Storing a Heated Hose: Draining, Coil Size, Reels and Summer Use

Result and effort

Storing a heated hose takes no tools. The result is a dry, unplugged, loosely coiled hose kept indoors. The makers tie this routine to the life of the product. The PIRIT manual says: “To extend the lifetime of the hose, unplug and drain the hose, and remove attachments when not in use.” Miller Manufacturing puts it in one line: “Drain water when not in use, store indoors after winter.”

These are the rules of PIRIT and Miller. Camco's product pages say that instructions come in English but do not show them, so the Camco sheet could not be read; for any hose, the sheet in the box comes first. For hooking the hose up again, see how to install a heated hose.

What you need

• A dry day above freezing, or a heated room to let the hose warm up
• A dry cloth for the plug and the couplings
• A dry indoor place for the coil: a shelf, a wall hook with a wide saddle, a tote or a bag

Step by step

1. Unplug the hose

   Pull the plug first. PIRIT reminds owners that the hose “is an appliance and should be respected and treated as such.” Keep the plug off wet ground; the manual says not to immerse it.

2. Disconnect it and remove attachments

   Shut off the spigot, open a faucet downstream to release the pressure and unscrew both ends. Take off the pressure regulator, the filter, adapters and nozzles. PIRIT lists removing attachments among the steps that extend the lifetime of the hose.

3. Drain the hose completely

   Lay the hose out straight on a slope, or lift it hand over hand from one end to the other until no more water comes out. Let both ends drip for a few minutes.

4. Inspect cord, plug and jacket

   PIRIT asks owners to inspect the cord before using; the end of the season is the second good moment. Look for cuts, cracks, flattened or melted spots, bent plug blades and worn washers. Replace washers now. A hose with a damaged cord or jacket is taken out of service: the manual says not to attempt to cut or splice the hose.

5. Coil it in wide loops while it is warm

   Coil the hose loosely, the way it came out of the box, and avoid kinks, as Miller advises. If the hose is stiff from frost, wait: PIRIT says not to attempt to uncoil or bend the hose when it is frozen. Keep the cord and the thermostat on the outside of the coil without a sharp bend where the cord leaves the hose.

6. Store it indoors

   PIRIT: “Store indoors after winter season.” Miller says the same. Keep the coil dry and out of reach of animals; PIRIT's rule to prevent damage by livestock applies to the stored cord as much as to the one in use. Put the instruction sheet and the receipt with it.

7. Unroll it fully before the next use

   When frost returns, lay the hose out in full before you plug it in, and press the test button of the GFCI outlet first. The CPSC advises testing every GFCI at least once a month and after a power failure.

Coil size: what is known

No manual we could read states a minimum coil diameter or bend radius. Miller says: “Like a regular garden hose, avoid kinks.” Our own reasoning, not a maker rule: the coil in which the hose came out of the box is the tightest shape the maker itself put it in, so going no tighter than that, and wider where there is room, is the cautious choice.

Reels, hooks and bags

A hose reel, a wall hook or a storage bag does one job for a heated hose: holding it between seasons. None of them is a place for a hose in use.

• Reel. We found no maker statement for or against reels. The decisive rule is PIRIT's: “To avoid possible overheating, do not leave hose coiled when plugged in.” A heated hose that is partly wound on a reel while powered breaks that rule. Use a reel only if the drum is wide enough for loose turns and the cord end is not pinched.
• Wall hook. A wide, rounded hanger spreads the weight. A narrow nail or hook puts all of it on one sharp bend.
• Bag or tote. Keeps dust off and the cord with the hose. Put the hose in dry; a closed bag holds moisture.

Summer: store it or keep using it?

Both instruction texts say to store the hose indoors after winter. That is the default.

If the heated hose is your only drinking-water hose, the manuals do not forbid using it unplugged. PIRIT's first instruction is to unroll the hose and use it just as you would a normal garden hose, and its heater will not turn on unless the ambient temperature approaches freezing; Miller's hoses activate below 40 °F. Leaving the plug in through the summer therefore has no use. Unplug it and keep the plug and the thermostat dry. A separate unheated drinking-water hose for the warm months spares the heated one.

Typical mistakes

• Storing it with water inside. Leftover water can freeze in an unheated shed, and a frozen hose must not be bent.
• Leaving the regulator and filter screwed on. They hold water and add leverage on the fittings.
• Leaving it outside all year. Both makers say indoors.
• Skipping the inspection. Damage found in spring can be handled under warranty in good time; damage found on the first freezing night cannot.

Where this fits

How long a hose lasts with this care is not known in years; the page on how long a heated hose lasts sets out the warranties and what the manuals say. Whether the hose may stay plugged in during the season is answered under can you leave a heated hose plugged in. If the inspection turns up a fault, the troubleshooting page sorts the symptoms and heated hose safety lists the signs that end a hose's service. If it has to be replaced, the page on 25 and 30 ft hoses compares the standard length, and the heated water hose overview covers all others.