Compact drinking water hose

rhyno

Storage space is everything, so does anyone have any recommendations for a lightweight and compact water hose? There are several out there but it is hard to tell what's good with reviews all over the place. 

VictoriaP

Not cheap, but the ZeroG hoses are extremely compact. I will never go back to a traditional hose for either the house or the trailer.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N1FB8WV/

Regardless of what you choose, make sure it’s drinking water safe.

AirBoss

Ditto...Zero G. Much preferred over traditional hoses.

4ncar

X3 for zero G!

Verna

X4 for Zero G!

DougH

Me too.  

Think I bought it at Northern Tool where they had both the regular kind and the drinking water kind. 

ontheroad

Yup saw one being used by a former T@bber and we knew immediately it was " the cat's meow"... Thinking of adding a second one too!

4ncar

ontheroad said:

Yup saw one being used by a former T@bber and we knew immediately it was " the cat's meow"... Thinking of adding a second one too!

I have 2 @ 25’. Never needed the second one as yet in 3 seasons, but, better safe then sorry.

TomCanada

Opted for a standard camco hose.  The zero-G look great but a ton of people have issues with leaks etc.  Read the reviews on Amazon..

4ncar

@TomCanada: in three seasons, I have had a total of...zero leaks.

Horigan

The zero-G hoses don't like to be constantly pressurized, so in an RV environment they should be fine, assuming you're not full timing it.

Denny16

I have and use the Zero-G hose, works great.  But I do not pressurize the hose for more than a few days at a time, and then not all day long.  When camping, I have the water in in morning, off during the day (unless cooking), and on for a few hours in the evening and off after dinner.
cheers

AirBoss

Leave it pressurized often. No issues, no leaks.

Did manufacturer recommend against constant pressurization?

Don't put a ton of faith in Amazon reviews. Rely more on SME'S...you know...folks on here! ;-) 

Dalehelman

I replaced the stand 1/2” hose years ago with this polyurethane air hose. I adapted the ends with brass garden hose male and female ends from Lowe’s as well. Some inquired if the inside diameter was large enough for adequate water flow. The answer is yes even in the shower. If you check the inside diameter of the water supply lines you will find they are about the same size.


1/4-in Kink Free 25-ft Polyurethane Air Hose https://www.lowes.com/pd/Kobalt-1-4-in-Kink-Free-25-ft-Polyurethane-Air-Hose/3303484

Horigan

AirBoss said:

Did manufacturer recommend against constant pressurization?

My hardware store gave me that recommendation, presumably based on customer feedback...

ontheroad

@4ncar...maybe we need to park deeper into the site or pivot the clamshell...lol

Denny16

FYI, a 1/4-inch air hose is going to have a 1/4” opening, and the water lines in the TaB are 1/2” (inside diameter).  So the air hose is going to pass less gallons per minute of water, than a 1/2” supply line would.  Going from a 3/4 hose bib connection to a 1/4-inch supply line is going to restrict the flow, but increase the pressure, which is released in the 1/2-inch pipes in the TaB.  

Cheers

dsfdogs

I switched to the Zero-G after only a couple outings three years ago, where I had to fight with the white drinking hose in the dirt. Life is too short! I keep it pressurized/turned on unless away from camp. I use one at home and have had issues after dragging it over rough concrete as the fabric covering wears then a leak forms. For camping, to keep the hose clean and avoid it laying on the ground near sewer hook ups with full service sites, I started to keep the drinking hose and gear in a 5 gallon bucket. I just pull out the amount of hose needed, the rest stays coiled inside. I bought a separate black hose with nozzle and bag and store it with sewer gear.

TomCanada

Thanks folks for the voices of confidence in the ZeroG - I'm sure it's a great product.  My fear stems from the reviews where 6%-10% of people are reporting leaks - and that's just of the people who actually left a review (I surmise that most people for whom this thing leaks after 6-12 months don't bother with a review..).  That's too high for me for an expensive product..  though if you're one of the lucky 90%, I'm sure this is an amazing product - because if it hasn't leaked, people love this and give it 5 stars very consistently!  Personally I'll opt for a cheapie that I can replace three times over for the cost of the probably-good-but-possibly-not fancy one..

50' Zero-G: $64
50' Camco hose: $18

Here are the reviews of those small percentage who this hose didn't work well for.  The 1-star reviews can be quite insightful   I just don't personally want to roll the dice on this - but it's tempting as it sounds like an awesome hose otherwise..

https://www.amazon.com/product-reviews/B014M9PEXC/ref=acr_dp_hist_1?ie=UTF8&filterByStar=one_star&reviewerType=all_reviews#reviews-filter-bar

JeffroNC

After trying to roll up and stow one of the stiff white hoses on a cold morning or two, I got a Zero G.
I heated it, froze it, and generally beat the heck out of it for over 200 nights this year without any problems.

Dalehelman

Denny16 said:

FYI, a 1/4-inch air hose is going to have a 1/4” opening, and the water lines in the TaB are 1/2” (inside diameter).  So the air hose is going to pass less gallons per minute of water, than a 1/2” supply line would.  Going from a 3/4 hose bib connection to a 1/4-inch supply line is going to restrict the flow, but increase the pressure, which is released in the 1/2-inch pipes in the TaB.  

