Garden Hose Fittings: Everything You Need to Know

Watering your garden is an essential task for your garden to grow. Whether you plan to water your backyard directly from the hose, using sprinklers or a spray gun, you’ll need fittings that’ll enable this different equipment to fit correctly together.

Garden hose fittings are the different connectors that ensure water properly flows from your faucet/tap, through the hose and finally to your plant. All these without leaking and maintaining the right amount of pressure.

These fittings are made with different materials like plastic, aluminium and brass. Garden hose fittings made from brass are more expensive than plastic, but they are more durable and are recommended for use in your garden.

Garden hose fittings come in different sizes to match the different tap sizes, pressure and volume needed and also length. Getting the wrong size can be frustrating; that is why we’ve put together this piece to guide you on the right size and pretty much everything you need to know about hose fittings for your garden.

What is a Garden Hose Thread?

Before we look at the different sizes, you must know what a thread is, and its uses.

A garden hose thread is the lines inside or outside the edges of taps and garden hose fittings that enable the two fit tight together. There are different thread pitches, and for uniformity, there is a standard thread size which is popularly known as garden hose thread (GHT) or national hose (NH).

Threads come in different sizes, but the most common size used for gardening is a pitch of 11.5NH per inch.

Sizes of Garden Hose Connectors

Now we’ve known what a thread is; we can go right in and see the different sizes of garden hose connectors.

Taps and their fittings come in different sizes, sizes ranging from 3/8” to 3/4”. Some of the most popular sizes include 3/8”, 3/4″, 1/2″ and 5/8”. 

The most common size garden fittings come with is 5/8” and 11.5NH( 5/8” being the diameter while 11.5NH is the thread pitch). Hoses for commercial purposes like the watering of public parks regularly come with bigger hose size of 3/4″ and 11.5NH. 

How to Measure the Size of a Garden Hose Fitting and Tap?

If you’re wondering how you can measure the size of your tap or any fitting you may already have to help you buy the matching connectors; here you go.

Take a tape and measure the inside diameter of the fitting for female threads while you measure the outside diameter of the fitting if it has a male thread. It’s called a female thread if the thread is placed inside the fitting, a male thread is placed outside the fitting.

Garden Hose Fittings And When You Need Them

For you to properly channel water from your house to your garden, the right garden hose fitting needs to be utilised at every intersection.

Here are some of the most popular fittings and when you need them.

Hose Repairer

The hose repairer is a fitting used to permanently join two hoses together to get a longer length. These hoses need a fitting connector that’ll prevent leakage and also preserve the pressure of the water.

To use this fitting;

  • Join a tap connector to the tap
  • Join one end the hose connector to the hose and the other to the tap connector
  • Fit one end of the hose into the hose connector and the other end into the hose repairer
  • Fix one end of the second hose into the hose repairer and the other end into the water stop hose connector

Water Stop Hose Connectors

These are fitted at the edge of the hose that will be connected to the sprinklers or spray guns to control the water flow.

These water stop connectors enable the sprinklers to be changed without having to stop the water flow from the faucet.

Hose

This is the pipe that leads the water from the tap/faucet to the garden. This pipe comes in different sizes and lengths.

Knowing the amount of water and how far you want to channel the water will help you select the right hose size and length to use. Remember, the longer it is, the less pressure it’ll carry.

Also Check: 7 Best Retractable Hose Reviews

Faucet Connectors

These are fittings connected to your garden faucet before any other fitting is used. The faucet connectors can either be fixed inside the tap or outside depending on the thread type (male/female). 

Connector clips are typically used to hold the faucet connectors firmly to the tap to prevent water from forcing it out when in use.

Hose Connectors

This type of connectors is fitted to the edge of the hose that’ll be joined to the tap connector or male connectors.

The hose connector is the link between the tap connector and the hose. Hose connectors must have a backflow prevention valve that’ll only allow water flow in a single direction.

Double Male Connectors

This type of connectors have two male thread ends and join two hoses together.

It is different from the hose repairer as this is just a temporary fix and can be easily separated and joined back.

Its method of use is not so different from the hose repairer.

Tap connector🡪hose connector🡪hose1🡪water stop hose connector🡪double male connector🡪hose connector🡪hose2🡪water stop hose connector

Adapters

In situations where your faucet and its fitting have different diameters, you’ll need an adapter to connect the two.

For instance, if your faucet diameter is 3/4″, and your tap connector is 5/8”, all you need to do is to get an adapter having a size of 3/4″ at one end and 5/8” at the other. Then connect appropriately. 

3-way connectors

These connectors are used to branch water into several pathways. It is also called the Y connector because of its shape.

To join this type of connector;

Tap connector🡪hose connector🡪hose🡪water stop hose connector🡪Y connector🡪2x hose connectors🡪2x hose🡪2x water stop hose connectors

Quick-Release Fittings

These are modern fittings and do not require extreme force to fit in, unlike the regular threaded fittings.

This type of fittings are convenient and can be used on taps without connecting a tap connector.

How to Connect a Sprinkler to a Hose?

Connecting a sprinkler to a hose uses the same technique as when you’re joining a tube to a spray gun.

After connecting the hose to the faucet using the various fitting listed above, you just push in the sprinkler into the water stop hose connector.

How to Take Care of Your Garden Hose?

Garden hose naturally over time accumulates a lot of dirt in it and will require cleaning from time to time. 

To clean a garden hose, take a small quantity of bleach and put in a bucket of water. Drop your pipe inside the bucket and allow it to sit for some minutes. Take out the hose and rinse with water, also flush the inside with running water to avoid watering your plants with contaminated water.

When your garden hose is not in use, properly roll it and keep it in a safe location preferably inside the garden shed as extreme heat and cold can tear the hose and break the nozzle attached to it.

Getting and using the proper garden hose fittings to water your plants is easy as long as you follow these guidelines.

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About Jennifer Igra

Growing up in Brooklyn, New York City known for it’s green gardens. Jennifer, a 30 year old gardener and green living fanatic started Igra World to share her gardening journey and increase gardening awareness among masses. Follow Igra World to improve your gardening skills.

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