.
Protecting the Connectors
The connectors and fittings on your garden hose are vulnerable to damage, especially when the hose is in use.
It can be easy to be just watering away and then dragging the hose around. Those connectors can easily catch on steps or corners in your garden and split.
Keep it Off The Ground
Keeping your hose pipe off the ground, especially when being stored, is quite important to prevent damage.
Animals such as Mice can easily chew through the hose material when finding bedding causing a lot of damage to the hose.
If you leave it out and unraveled in the garden it can also be vulnerable to rodents and the extreme heat from the sun could even make it soften and split.
In Conclusion
Your hose will last you for years as long as you take care of it. Don’t forget, if you happen to damage your hose pipe or it gets leaks, you can upcycle it into a soaker hose. Some ideas can be found here.