pirit heated hose or other types...

[shorthorsemom]

Hi, surfing for opinions on heated hoses, pirit heated hose, or any other type. Last winter was brutal for my hose freezing up and I ended up carrying buckets from my house.

I was thinking of buying a heated hose but wondering if any of you have tried one. Just looking for a short one coming from the basement to the basement doors, then I was thinking of having some sort of different hose I could take off and put in a bucket and bring in the house, so I wouldn't need to buy the really long heated hose, just trying to spare lifting a very heavy basement door to get to the short section of hose that freezes so I can fill my buckets outside...,

I heard that awful 4 letter word snow for this weekend???? YIKEs, I am in SE PA. Snow in October? got me thinking about heated hoses and winter and all that stuff..

brrrrr

 

[LAminiatures]

I was wondering that myself. I never have purchased one but have heard good and bad. Maybe google heated hose reviews. That may help you decide. If you get some buckets with covers you can put them on a sled instead of carrying them..................its helps.

 

[shorthorsemom]

It isn't so much about carrying the buckets for me, it is about not lifting a horse bucket in and out of my kitchen sink to fill it. I need outside water source whether I carry the buckets or not. I typically just fill half buckets and carry and fill and I use heated buckets when it is really cold.

I will google and see, but when I did that last year there were so many varied opinions, I just gave up... then I had such a pain all winter I decided to revisit the topic.

 

[LAminiatures]

Maybe you could fill milk jugs and put them in the crates they have and take them down. I use them to put a shot of hot water in buckets before bed time in the winter My frost free hydrant froze last winter for a week or so and it was not so much fun having to bring water from the house to the barn I have heard people using a regular hose and taking it in after each use.

Funny they always say get in shape for summer when winter is the season to be in shape for ..............water buckets, shoveling, stacking wood, and I was blessed with roof raking last year.

 

[StarRidgeAcres]

I don't have a water source near my barn/pastures, so I use hoses 365 days a year. For winter, I got 2 60' heated hoses and although they have their drawbacks, I can't imagine carrying that much water twice every single day! I paid, with shipping, around $260 for the two hoses.

Here are some things to look for when using a heated hose:

The heating elements run the lenght of the hoses and are easy to break so don't drive atvs or any vehicles over them.

There are no heating elements in the connectors (any metal pieces) so you MUST drain them completely when you are finished or any water that pools near the unheated sections will freeze and then you might as well have regular hoses at that point.

I leave mine plugged in as in the deep winter, it takes HOURS to heat up enough to keep from freezing while watering.

My route from home to the pasture is fairly level, so I really, really have to make sure they are completely drained. Also, any snow on the ground when you drop the ends will briefly melt and then collect in the ends and then your screwed when it comes times to use them next. I learned to not only drain them, but curl the ends of each hose back on itself and set the metal ends ON TOP of the heated piece of the hose so that metal stays off the ground and also somewhat "heated" by sitting on top of the heated part of the hose. I don't know if that makes sense or not, but it really works.

And due to the thickness of the rubber and the extra stuff for heating it, they are HEAVY! If you plan to pick them up after each use, you may want to have something to assist in carrying them.

Good luck!

 

[shorthorsemom]

Thanks everybody... still thinking. I just need a short section that stays thawed from the basement to the outside... After that I am good, it isn't the carrying, it is the lifting in and out of the sink... I am short and last year I dumped water all over my floor and myself... I need available un-frozen water source outside. . Thanks for the hose tips..and care of them. I may just order a 25 ft piece to go from the pump to the basement door and then have a drainable hose to go from there to the buckets and I can bring the hose into the house in a muck bucket.

sigh

I hate winter,.

 

[Ashley]

I have a frost free hydrant in the barn. I just use a regular hose and haul it in and out everyday. I hang it in the basement by the wood stove so its always ready when I need it.

 

[ruffian]

Hubby bought me the heated hoses last year. First bought the PE ones - they didn't seem to stay thawed and were horrible to handle. So we traded them for the heated rubber hoses. LOVE THEM! I also leave them plugged in and never had any problems. They are still heavy and bulky to handle, but much MUCH better than hauling water even from the hydrant to the pails.

 

[mdegner]

I always say the saddest day of the year is when the hoses come in to spend winter in the basement and we have to carry that water. I was just saying to my husband yesterday, "hey, do they make heated hoses or something like that?" Had to giggle when I saw this posting...

