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New England Gardening

soaker hoses

14 years ago

It's so incredibly dry here on the Cape! So, I broke down and went to buy new soaker hoses; mine were all damaged and didn't water very evenly anymore.

All they had at the garden center were these new flat, cloth hoses, so I got them. Unlike the old-time flat ones, the water seems to seep out all around the hose. They are a bit of a pain to lay out the first time, just because they kink a bit, but so far (just ONE DAY!) I love the way they work. Really much better than the round ones.

I don't suppose these will do well being left out over the winter (now you know why my old ones needed to be replaced) but at least they roll up very compactly. I'm hoping they survive out in the garden over the summer, and that there's some way to mend them if and when they get bitten.

Has anyone else tried these? If so, can you tell me how they hold up? I may need a few more, and will buy more flat ones unless people have had problems with them. TIA! - DtD

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Comments (4)

arbo_retum
14 years ago
what color are they? what did they tell you about winter w them? we leave all our soaker hoses out for the winter(1/2 acre of them); never any problems.black round rubber tire like material.
mindy
runktrun
14 years ago
dtd,
Are you sure that your hose is cotton? Could it be like the flat soaker hose from Gardeners Supply PVC mesh material with a life time warranty?
This spring I added soaker and direct tube watering to my berm and front woods. We took 3/4" black well pipe from a silcock at the house and ran it down to the woods, with such a large area to water we wound up adding five valves for five different watering zones. It works wonderfully but what I have learned is it is only as good as the persons memory who is turning it on/off and opening and closing the valves. I want to get a system down so the watering is as rote as brushing my teeth...yea I know but a girl can dream.

Here is a link that might be useful: Flat Soaker Hose
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Maybe a (buried) PVC pipe with holes drilled in it and then covered with a fine mesh to prevent soil from stopping up the holes would be better than a buried soaker hose. A lot of air pressure would be needed to force air through soaker hose holes, which would probably get stopped up with soil anyway. I have constructed 5 gallon doubled earthbuckets with a water chamber below the soil and a passive aeration tube (PVC pipe w/holes drilled in it and covered with women's stocking material) which is placed horizontally through the soil and extended through holes in the earthbucket sides so that the open ends are outside them. Natural wind movement through the tube and plant uptake provide air flow to the soil. In fact, with PVC pipe, you might not even need to pump any air through it if you'd attach two elbows and two PVC sections to extend each end of the aeration device above ground with the final section parallel to the earth to catch breezes. (Glue a regular kitchen funnel into the ends to act as an air flow funnel.) I believe that passive air flow would resulting from varying above-ground ambient temperatures as well as natural wind movement. (For some reason I visualize fountains of earth gouting into the air when you pump air through a buried line!) Well, just a thought. I haven't tested it. Have fun!
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I have a 5/8" old garden hose which was leaking around the part you screw into the spigot and which was kinking in one particular spot. I am disgusted with the recycled rubber soaker hose I installed a year ago - you look at it and it springs a leak. Since the "landscape workers" so considerately blew away all my mulch with their leaf blowers while blowing away leaves, my entire soaker hose system is now exposed and thus ready to recreate using this old garden hose. I've read numerous DIY "how to convert a garden hose into a soaker hose" articles and will use my electric drill and a tiny bit to make holes along the hose. What I want to know is where I can find tee connectors, end caps, reducing tees to run a small diameter hose up into my containers, etc. which will work with a 5/8" hose instead of the small diameter soaker hoses. Can anyone point me to a source? Thanks.
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Could it be your previous soaker hose leaked because it was used without a pressure regulator? Soaker hoses are designed to just "sweat" or slightly ooze water over an extended period of time and are recommended for a water pressure of 25 psi or less. The water pressure in a house or at most hose bibs is 45-60 psi.......running a soaker at that pressure without a regulator is pretty much guaranteed to cause leaks and sprays. Any spray coming from a soaker is a good bet you are not running it properly!! Together with the other bits and bobs you need for your hose conversion, make sure you get a pressure regulator as well. They will be sold in the same area as the hoses and other irrigation supplies.
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I have a small raised garden in my back yard. About 12' X 25'. It's small enough that I don't need a slow soaker or drip system. The water source has plenty of pressure and is on a timer. When I google irrigation systems all I see is drip or soaker systems. I'd prefer a non-sprinkler system (some veggies like squash don't like wet leaves) that simply opens up, fills the furrows in about 8-10 minutes on a regular basis, and turns off. Does such a system exist and where do I find it?
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diggingthedirt
Original Author
14 years ago
I think those are the same hoses. No, they're not cotton, they just feel like fabric - very flexible compared to the rubbery ones. Thanks for the link, it's good to know what they're made out of (Nylon-coated PVC mesh) and that they are meant to work at low pressure. Of course I've been blasting the water through them.

Mindy - I've always left most of my rubber soakers out over the winter, just removed the end caps, but I lose 2 or 3 each year, either to a careless shovel in spring or some animal takes a little bite, probably looking for water; or maybe water gets stuck in the hose and rips it when it freezes.

Katy, your irrigation system makes me SO envious! Do you use timers on this system or are the valves all opened and closed by hand? It still has to beat dragging hoses around! For an upcoming trip, I've swathed my whole yard with soakers, and was planning to add timers - 4 at least - since DH will NOT remember to turn them on or off. Sorry all but I'm praying that it rains on the Cape, for the whole month of June.
diggerdee zone 6 CT
14 years ago
Interesting thread. I have soaker hoses in my cutting garden, (the old, round, black ones) but I don't use them that often. I have a well, and have low pressure (was always very envious of my friend who could run 6 to 8 hoses at a time!!). Plus, my 75 feet of soakers are at the end of 100 feet of garden hose, so I wonder what that does to the pressure.

Still trying to find the ideal way to water. I don't know if I ever will, considering my spigot is on one side of the house, and my gardens are mostly on not only the other side of the house, but way on the other side of the yard - and on the other side of the driveway, so any underground solutions won't work.

In the meantime, I schlep 150feet of hose around. Sigh.

:)
Dee

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