No reel need - storing the garden hose

Garden hoses - with the extraordinarily dry weather this spring it looks as if they will be much used until confined to quarters by the ban that everybody (at least down here in the South-East) is expecting.

The question is, what are those quarters? Where, or rather how, do you keep your hose? Pile it up in a loose arrangement and it soon becomes damaged, the walls folding against each other, twisting and gradually springing a leak. I used to leave the hose trailed carefully around the garden paths, straight and untwisted, but another member of the family found that unfathomable and kept piling it up.

Hose reels are not, in my opinion, much cop as they can be fiddly; you have to bend down to them and they can be awkward and heavy. The best way to store a hose is looped on the wall, high enough so that you don't have to bend to loop it round, making it easy to lift off and unhitch to the required length, taking only moments to put back.

You could get something fancy like this cast-iron hose tidy from Harrod Horticultural, but hey, it's a hose, so a no-nonsense, neat-and-tidy storage hook from Wickes is serving me very well. And at just over a fiver, it's a lot cheaper too!

 

Comments

[Charles]

I have to say I agree that hose reels are a waste of time.
In fact I'd say hose tidying systems are in general, so we have simplified things by installing permanganate plumbed sprinklers, all a home made system with two control valve blocks to distribute to the six sprinklers set at strategic points.
This way we can water the garden at ease and use a separate hose more localised use. This is generally left loose on the ground but laid flat, with no kinks, parallel to the building.
If you are wondering why so much trouble or if we have a palatial residence, the answer is simple our garden of 80 foot width and 50 foot depth has no lawn. We have large beds with tropical plants such as palms, cordylines, azaleas, fatsias, hostas, berginias, sedums, peonys and other plants, far too many to mention here. The soil is bark covered to a depth of some 4” - 6” which is topped up once a year.
It doesn't require much watering but when it does, I don't intend being a slave to it.
This way it allows me to sit back, under our permanetn 5m x 5m canopy and enjoy my favourite Yemeni Matari coffee from The Tea and Coffee Emporium while the sprinklers do the hard work.
Thanks for the post and the opportunity to comment.

[Pocket Hose]

A simple hook on the wall might serve as a good storage for a garden hose. Good read.

[Alex]

I've had hose reels that are awkward and make things even more difficult if anything but this one from Two Wests & Elliot is wall mounted and is very easy to use and retract http://www.twowests.co.uk/product/hozelock-2595-wall-mounted-auto-reel-with-40m-hose

[Helen]

Er, thanks, Alex. Looks neat, but I've made the link no-follow, as you appear to be connected to the company.

[I have a big hose]

use two hooks, as only one hook will cause the weight of the hose, over time, to put a permanent dent in the inner wall of the hose.