Flat hoses for sullage, drinking water etc

[Ian]

I saw these folks at the last few Caravanning and Camping shows and thought that their product range had a lot going for it, especially considering how little space they took up. Flat hoses might seem expensive to me but the space saving and apparent quality would have to compensate for that, IMO. Do you have products like these in your RV market?

http://www.flatoutaust.com/index.html

Also for those collecting hints and tips, check out this neat idea for filling the water tank;
]http://www.flatoutaust.com/ideas.html

And yes, they do sell internationally No, I don't have any link to their company? nor get anything other than pleasure for sharing this with you.

 

[Tom]

Ian,

Having previously owned one of the flat hoses and watching others use them, I give it a big thumbs down. They're a PITA to roll up and need to be extended in a straight line to be able to get them to collapse. If you don't do that, they trap water in sections of the hose and refuse to roll up flat.

 

[Ron]

I second what Tom said Thumbs Down on the flat hoses. IMHO they are useless unless you like being frustrated. 

 

[Tom]

IMHO they are useless unless you like being frustrated.

LOL Ron, I think we could form a frustrated flat hose owners club.

 

[Ian]

Heck guys, why don't ya tell me what ya really think about 'em?

  Thanks for the comments. I would not have thought that they would have problems like that. I thought there was a roller/squeegee system on the roll box that would push water etc out of them as you rolled them up. Will have to take a close look at them next time I see some aorund.

 

[Tom]

I thought there was a roller/squeegee system on the roll box...

There is, but....

...that would push water etc out of them as you rolled them up.

It can't push the water anywhere because it's trapped in numerous pockets along the unrolled length of hose by kinks. You have to lay it out and unkink it, if you have the patience.

As Fred Thomas often says, a lot of stuff sold for RVs is junk. You can this one to the list.

 

[Chet18013]

I've had one for 9 years and though I only use it when my 25' white RV hose isn't long enough, I have never had a problem with it. You do indeed, have to be careful to fully extent it and keep it flat, when rolling it up,  but if you do it will serve you well. It sure is a space saver, but comes in handy when you need a little more hose.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I think we could form a frustrated flat hose owners club.

I'll join too.  Another frustrated user gave me his Toro flat hose and I carried it in the coach for a couple years and tried it 3-4 times. It came in a plastic housing with a roll-up handle, but you had to completely unwind it for use. As a water inlet line it kinks easily, shutting off the flow. Had to make sure it was laid out straight.  The roll-up mechanism on the hose did an OK job of squeezing the water out, but it wasn't any more convenient than a regular hose, though it was somewht smaller when coiled up.  I finally tried it as a gray water drain hose and found that didn't work at all - the minimal water pressure of the tank draining would not open up the hose diameter enough to let water flow through. Only an occasional drip came out the end. After that I gave it away to a guy who needed an extra length of hose for his garden.

There are also permanent coil hoses that you stretch out to us eand they snap back into a coil when done. Also smaller than standard white potable water hoses, but they are small diameter too (3/8 inch, I think).  I've met only one RVer who likes his. Everybody else who tried one either gave it away or didn't replace it when it cracked, which apparently is a frequent occurrence.

Sometimes the tried and true "old technology" is the best.

 

[Ian]

OK, while I don't yet have an RV all of the responses have certainly clarified for me just how useless hoses like this might be. Even though they save space, if they don't work as they should then they are a waste of space.

Another benefit of this chat is that we have just resolved the problems for other folks out there who might be interested in how these hoses stack up to real life usage. That cant be a bad thing.

Thanks everybody for chipping in on this chat.

 

[Tom]

Thanks everybody for chipping in on this chat.

Thanks for raising the subject Ian. As you see, RVers are not shy when it comes to expressing opinions about such things, especially if it's something we wasted money buying.

 

[Lorna]

Gary

Have to disagree with you about the Toro flat hose in the plastic case as I had one for over 25 years and used it quite often on our boat and after we bought the motor home. ?It was great for cleaning the roof of the motor home but unfortunately I got it too close to a cactus and it sprung a leak and just couldn't stop it. ?Yes you do have to lay it out flat to roll it up but it worked great at draining the water out of it. ?Keep forgetting to get another one when at the hardware store but will replace it with same.

 

[Tom]

Lorna,

If I can find mine in my junk pile, you can have it. I too tried it on a boat, but it didn't work there either. IIRC I bought two versions - with and without the reel.

 

[John From Detroit]

I"ve used flat and semi-flat hoses for water for a long time,,, Haven't had much chance to use them since going to the Motor home though, they do store nicely and I have two, one truly flat, one about half flat.

As for sewage, here in the US we use 3" hoses, that is a bit bigger, though I do have one 3/4" hose for use with the pump with I have to pump it out.. Hoses in my rig are color coded.

Black hose = Black water  Gray = gray  anything else = fresh water only

 

[Ian]

...As for sewage, here in the US we use 3" hoses, that is a bit bigger, though I do have one 3/4" hose for use with the pump with I have to pump it out..

I thought that the bigger hose was in use here too but I honestly have never seen one in  use so couldn't be certain.

Hoses in my rig are color coded.  Black hose = Black water  Gray = gray  anything else = fresh water only

Now that is a pretty smart colour code if ever I heard one. Heck, even I would be able to follow that one

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Ian,
There is an alternate cap for the3"  sewer outlet that has a 3/4 inch hose connecor on it. Useful for times when a standard dump station is not available and you need to dump via gravity feed or sewer pump into a septic system or city sewer line.

 

[John From Detroit]

Ian,
There is an alternate cap for the3"  sewer outlet that has a 3/4 inch hose connecor on it. Useful for times when a standard dump station is not available and you need to dump via gravity feed or sewer pump into a septic system or city sewer line.

I use, or plan on using, one of those for gray water

I use a macerator pump for conditions you cite,,, it not only forces the "stuff" through the 3/4" hose but chews up anything that would clog the hose as well

 

[Lou Schneider]

I bought a 25 ft. flat hose several years ago, but I rarely use it.  The only time it has been useful is when I can extend it in a straight line - if you try to curve it it'll usually kink and shut off the flow.

I don't have the reel, but instead put it in the palm of my hand and wind it flat around one end fitting.  The only reason I keep it is due to it's extremely small footprint when stored this way.

Here's a tip for using the reducing cap - if you have to shut off the flow before the tank is empty, the water in the pipe between the shutoff valve and the reducing cap will remain trapped by vacuum until you disconnect the garden hose.  Then it will spill all over the ground.

You can drain that last water by slightly loosening the garden hose from the reducer, enough to let air leak in around the threads.  If there is trapped water remaining in the pipe you'll hear it go glug, glug, glug like a soda bottle as the incoming air lets the trapped water drain through the hose.  When the sound effects stop, it's safe to fully remove the hose.

 

[Wendy]

Add us to the anti-flat hose crowd. We bought one when we had our first 5th wheel, around 1983. Hated that you had to extend the whole dang thing to be able to use it.