Making sure your yard is free of hazards, such as a falling hose, is very important. If you’ve ever experienced the stress of having a hose fall on you or had to spend time untangling a hose from an innocent-looking tree, then you’ll know what we mean. With the right precautions and knowledge, though, you can keep your yard—and yourself—safe from these frustrations. Here are three ways you can prevent your hoses from reeling without fail:
Stay aware of your surroundings
Before you get down to work on your next hose reel build, make sure you’ve taken the time to check your yard for any potential hazards. While reels are designed to prevent falls, it is still important to be aware of the surroundings in your own yard. This way, you can quickly assess the situation and take the appropriate measures to avoid any potential problems. In other words, don’t let one misjudgment ruin your day. It’s better to take a few extra minutes to ensure a safe environment than to have a re-knotting incident ruin an entire day of work. When assessing your yard for hazards, be sure to focus on your hose reel, as well as other potential hazards such as trees, fences, or other water sources. While reels are designed to prevent serious falls, they are not foolproof. You can greatly reduce the risk of falling by staying aware of your surroundings and taking steps to prevent any potential problems.
Test reel before you store
Before you decide to stow your hose reel for longer periods of time, make sure to test your reel. Reels can become dusty and coated with dirt over time, causing a faulty connection between the reel and hose. This could cause the reel to reel, causing the hose to get caught up in the reel itself. In other words, make sure to test your reel before storing it, just in case. If your reel smells like burnt or rotten rubber, or if it is making strange noises, this could be a sign of a faulty reel. Either of these could be a sign that your reel needs to be checked out or replaced. If you do choose to store your reel for longer periods of time, make sure to keep it in a well-ventilated area. In addition, make sure the reel has some form of protection from the elements while it is stored.
Don’t store wet hoses coiled up
If you tend to leave your hoses in the same location for a long period of time, you may notice that your hoses become wet. Once this happens, it’s important to remember that water has a very low resistance to it. This means that when you try to coil a hose, it will become very easy to coil. What this means, then, is that you will quickly coil up your hose and have a re-knotting incident on your hands. The best way to address this issue is to move your hoses to a more protected location. This can be as simple as placing them in your garage or as simple as wrapping them in a tarp.
Wrapping while drying is essential
As we mentioned above, re-knotting is a major risk when drying your hoses. Because you are working with a very easy to coil hose, re-knotting is very easy to do. However, there are precautions you can take while drying your hoses to reduce the risk of re-knotting, such as wrapping while drying. This means that you can use a piece of fabric, such as a t-shirt or sheet, to cover your hoses while drying. This will ensure that the quality garden hose remains wet and re-knot-free. While drying, you can also gently roll the hose back and forth, thereby increasing the friction between the hose and the fabric. This will also help to prevent re-knotting.
Keep an eye out for signs of hose re-knotting
While drying your hosed, make sure to keep an eye out for the following signs. These are signs that could indicate re-knotting:
- When you uncoil your hose, it quickly re-coils itself.
- The damp feeling that you feel when you touch your hose.
- Hose that appears to be coiled back on itself.
- When you use your hose, it seems to re-coil itself.
These are just a few of the signs you can look out for while drying your hoses. However, the best way to prevent re-knotting is to dry them while they are still damp. This way, they will remain re-knot-free and you can enjoy your hose without fear of re-knotting.
Summary
We hope this guide has helped you better understand hose reels, hose re-knotting, and hose re-knot prevention. Make sure to keep these tips in mind, and you can keep your hoses re-knot-free, no matter where they are stored.
