When your old garden hose is worn and in poor repair, don’t throw it out. Garden hoses can be used in a number of ways and will remain useful long after they cease being used for watering your lawn.
Here are just a few inspiring ideas for your old hoses:
Protect young trees
When supporting young trees, cut a piece of garden hose and run wire through to attach to support stakes. The hose prevents the wire from damaging your saplings.
Earwig trap
Earwigs love to hide in small, dark places. Place 6-inch pieces of hose in your garden to attract these nasty insects. Later shake them free into a bucket of soapy water.
Garage buffers
Especially helpful for new drivers in the household, screw lengths of hose at bumper level to corners of the garage door frame to prevent unsightly dents in the trim.
Soaker hoses
Make your own soaker hose by crimping the open end and drilling some holes throughout the hose. Bury it just under the soil around your plants and fill with water. It will keep your plants watered for days.
Water level
Walter Reeves, the host of TV’s Garden Sense, transformed his garden hose into a giant water level in order to set an even grade for his patio. He attached 3-foot pieces of clear vinyl to each end of the hose and filled it with colored water.
Tool hanger
Halve a 2 foot segment of hose and screw both ends to a wall. It creates a hanger that will hug the handles of your tools.
Blade protector
Slit a length of hose and slide it over the teeth edge of your handsaw to protect the blade when not in use. This also works great with knife or ice skate blades.
Bucket handle
Slip a piece of hose through the wire handle of a bucket or paint can to provide a better grip.
Swing protector
Slide a length of swing-set chains through garden hose to protect little fingers when swinging.
Faucet extension
Bury lengths of linked hose underground to relocate an outdoor spigot to a more useable location.
Snake scare
Create a snake decoy to frighten away annoying flocks of birds. Cut a short length of hose and lay it on the grass in a snake position. It fools them everytime.
Downspout declogger
Push the hose up through a clogged downspout allowing the water from the gutter to drain and carry away any trapped debris.
Play telephone
Make an old-fashioned play telephone for the kids. Cut a length of hose and attach a funnel to each end with duct tape. Let the kids chat all they want.
Landscaping tool
When laying out a new garden, use a length of garden hose to create the initial outline and then dig around it.
Curve sander
Hose works great as a sanding tool for tight curves such as trim or crown molding. Take a length of hose, split it lengthwise and insert one edge of the sandpaper. Wrap it around the hose, trim to fit and insert the other end in the slit. Close the slit with some duct tape and get sanding.
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