Cheers

The water lines in our Tab are in fact 1/2” pex, but the supply lines that feed the faucets toilet and shower inside diameter is much smaller. Most RV water fixtures also have flow restricted to help conserve water.

The first picture shows a flow restricter which has actually been drill out a little larger. The second shows the supply line compared to the 1/4” air hose.

Sharon_is_SAM

@Dalehelman - so, if the water pressure is already down regulated and the supply to the faucet and the faucet outlet are flow restricted, are you saying that it does not matter what size hose delivers the water to the TaB?  

Tampakayaker

TomCanada said:

Thanks folks for the voices of confidence in the ZeroG - I'm sure it's a great product.  My fear stems from the reviews where 6%-10% of people are reporting leaks - and that's just of the people who actually left a review (I surmise that most people for whom this thing leaks after 6-12 months don't bother with a review..).  That's too high for me for an expensive product..  though if you're one of the lucky 90%, I'm sure this is an amazing product - because if it hasn't leaked, people love this and give it 5 stars very consistently!  Personally I'll opt for a cheapie that I can replace three times over for the cost of the probably-good-but-possibly-not fancy one..

50' Zero-G: $64
50' Camco hose: $18

Here are the reviews of those small percentage who this hose didn't work well for.  The 1-star reviews can be quite insightful   I just don't personally want to roll the dice on this - but it's tempting as it sounds like an awesome hose otherwise..

https://www.amazon.com/product-reviews/B014M9PEXC/ref=acr_dp_hist_1?ie=UTF8&filterByStar=one_star&reviewerType=all_reviews#reviews-filter-bar

Currently on Amazon the 50 foot zero g is $39 and the 50 Camco is $25.

The 25 foot zero must be out of stock most places and it's listed as $62.

Most of those bad reviews are from a few years ago.  Maybe they have made them sturdier?

Dalehelman

Sharon_is_SAM said:

@Dalehelman - so, if the water pressure is already down regulated and the supply to the faucet and the faucet outlet are flow restricted, are you saying that it does not matter what size hose delivers the water to the TaB?  

I am saying the water lines are larger than the fixture supply lines. So that more than one outlet can be used at one time. Without effecting flow or pressure to either. The reason for using 1/4 air line was that takes up less space which the OP was looking for. It is also self coiling even cold weather. Just saying it has worked well for us.

Denny16

Using smaller connecting hose from 1/2 PEX supply line to the faucets 3/8” connection line is standard practice, even in houses.  This allows for a more constant water supply.  You start with larger pipes and go down in size as you branch out.  You do not normally have a smaller diameter pipe feeding water to a larger pipe, this creates a flow restriction where you do not want it. 

 The RV park water supply is normally 3/4-inch to the hose bib, feed from a 1-inch main.  So water flows from larger pipes to smaller pipes as it is distributed.  This allows for a more constant pressure at the end of the line. 

 Using a 1/4 inch supply to the trailer can result is less flow of water to the trailer, and if some one is taking a shower, and you turn in the cold water in the galley, the person in the shower is going to be unhappy, when the water suddenly gets hotter, as the cold water flow is reduced by the galley cold water faucet being turned on.

 I will continue to use standard plumbing practice of using a larger supply line, as the trailer was designed to have.  Larger size pipe is greater flow at lower pressure, and smaller pipes have less flow, but greater pressure as they restrict the flow from a larger pipe behind them.  Ideally, you could use a 3/4 hose to connect the TAB.  

cheers

SweetlyHome

I've used the Camco, ZeroG, and hose similar to the Camco that I purchased at West Marine.  Wish I could identify the specific brand name.  I'm currently using the 50' ZeroG but not thrilled with it.

Some of the problems with the ZeroG is likely the 50' length, both the others are 25'.

For ZeroG:  

• The unrolled length often kinks when in use restricting flow until I work them out.
• It is heavier to start and more so when is water trapped in it as it is difficult to impossible to get all the water out of it without fully unrolling it.
• As an engineer I'm leery of the aluminum fittings seizing on brass valves etc.  
• I'm also not fond of the large size of these fittings.  I can no longer close and lock the T@B city water connection with the hose installed.  
• The woven cover picks up dirt much more readily and is harder to wipe off than the other hoses.

That being said I had originally purchased the West Marine hose to extend the Camco one that came with the T@B.  It quickly took the place of the Camco.  The West Marine hose is not as stiff, particularly when cold. It kinks less frequently than the Zero G, easier to drain, and has just the right stiffness to make coiling easy.

I'm thinking about returning to the Marine hose, never again on the Camco.

Your mileage may differ. 

VictoriaP

@SweetlyHome Interesting. My 25’ has never had a kinking issue, BUT...neither has my 75’ ZeroG knockoff that I use around the house. That one has been known to tie itself in knots because I simply dump it into an empty planter for storage when I’m done and usually yank it out as one big lump instead of coiling and uncoiling it neatly, but even then it doesn’t restrict the flow by any noticeable amount.

As with everything else, choices are good, because people have different preferences. Personally, I’ll never go back to dealing with regular hoses, the traditional style one I use at dump sites for flushing is only 10 feet and is still way more annoying and bulky to store than the ZeroG type.