How can I recycle an old garden water hose that has a hole in it? I am not interesting in trying to repair it but can I use it for something else?
By Betty from Lubbock, TX
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Add some more holes and use it to make a soaker hose for your flowers or garden.
I made a sprinkler out of mine. You can also make a slow-drip hose to water your outdoor plants & flowers.
First dry out the hose, then take an old soldering iron & use the end of the hot soldering iron to poke holes in the hose every 1 or 2 inches. Wait several seconds between holes for the iron the reheat. You can buy a soldering iron for around $5 & if you wipe all the rubber off the soldering iron while it's still hot you can still use it to solder with later.
You can use this hose to slowly feed your plants & you can even bury it underground if you like & just drip the water slowly. Or you can use it as a sprinkler above ground. I made mine for an area where I was going to have a ditch dug for additional wiring & used it to wet & soften the ground before digging.
Before using your new hose, cover the end of it with Duct Tape or a screw-on hose attachment that you can close to keep the water in so the pressure will build up & make the water squirt out of the hose. It works best if you align the holes (when poking them) along only one side of the hose. Place the holes up for an above-ground sprinkler & down for an underground drip-feeder.
If you want to make a drip-water hose, you'll have to first know where you are going to bury it. Simply measure the area BETWEEN the plants & don't poke holes where there are no plants. Underground drip-watering is a very effective way to water your plants & conserve water because hardly any water evaporates so you can also water during the warm part of the day.
You need more holes further away from the spigot & less holes closer, because there is more water pressure closer to the faucet.
You can also repair almost any hose.
They sell all the pieces to repair them at Hardware stores & also at Big Lots (the liquidation store).
Any time I have to make holes in plastic I use a candle and a gimlet (or another tool very pointed but a gimlet will not be damaged and is easy to hold safely). I put on a leather glove to protect my fingers from the heat of the metal and I hold the gimlet tip just above the flame of the candle and when it is hot enough I push it through the plastic.
I have seen people who have to tie their small trees up, use it to cover the string so the string doesn't touch the tree branches. They do that at the parks over here, all the time. I like the soaker hose idea, it uses less water.
Bike inner tubes are even better for this as they are rubber and much more flexible. Plus they have 'give' in them so they do not restrict the plant as it grows.
If you have fruit trees, put it in them to keep birds away.
How does this keep birds away? Where do you put the hose? Maybe this will help me this year
They think the hose is a snake so they steer clear. The effectiveness may depend on what types of birds you have in your area.
Good luck and let is know how it works out.
I made a basket with mine.
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