I'm looking for a 100' hose. I see Never Kink, Flexon, Flexogen. Anyone have experience with them?
The couple of dollars difference in price is not a concern, I just was something that will last a few years and not kink up in use.
Other brand?
So far the never kink (not the brand) have kinked up on me repeatedly. I wonder why the call it never kink.
My preference if you are looking for a very good hose would be a classic rubber hose. I don't think they kink as easily since they are thicker.
Any commercial quality hose will treat you better.
I like those black rubber Craftsman lifetime warranty hoses... been using them for eons. Nice thing is that no receipt is necessary for warranty replacement, just bring it in.
(Sorry for the long link, fix as necessary)
A little pricy, but unless Sears goes under, it'll be the last one you buy.
They also have for real (nickel plated) machined brass fittings as opposed to the typical stamped sheet brass ones that get bent out of round, and/or crack in the bottom of the male end threads.
Far as kinks go, if you lay the hose out in a figure "8" pattern, your kinking issues will for all practical purposes vanish. Most anything will kink if merely coiled. Those hand crank type reels are ok as well, but not the wall mount stationary "hanger" type... they're just as bad as coiling on the ground. (Also, when you get a new hose, first roll it all the way out, as opposed to flopping the coil down, and pulling.)
Sears seems to be pretty liberal far as the warranty goes... I've taken back several through the years, almost exclusively due to my gardeners abuse, but even so, they stand up as well as any!
Erik
That is my experience, too. They seem to kink more.
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Regular black rubber Sears Craftsman hose, 100' long, $33 + tax (no charge for in-store pickup), no need to return it to the manufacturer for warranty claims:
Those never-kink hoses still kink, and most are made of vinyl instead of EPDM rubber, the kind of rubber used for car radiator hoses and roofing and that's highly resistant to ozone and ultraviolet. I've never seen the rubber of one of those Sears black hoses fail, and that includes hoses my parents have owned. It was always the stamped steel fittings that failed due to rust or from being crushed. However those hoses now instead have machined brass fittings (chrome or nickel plated).
Do what Erik said about winding the hose into a figure-8.
Per Erik:
20+ years ago, I gave one of ours (that already had about five years on it...) to my son-in-law for use at his gas station/garage/used car lot.And it's still in service, no breaks or other problems.
Considering all the comments and Erik's experience as well as yours, I ordered this one. On sale for $33 too, so not a big loss if I have a problem. I'll pick it up when I get by the store in a couple of days.
Because they want your money, and know most people believe all the false claims by advertisers. ALL hoses kink at least occasionally. They get stuck on who knows what, and in certain conditions they kink. But a good quality hose wont retain the kink, whereas a cheap hose will develop a weak spot where it kinked, and will always kink at that spot in the future. I think that is how the advertisers avoid lawsuits. "If the hose kinks, but dont retain the kink, then they can claim it's a "NO KINK" hose"..... (Just a guess!)
It was right at the link. I have a feeling the sale was over at midnight. I was going to wait and go to the store, but I ordered it on line for pickup so I guess I got lucky for once.
I'd like to order one too, for $33, but I'm not seeing that sale price. Their web lists it at $59.99. Where is that sale price?
If anyone is interested, I'm pretty sure they also offer that same hose in 25, 50 and 75 foot lengths. Beware that they sell other hoses that run the whole quality gamut.
Also... back to the kinking. Pretty much anything will kink if just coiled... hose, extension cords, rope etc. Every trip around the coil adds another twist... it's just a fact of life, no matter how marketers hype their product/s.
There are several ways to combat kinks. Probably the easiest in hose is flaking it in a fig "8" pattern, or using a crank type hose reel. Those who regularly work with long extension cords often chain stitch them. For Microphone cords and small diameter rope/cord and the like, there is a simple 'over/under' coiling method that eliminates kinking, saves time and greatly increases cord life:
Parachute suspension lines are stowed back and forth usually held in heavy rubber bands. Should anything hang, it'll just break a band and everything continues. One big issue here is that if one or more stows ever get loose early (called a "line dump" in the biz), a malfunction is likely:
I've even heard of rescue lines that have just been stuffed into a special bag that keeps the ends from becoming inner tangled. In use the line plays out quick & clear:
Erik
Ya know what really pisses me off...... Kinks in light bulbs!
The old lightbulbs were always round and they never kinked. Now they got those florescent things, which when they first came out were straight tubes. Then they did something to them and now they are all twisted and kinked. That really plays havoc on my electric bill, because it takes a lot more power to push the electrons thru a kinked lightbulb, and thus we all pay more money for electricity.
This is even worse than parking your car on top of an extension cord. Try this sometime. Measure the voltage at the end of a plugged in extension cord and it should be 110 to 120 volts AC (in the USA). Now park your car tire on the cord, and measure the voltage. It wont be even close to 110 or so. You might get 70 volts, or more likely 30 to
50 volts (or less). It's the same as parking on a hose, you restrict the flow by kinking and/or crushing it enough to stop the flow. Whatever you do, dont try to plug in any motor or power tool into that restricted cord, or you will likely damage the motor, or it just wont run. You can however plug in a trouble light and note the very dim light coming from the bulb. This is because the flow of electricity has been greatly reduced, or possibly even stopped, until you remove your car tire from on top of the cord.
I bought the Gilmour flexogen a couple of years ago and have been very happy with it. It's 8 ply, and comes with a lifetime warranty; if you want to get a replacement just mail them in the hose ends and you'll get a new hose. Works for me.
Jon
Why such a long length? I find 50s to be a lot easier to handle. Years ago, I bought a couple 50 footers, which get drained every fall, and hung on the air conditioner bracket.
I bought a couple rolls of "stores flat" hose in reel holders, at Ace hardware. Figured I'd need more hose for roof AC cleaning jobs. I carried them for about two years, before I used them. Sigh.
One roof AC cleaning I did a year or so ago, needed 310 feet of hose, from the spigot at street level, across the mall roof, to the roof AC. My helper had some hose, and so we had enough to reach, but barely. Since then, I've gotten several 50 foot lengths from Harbor Freight, on close out and coupons. I've not used them. Just like the roll flat hose I didn't use for two years.
For the twice a year roof AC job, I'd probably have been better off to buy some cheap nylon braided for eight bucks a length at Walmart. The vinyl hose is useless, and kinks too much.
I'm looking for a 100' hose. I see Never Kink, Flexon, Flexogen. Anyone have experience with them?
The couple of dollars difference in price is not a concern, I just was something that will last a few years and not kink up in use.
Other brand?
I have a Rapid Reel hose reel and it easily holds 100'. Most of the time I use about 75' or so for watering on the side of the house or washing two cars one in front of the other. With the reel, kinking is not a big problem as it winds up without twisting.
And, with a 100 foot reel, you don't have to worry about the coupler leaking, half way into the bundle?
I have a Rapid Reel hose reel and it easily holds 100'. Most of the time I use about 75' or so for watering on the side of the house or washing two cars one in front of the other. With the reel, kinking is not a big problem as it winds up without twisting.
I picked up the Craftsman hose today. Looks well made with good hefty ends on it. I'll get back to you in a few years to let you know if it is holding up.
I picked up the Craftsman hose today. Looks well made with good hefty ends on it. I'll get back to you in a few years to let you know if it is holding up.
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