Garden hoses - what’s best?

MattyD

Hi GWers, I need some pointers regarding garden hoses. I currently have a Hozelock standard yellow hose on a reel and it’s a kinked-up nightmare, like wrestling with a boringly predictable snake with rigor mortis.

Please can you let me know only the hoses that you think are good from genuine personal experience. I’m interested in the expanding hoses.

Please no sales ploy bobbins thank you.

N.b. My garden is 60feet long.

Pauline 7

I have got a Hozelock retractable hose. I have had it for 4 years now,  it's been kept outside on the sheltered back wall,  connected to an outside. tap.  Never had a problem with it.
I have only seen or heard bad reviews regarding expanding hoses. Never owned one though. 

Dovefromabove

I've a Hozelock on a windup reel ... we've had it for around 12 years and it's never been a problem ... when I had an accident last year a friend and her husband came to water the garden for me and Mr C loved my hose and reel so much they made a detour and bought one for their garden on the way home.

Like Pauline, I've only heard bad things about the expanding ones, and certainly old threads on them haven't improved my opinion.

I wonder why yours is such a problem @MattyD  ... could it be faulty 

Blue Onion

I've got a large garden, so I need a long hose.  I find the normal sort of heavy duty 100 ft hose works best.  I keep it in loose loops over a mounted hose holder.. and only ever handle it when it's turned on at the mains and under pressure.  That keeps it from forming kinks, that seem to return again and again once the hose has collapsed in that place.  I end up buying a new one every few years, and use the old one for various other duties around the garden (usually attached to a soaker hose, as they only last a few summers laying in the sun).  

Dave Humby

I had a look at this topic earlier in the year. Lot's of Reviews on the 'net but this seems one of the better ones:

http://www.besthose.co.uk/ 

I briefly owned an x-hose a few years back. We have low water pressure so it was a waste of time for us. Still works with low pressure but doesn't expand and therefore you have in effect a short hose. I know they also suffered from perishing in a relatively short period of time but maybe things have improved in that respect.

Fire

I have a Hozelock on a winder for six years and it's rarely ever been a problem. If there has been a kink, it's because I didn't pay attention when winding back on the reel. Quite why I got yellow, I can't say. I guess it was the only colour in the GC. It lights up neon in my very greeny garden.

wild edges

Can't beat a watering can.

Fire

Really you can.

Pauline 7

@MattyD You were asking about expanding hose pipes see this thread https://forum.gardenersworld.com/discussion/1014581/expanding-hosepipe#latest

Joyce21

Matty, I had the same problem and took the hose out of the casing.  I now loop it loosely over a hose hook and it's been fine.
I also have a Hoselock expandable which I use for a different area of the garden and have had no problems with it.

ju1i3

MattyD I have the same problem with my Hozelock, kinks, leaks, it's a nightmare. Sure it had a 25-year warranty or something but I couldn't find the receipt. I can't say what to get, just what not to get!