Are you stuck in the frozen tundra of winter? Or is have just decided to take a break from your gardening this winter. Not a gardener, but looking to buy a gift for one, we can help. This is your holiday buying guide for Hose Reels.

Hose Reels – A Definition

What is a hose reel? You probably already know the answer but just in case a hose reel is a piece of equipment which wraps the hose up on a reel for easy access and clean up. Instead of leaving the hose out on the ground a hose reel will wind the hose up to better protect it from the elements. Hoses are vulnerable to damage mainly from the sun and from lawn mowers. When rolled up on a hose hoses are better protected and they make your lawn and garden appear cleaner and more organized.

Hose Reels- Choosing a Rewind Method

Retrieval of hose or cable is accomplished by several types of rewind: manual, spring, and powered. Manual rewinds are popular where there is no convenient power source. Four methods of manual rewind are available: disk, direct drive, gear-driven crank, and chain-driven crank. Spring-rewind reels are ideal when a power rewind is required, but there is no available power source. Reels are installed in virtually any position. Spring-rewind reels have less torque than other types of rewinds and are best suited for hose lengths from 50 to 90 ft.

For convenience or heavy-duty work, reels can be equipped with a powered rewind. The motorized drives are air, hydraulic, or electric. Air is a popular choice because it is readily available in most industrial plants but not near your garden. Hydraulic power is suited for heavy-duty jobs. Electric power is also readily available but this is an option we do not recommend because mixing water with electricity is never a good idea.

For convenience, ease of use and cost we recommend finding a self winding hose reel which is hydro powered. There are new hose reels on the market which use the flow of water from the spout to the hose to power the hose reel winder. These self winding hose reels are easy to wind and are not costly or dangerous like electricity. All they need is a flip of the button and they will rewind them selves.

We hope this has been informative. For additional hose reel information please visit http://hydro-industries.com/ or the hose reel blog at http://hose-reels.blogspot.com/

Efrat B