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Old Garden Hose Rug For Canadian Gardeners
Garden hoses over time tend to weather and eventually become useless for watering effectively. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be destined for the garbage if you put in a little elbow grease. This article will look at how to make a no slip old garden hose rug using zip ties and old hose. This entire project only took me ten minutes to complete, but is rugged enough to last for years. For other DIY projects check out our homemade hummingbird feeder using mason jars.
Step One Of The Old Garden Hose Rug:
Clip the hard brass ends off the hose using a sharp pair of scissors or an exacto knife. This is important because the hard ends make the carpet uneven. They also would not feel great if you stepped on them with bare feet.
Step Two Of The Old Garden Hose Rug:
Make your first fold, this will be the center of the new rug. The shape of the rug you want will determine the size of the first fold. If you are looking to make something more rectangular then make a larger fold. An average rectangular rug would have the initial length of 24” before the fold. This means you will measure 24” and then bend the hose, making another parallel 24” length. If you want a circular rug you will simply make the initial fold whatever length you like under 12”.
Step Three Of The Old Garden Hose Rug:
Place a zip tie in the middle of your first doubled up length and tighten. This will be your template going forward. The more zip ties you add throughout the process the more sturdier the old garden hose rug will be.
Step Four Of The Old Garden Hose Rug:
Coil the hose around and around the main formation. Feel free to stop and place zip ties wherever you feel it may be needed. The key to zip tie placement is making sure every row is attached to the row before it at least once. I found the ideal number of zip ties was one zip tie per side meaning two zip ties per layer.
Step Five Of The Old Garden Hose Rug:
If you are using more than one type of hose there are a few steps to follow. Once you finish with your initial hose, zip tie the last portion with two zip ties. This is important because the end of the hose is under a lot of pressure. If you do not like the look of two zip ties then simply clip away your second twist tie once everything is in place.
From here you can choose to either butt the ends of the old hose and the new (old) hose. Or if one hose has a smaller outside diameter then the other you can fasten them together. Either method will work fine, just make sure to zip tie the start of the new hose securely to the last layer of the old hose.
Step Six Of The Old Garden Hose Rug:
Once you have reached the end of your old garden hose you can simply add a few extra zip ties for support and you are complete.
This old garden hose rug can stay outside all year long and will be a continuous slip free surface. You can add onto it over time and eventually make an entire rug. Let me know in the comments below what you like to recycle for use in the garden. Be sure to also check out our article on winter sowing in old milk jugs for an early start in the garden.
