Looking for a sturdy yet manageable garden hose? Stainless steel hoses are nearly indestructible. They withstand intense heat and sun. You can drag them across gravel or impale them on a cactus, and they still hold up.
If there is one garden task you absolutely must do in the desert, it’s watering your plants. Some of us water our plants by hand, making a sturdy yet manageable hose a top priority. Even if you have an irrigation system to largely cover this task, you almost certainly still use a garden hose on occasion.
But you need the right tool for the task, and frankly, the typical garden hose isn’t up to withstanding the extreme desert heat and UV radiation, cactus spines, or being dragged over rocks.
I’ve tried typical vinyl and rubber hoses, expandable hoses, coiled hoses, and even some that claim to be kink, burst, and puncture-proof. I’ve tried inexpensive hoses, figuring they’d last a year or so… and I was right.
I’ve also bought expensive hoses hoping they’d last several years… but I was wrong. Being more expensive didn’t seem to make them last much longer.
4 Reasons to Try a Stainless Steel Hose
After much trial and error, I found the best type of hose are the ones made of stainless steel. Here are 4 reasons I love my stainless steel hoses.
#1 Stainless steel hoses are surprisingly light
Dragging a heavy hose around in the heat is hard work. But stainless steel hoses are surprisingly light, much lighter than the typical vinyl or rubber hose. My Bionic stainless hose weighs 3 pounds. Moving it around is easy.
#2 They never kink or get tangled
Trying to untangle a knotted-up hose can be frustrating. But stainless steel hoses never kink or tangle while using or storing them.
And when you’re done, you can haphazardly drop it on the ground or into a hose container and it will not tie itself into knots overnight, like regular hoses. 😉
#3 Stainless steel hoses are compact and a snap to store
They take up surprisingly little space. Here’s a picture of my 75-foot hose in a 14″ pot. As you can see, there is room to spare.
And you may also notice that the hose has not been placed with care. I just plop it in the pot and it coils effortlessly. And the next time I take it out to use, there are no knots or tangles. Amazing!
#4 They are crush-proof and puncture-proof
Stainless steel hoses are the “honey badgers of hoses.” You can drag them across gravel or boulders, impale them on cactus, drive your car over them, and they still hold up.
Stainless steel hoses are critter-proof. Desert animals and pets sometimes chew on hoses trying to eke water out of them.
And they are crush-proof. If you leave your hose across your driveway and accidentally drive over it, it should be OK.
Hose-Saving Tip!
To extend the life of any hose, turn the water off at the spigot
and then give your nozzle a squirt to remove any remaining water.
This will relieve any pressure from water that’s trapped inside.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are the answers to a few more questions you may have.
Are stainless steel hoses really stainless steel?
First, understand that they aren’t only stainless steel. Stainless steel hoses have a plastic inner tube that is surrounded by a flexible stainless steel covering.
The better brands have hoses made with 304 stainless steel. You may have come across this and wondered what it means. 304 is the most widely used stainless steel grade that’s known for being exceptionally strong and corrosion resistant.
Do stainless steel hoses get too hot to handle?
I haven’t found mine to be any hotter than regular hoses. Of course, I try not to use my hose in the middle of a hot summer day, which is the worst time of day to water plants!
But then I wondered “how hot do stainless steel hoses get?”
So on a 100+ degree summer day, I used my infrared thermometer gun to take the temperature of my stainless steel hose in full sun. It registered 132°F which is about the same temperature as a steering wheel in a parked car.
And once you turn the water on, the hose will cool down fast — provided the water coming out of your pipes is cooler than the hose.
I’ve seen stainless hoses with an additional fabric outer layer, but ironically, they are heavy, which negates one of the main benefits.
Two Things to Watch Out For
While I love my stainless steel hoses, there are two things to watch out for.
Don’t drag the hose across any vehicle you are washing — it could scratch your paint finish.
I own 3 stainless steel hoses and one of them left a gray coating on my hands the first time I used it. This doesn’t seem to be a common problem and almost no one mentions this in product reviews.
But if this happens to you, simply wipe it off with a rag and soapy water. I did that and the residue never came back.
Stainless Steel Garden Hoses: The Bottom Line
There is no such thing as the perfect garden hose, but stainless steel hoses come close.
They’re lightweight and easy to move and maneuver. They don’t rust, kink, puncture, or tangle. And they’re a snap to store.
The next time you are in the market for a new garden hose, consider upgrading to stainless.
Did you enjoy this article?
Sign up for our weekly newsletter
where you’ll find more great info on creating &
maintaining a beautiful, carefree desert landscape.
Author Bio
Deane Alban is the creator of Southwest Gardener. She is a science writer with a bachelor’s degree in botany from the University of South Florida. Gardening is her lifelong passion. She’s been gardening in Tucson for over 15 years.
I really appreciate your website as a resource to help us succeed in our backyard in Scottsdale. Saved as a favorite. On the south side of the McDowell Mtns. the dirt is super rocky and hard to dig. Getting plants to survive, even native ones, has been a struggle at times. We’ve learned that plants do best when we put them in the ground in November, so they have time to acclimate before the summer heat. I am asking my husband to buy steel hoses as he tends buy crap hoses from either Home Depot or Costco. I thought I’d seen a hose reel you recommended but don’t seem to find it in the search. Maybe I saw one on another site? Thank you!
I’m delighted to hear that you’ve bookmarked SWG and are making the switch to steel hoses! You must have seen the with the hose reel recommendation somewhere else, because I just use an old pot.