Voting Booth: What type of hose reel do you use? Are you pleased with it?, 0 by DreamOfSpring

DreamOfSpring wrote:
LOL, missingrose, you haven't seen mine yet!

Well, now this certainly is embarrassing. This is the problem with 'live TV'. Mine is SO dirty. Did I mention that it has been out there in the elements for over a decade now? We only get 52in annual rainfall, but that plus the east coast humidity which typically runs 80-100% is more than enough for all manner of moss and fungus to grow on everything. Ok, I probably should wash the thing, but, seriously, I have much more important things to do. But enough trying to explain away my mess...

Some 10+ yrs ago, I literally put the hose in the giant container and have done absolutely nothing since that time. In 10+ yrs I haven't ever removed the hose or drained the thing or taken it in out of the elements, not even once. When you look at the pics, you won't have any problem believing that either. (But I do think it is a bit ugly, especially when compared to other options like the one posted by mlmlakestevens above.) I usually keep it tucked between/behind 2 shrubs, but I pulled it out so you could see it better. Just fyi, this is in my backyard, behind a privacy fence.

Since mine is over 10yrs old, it is an older model, long since discontinued. The newer models are more streamlined. Turns out it is more of an off-white or taupe color, not cream or pale yellow as I said earlier.

It's called Robo-Winder. It was made by Hydro Industries (formerly at http://www.hydro-industries.com); however, that is now a hydroponics site. A page at that site states that Hydro Industries is no longer in business and that a company named Suncast Industries currently makes ReelSmart hose reels. (www.suncast.com)

I bought mine from Amazon.com. At the time I had Amazon Prime, and they shipped the HUGE box to me (2 day shipping) free. Hard to beat that price.

The 'hat' on top in the 1st pic is not part of the hose reel. The 3rd pic shows the side view where you can see the lever you pull up to engage the water driven motor to rewind the hose. The last pic shows the door open to reveal the area where the hose is wound. The 4th pic is a really bad closeup (with door open) of the hose inside. The end of the hose is held between those horizontal bars. When the hose is being rewound, it slides back and forth between those horizontal bars; this action enables it to wind the hose evenly across the reel. It has been remarkably trouble-free for over a decade now, always winding the hose smoothly. All I ever do is turn the water on/off and pull up on the lever. It does the rest - well, except that I do have to pull the hose out on my own, but that's pretty easy.