The sun is back the garden needs watering and the battle of the hose starts again! Like some angry snake it kinks and twists and refuses point blank to go in the direction you want it to. Anything over 10 foot of hose and you will need a hose reel cart that neatly coils and winds your hose out and back again with ease. You trundle your hose reel cart down to the end of the garden, unwinding as you go, no heavy carrying, no fuss.
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A properly coiled hose should unwind without kinks therefore performing better and lasting longer. There are a number of different carts on the market at varying prices and a variety of styles too, some better than others.
Types of hose reel carts
At your basic level there are hose reel attachments that fix to your wall from which you unwind your hose; not technically a cart as such but a reel fixture with a side winder. Another option is the hose hideaway; essentially a plastic box in which to store your hose reel with an aperture through which to unwind the hose. If you don’t stake these to the ground when you pull at the hose they tend to move and can be quite flimsy.
A hose reel cart is basically a hose reel with wheels to pull it along by and a stand on which it rests as you uncoil the hose. They vary in the length of hose they can handle and their quality is often determined by the efficiency of the couplings that attach the hose to the reel. A common complaint with hose reels is that the couplings leak and therefore the water pressure drops. The other difference between hose reel carts is the material they are made of – some plastic some metal and the type of tires on the wheels. This difference can be quantified by the price range which is quite vast.
Choosing your hose reel cart
Before buying your cart, consider a number of criteria.
- How far do you need your hose to go, i.e. the length capacity of the hose reel cart.
- What type of terrain is your garden? If you need to water a vegetable plot at the end of your garden and have to go over earth and stones to get to it you may need a more rugged hose reel cart than that for a flowerbed at the end of a nice path.
- What type of hose you are going to use with it? It is illogical to buy an expensive hose reel cart and a cheap hose. Cheap hoses have poor fittings and you want to avoid leaks as much as possible. Your purchase should consider the overall cost of hose and cart and the two should be compatible.
- Storage of your cart. Most hoses do poorly in freezing weather and bright sunlight is not a good idea either as sunlight breaks down PVC. You could choose a detachable reel model or be sure that you have appropriate storage space for your cart.
To help you decide which cart is most suitable for your needs here are the top three recommendations for hose reel carts.
Top 3 Hose reel carts
Shanghai Worth Garden Hose Reel Cart
The Shanghai Worth Garden Hose Cart s is a very cheap metal cart for the price of a plastic one and therefore good value. Sturdier than the plastic ones it can handle up to 150 feet of 5/8 sized garden hose. The connector hose supplied with it is a bit short so worth buying a remnant connector hose to give you more distance between reel and faucet. The main criticism of this model is the rather vague instructions as to how to assemble. However it is a sturdy and efficient hose reel cart for the price and certainly better than plastic models that are more expensive.
Yard Butler Wheeled Garden Hose Truck
The Yard Butler Wheeled Garden Hose Truck is very solid with metal couplings and a leak free attachment. The wheels are pneumatic and so require inflating with air which makes them able to cope with bumpy gardens and plots. The capacity is perhaps closer to 150 foot rather than 200 foot especially if you are using a 5/8 inch hose.. There have been a few problems with past models having bent handles but the manufacturers appear to have solved that now. This is a good, sturdy, durable and leak free mid range model in the mid price range.
Rapid Reel Two Wheel Garden Hose Reel Cart
The Rapid Reel Two Wheel Garden Hose Reel Cart has a deluxe styling with a price to match. Every single part of this cart is rust proofed the frame is aluminum, the swivel fixings brass, and all other fixings are either brass or steel. The 10 inch rubber tires are rigid foam filled, need no air and can’t go flat. It has a wide wheel base and won’t tip over meaning you can elevate the reel to avoid bending down when rewinding. The rewind handle is a decent size with good grip and there is a built in manual brake to keep the hose from unwinding.
It will take 150 foot of 5/8 inch hose or 100 foot of ¾ inch hose. You can also buy an optional kit to widen the reel to take up to 225′ of 5/8″ hose or 175′ of 3/4″ hose. What this hose reel cart has, is a10 year No Leak, No Rust, No Break Guarantee. The manufacturers also supply replacement parts and have very good, prompt customer service. One small point, there is no hose guide on this model and no tray to put your nozzle accessories as it would spoil the balance of the cart. This is an expensive hose reel cart but it is also probably the model that will last the longest.
The Last Word
When shopping for your hose reel cart as you have seen, you need to consider more than the length of the hose. Buy sensibly and you may have a piece of equipment which can make your flowers bloom for years to come.