The lead-free, Ultra-Light garden hose by Water Right.
The Water Right lead-free water hose claims to be “the finest quality polyurethane garden hose ever made.” Since I’m a person who always ends up in a mud-wrestling match with garden hoses, I decided to try the Water Right hose out to see if it lived up to its claims.
Testing the Water Right Garden Hose
The hose I tested – the Water Right Ultra-Light – was very easy to use. It’s supple and lightweight, with high-quality metal fittings that were easy to connect to my faucet and sprayer. It has plastic coils at each end to prevent kinks at the connectors. Best of all, the hose material rebounded quickly, which means it was pretty easy to shake out tangles. When I kinked it on purpose, it didn’t crease.
Compared to bargain-bin garden hoses I’ve used, the Water Right hose was far superior in performance and quality. Compared to expensive hoses I’ve used, it was much lighter and easier to pull around, making the Water Right more pleasant to use.
The Water Right hose features kink-resistant connectors.
However, the most important thing about this garden hose is that it’s made from 100% lead free polyurethane. Lead contamination is a serious concern with PVC garden hoses. Lead leaches out of both the PVC tubing and the brass fittings and is a very dangerous neurotoxin even in very small doses.
A 2003 study by Consumer Reports revealed that water from some major garden hose brands had up to 100 times the lead levels allowed by the EPA. A subsequent lawsuit has attempted to reduce lead levels and disclose the risks, but not all garden hoses are properly labeled.
Importance of Lead-Free Garden Hoses
Made from food-grade materials.
Water Right garden hoses are made from top-quality, food grade polyurethane that meets both Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and NSF International safety standards, so you can fill your child’s swimming pool without worrying about highly toxic lead leaching out into the water.
While more expensive than big-box-store garden hoses, you’re buying safety and peace of mind in addition to a really high-quality, user-friendly product.
Buying and Using a Garden Hose
With any garden hose, it’s important to:
- Read the label: Never drink or fill swimming pools with water from a hose that isn’t clearly labeled “Lead Free” or “Drinking Water Safe.” The absence of a label means it’s not safe.
- Let it run: Always let your hose run for a few seconds before using, since the water that’s been sitting in the hose will have the highest levels of contaminants and bacteria.
- Avoid the sun: Store your hose in the shade. The heat from the sun can increase the leaching of chemicals from the PVC into the water.
Further Information
- Get the Lead Out of the Garden Hose (Consumer Reports via LeadPrevention.org)
- Lawsuit Wins Protection for Children from Lead Risks in Garden Hoses (Center for Environmental Health)
Hooking up the hose for the summer, to the outside faucet and the water wants to shoot out around the handle whenever the hose becomes attached. When it’s off, the faucet runs water out smoothly like it should. We haven’t had this problem before this summer and we are at a loss of why it’s happening. Do you have any suggestions on what it could be and what to do to correct the problem? I didn’t know where else to go to get this comment in to you. Thanks for taking the time.
Sincerely,
Michelle Mudge
Hi Michelle,
I had the same problem with my outside faucets. Try using a wrench to tighten up the packing nut that the handle goes into. This will compress the packing and should stop the backflow from coming out of the handle. Don’t tighten it up too much, just tighten it up a little and try it again. If it doesn’t fix it, try tightening it up a bit more until it stops. Good luck with your project!
Excellent work on this article. It make for an interesting and easy read.
Yes, lead free garden hoses are so important especially for children. Water quality should also be considered as Chlorine can be harmful to our health. We use the Clean Water Fun garden hose filter (www.CleanWaterFun.com) with our hose to provide cleaner water for our children, pets, and plants.
Hi, just watching DYI, program about garden tools and within the presentation they just happen to demonstrate your Water-right hose. I am just in the market and was going to Lowes to purchase a 100 ft hose, but after viewing this program decided to get on line and do a little more researching. I have changed my mind about the brand I intially intended to purchase because of the ease in manuvering and carrying your hose if I need to. It was also so co-incidental that I read the above critique where a person was having problems with the outside faucet, and it so happens that I am having a similar problem, except I had to turn the water off inside my home to stop the faucet from leaking constantly, just noticed the newly painted wall in that area, was stained and damp, and will have to be redone. Would you tell me by the discription of the leaking what is the matter and how hard is it to repair? Also, before I go, since the hose is so light weight, does it stand up under high water pressure, for example when hosing something off and not just watering plants? Thank you, June Muraco
I just bought 2 new hoses-both were worthless-An Apex hose 25ft.gets 5 stars-after that it drops off-4 stars for 50 ft-I`d like to get a hose that doesn`t kink at 50 ft-Why do they drop off at 50 ft. Thanks,Glen
I’m sorry, but this is the worst hose I have ever encountered. It coils-up on itself both backwards and forwards from one coil to another. You can get a full workout just rolling it up. I tried everything to get it to lay-out flat….I even tied one end to a tree trunk, then pulled on the other end to stretch it out….still it rolled-up in a mess. I even left if stretched-out in the sun for days…still didn’t do any good. It will wind-up with my other trash at the next pickup.
I purchased the Water Rite brand 1/2″ polyurethane hose from Front Gate in 50ft & 100ft in the copper/gold color with chrome-plated brass fittings. I cant say enough how much I love them. I have had none of the problems mentioned by other reviewers with it not lying flat or wanting to coil, and they never kink, nor do the fittings leak (3 months of daily use so far). Mine came coiled in the shipping box & effortlessly unwound & lay completely flat. Coiling them back into a hose pot is equally effortless. I was surprised by how light the shipping boxes were when they arrived, expecting much more weight for a water hose. They are incredibly light & easy to drag around to all my garden boxes. Prior to these I was going through hoses every season due to the fittings pitting, corroding, leaking & failing, or the hose itself cracking or getting pin-hole leaks. I was constantly having to lop off the failed fittings & sections and fit replacement ends. We have very high water pressure (over 100psi) and I have forgotten & left the water on to the hose with a trigger sprayer on the end for days with these hoses with no issues, leaks, failures, etc (though I do try not to do this just incase). I absolutely love the color which both blends into the surroundings & compliments the aesthetics of the garden.