For most homeowners, purchasing a garden hose seems like autopilot – find the best price, choose what’s long enough and pick what feels best. When summer or winter comes, and there’s a leak somewhere, forcing them to buy a new hose. Truth to be told, not all are aware that weather changes have a drastic impact on a garden hose. There are a variety of garden hoses intended for specific weather conditions.
You can check below to find out which works best for your need if you’re planning to buy a garden hose.
Vinyl Hoses
Vinyl hoses are popular with most garden owners. No wonder they are the least expensive and the least heavy option but also the least durable among all types of tubes.
They are susceptible to splitting, kinking, and cracking if left in the heat of the sun or exposed to harsh winter. The water inside garden hoses expands during the winter, causing the damage. They can break or degrade quickly in extreme conditions.
If you are living in an area with mild climates and only looking to fulfill light watering tasks, vinyl hoses are still an excellent option.
They can do well if you only use your hose for sprinkling your lawn or squirt water to your plants.
Make sure to handle vinyl hoses with extra care to surpass its typical short lifespan. While they may be cheap and can be replaced easily by purchasing a new one, it can hurt your budget, spending money every new season.
Rubber Hoses
Rubber hoses are the most sturdy and have the most extended lifespan among different types of tubes. With that benefits, however, they come at a hefty price and relatively heavy, making it difficult to carry around your garden.
Nevertheless, rubber hoses are widely considered as the best type of garden hose. With their superb flexibility, the risk for abrasion and cuts are greatly minimized. Moreover, they are durable and sturdy. You don’t have to worry about leaving them under the extreme heat of summer. They hold up well in other weather circumstances and external pressure.
Another added advantage of rubber hoses is that there are varieties rated to carry hot water, making it fit for draining water heaters. With it handling such temperature, you can be confident that it is less likely to kink, split or crack.
While they cost and weigh more, rubber hoses are your best choice if you are looking for one that for heavy-duty use and will last through many seasons.
Reinforced Hoses
Reinforced hoses combine the durability and flexibility of the rubber plus the lightness of the vinyl. It got its name as it is literally reinforced with mesh lining, making it more resistant to splitting and kinking, and can even take high pressures.
Don’t be fooled, however, by additional plies as they don’t imply a stronger hose right way. While extra layers are useful, what you need to look for is a strengthening mesh. Most garden hoses are reinforced with several outer meshes to protect against damage or punctures.
A reinforced hose with two to three plies is considered light duty; those with four plies are tagged as medium-duty, ones with five plies fall under the heavy-duty category.
Lastly, reinforced hoses are proved to be stable in cold weather. Since they are strengthened with mesh linings, they are also stable even when the temperature rises. No wonder as one of its components, rubber, is considered as the premium hose material. If you’re looking for a garden hose that can withstand all seasons yet allows you to be agile and move round – purchasing this type of tube is the top choice for you.
Stainless Steel Hoses
Stainless steel garden hoses are the new trend in the yard. They offer high strength and a long span. Being highly-durable, they do not kink and are undoubtedly hard to damage. Plus, they are also resistant to harsh elements and do not rust.
On hot summer days, you may expect stainless steel hoses to go hot. Surprisingly, it does not accumulate heat despite extreme temperatures in the summer. It remains at the same temperature and wouldn’t burn your hand even left directly under the sun.
The same goes for the winter. Stainless steel hoses stay around the same temperature even on colder days, making good and sturdy for any season.
While they may cost a little more than the other hoses, you can be sure to have this stainless steel hoses useful for a long time without having any issues. Forking out a few more bucks is worth it with the durability that it offers.
Wrapping Up
The next time you shop around for a garden hose, make sure to pick one that fits your needs. Take note of all the different types of garden hose and how each fare in various weather conditions. That way, you can make the most out of your money, and have a garden hose that would last for the season. You can also check out the best retractable garden hose.