So, very interested in this topic, as the thought of carrying 10+ 5-gallon pails twice a day, soon. . . very, very soon--I live in Minnesota--makes me want to cry.... LOL

Sounds like we should check out the higher-quality hoses??

 

[Genie]

Thanks everybody... still thinking. I just need a short section that stays thawed from the basement to the outside... After that I am good, it isn't the carrying, it is the lifting in and out of the sink... I am short and last year I dumped water all over my floor and myself... I need available un-frozen water source outside. . Thanks for the hose tips..and care of them. I may just order a 25 ft piece to go from the pump to the basement door and then have a drainable hose to go from there to the buckets and I can bring the hose into the house in a muck bucket.

sigh

I hate winter,.

We wrap our hose with a heated cord so the hose never freezes. The heated cord will do about 6 feet of hose. The cord plugs in to an outlet and then you wrap the hose.

 

[splash's mom]

I have 2 of the Pirit hoses. A 25ft and a 50ft. I leave them turned on and hooked up to a frost free hydrant inside the barn. Never had a problem with them freezing, been using them for 3 years now. I just wish they plugged into each other like Christmas lights do. If you need more than one length of hose, you need more than one outlet to plug them into.

 

[shadowpaints]

i use hoses all year round, no matter the weather. when the temps start getting chilly i drain the hoses, only takes 3-4 minutes to do. and i always end up watering everyday sooo lol

our electric bill is so high during the winter, having to plug yet another thing in well, im not willing lol

 

[Carolyn R]

My hubby purchased heated hoses for me last year for Christmas. I only use one, I wish je would have found a slightly longer one, but everyone was back ordered come the holidays. I am in the northeast part of PA, it may get a bit colder here than it does for you and they work great. I have to check out the brand name.

Ditto on the connections.....You must disconnect it from the source and if make sure water is not sitting at the last 5-6 inches of either end of the hose. Anything in the middle will thaw enough that it passes right through when the hose is plugged in. I plug it in about 15-20 minutes before I need to fill any buckets. I love it! I was just thinking that I need to pull mine out soon. I put mine away come spring, too expensive to have the lawn mower run it over in the summer

A quick tip, if you forgot to tip the ends up so the water doesn't settle in them, take a bucket with 2 gallons of hot water and submerge each end for a few minutes, it will break the ice free from the metal connectors. Its a pain in the butt , however much easier than lugging bucket after bucket from the house.

 

[PondlakeMinis]

I use a heated hose in the winter and love it. it only takes about 15 or 20 minutes to thaw. I hang it in the barn when done and plug it in when I start the evening chores. even when the temperature is single digits or below 0, it only takes about 20 minutes to warm up. my sister, niece and their horses gave it to me as a gift. the best ever.

Cyndia

Pondlake Stables

 

[mdegner]

Just hit the top of my christmas list.....

Or my husbands.....LOL

 

[gatorbait4sure]

I have one of the orange ones and keep it plugged in all winter. I've used it for two years and it has worked well for me. They are bulky and heavy though...BUT ever so much better than frozen water!

I also use heated muck buckets for under the frost frees ( which usually freeze ), and the 5 gallon heateds for little paddocks. All in all I am the PLUG IN QUEEN of the Northeast...but loving not chiping ice and hauling pails!

dru

 

[wingnut]

Would your laundry area happen to be in the basement? What my husband did was put a split hose connection on the hot water feed to my washer. He hooked up a hose to that. 99% of the time, the split connection has the lever set to off for the "horse hose" side and set to on on the "washer hose" side. I just switch the lever to the "horse hose" whenever I want to get a bucket of hot water. The hose is long enough that I can set the bucket on the basement floor and fill it up.

Here's a pic of what it looks like

 

[lisam]

I have a heated hose, and I love it! I leave it plugged in and hooked up to a spigot in the barn all winter long. I also have a heated bag for hoses--

http://www.doversaddlery.com/product.asp_Q_pn_E_X1-27167

I put my coiled hose in this. I hang it in the aisleway of my barn.

 

[BeeBopMini]

We have never used heated hoses and Northern Michigan everything freezes. Sounds like you have to drain a heated hose as well. With our regular hose, after each use, we stand on the end of the porch and pull our hoses up there as we roll them up. The natural elevation drains them and we do not have an issue with frozen hoses for the next time we need to fill up our heated buckets. If our outside spiket freezes, we just take a cup of cool water and pour it over the round handle. Thaws in an instant, then we hook up the hose and we are ready to rock and roll.

 

[lisam]

Oh, I don't drain my heated hose. It doesn't freeze if you leave it plugged in.