Tired of kinking water hose/garden hose

sld · Nov 17, 2014

I've had more issues with the swaged on fittings leaking than the hose kinking. It's true, you get what you pay for.

RobertBrown · Nov 17, 2014

Getting a hose to last has a lot to do with where it's stored. Down here, if you hang your hose in the sun or leave it laying on a sun baked driveway, it's not going to last long. I have one of those heavy duty 3/4" industrial hoses and it will be with me for the duration. But it's costly, heavy, and it takes up a lot of room. I keep it out of the sun.
I need a lot of hose, and I've found that the best bang for the buck is the 120' hose they sell at the membership warehouse stores....Sams club or Costco. They call it "kink free" or "kinkless" but it will get kinks if you don't keep it rolled up and out of the sun. they have heavy brass fittngs and come in 5/8" only. I get 5 to 10 years out of a hose and I replace it for about 25$.

Pilot · Nov 17, 2014

Supposedly kink free hose from Costco does kink, but I found if I coil it up in a figure 8 pattern on the ground I can pull it out with little trouble--the different loops cancel each other out. Kinks now & then, but a lot less often than just coiling it. Bought these hoses 15-20 years ago & they are still fine.

Black rubber hose I bought in the '70's is still good, but it had stamped, not machined fittings. Wasn't long before the fitting wouldn't seal against a sprinkler or nozzle. Recently found a decent machined replacement fitting. Frankly, I'd rather deal with a kink now and then instead of the black rubbing off on my hands and clothes or the weight.

F3506 · Nov 17, 2014

I recently paid a lot of money for a Tuff Guard "kink-free" garden hose. It's a very lightweight hose with a coil wrapped around it. I've had the thing about 8 months so far and it hasn't broken yet. It's about the most kink free I imagine you can get. To the point that you can't fold it over and pinch off the water flow by hand if you want to.

The light weight is nice when my wife drags it around watering whatever it is she thinks must be watered, or when filling water troughs. Personally I'm a little worried about the ends coming off the hose, but I suppose if they do, that's an item I can repair with some clamp on ends that might hold up a little better.

8 months and no complaints here, but it's still a little early for me to call it a true winner.