# Use of non-food-grade water hose - problems ?



## Grizzly (May 9, 2005)

We have a lay-flat food grade hose which has sprung several leaks and is becoming a nuisance. It has, even off the reel, never been the easiest hose to use. We are wondering about replacing it with a slinky coiled garden hose such as seen in various catalogues and in garden centres. These can be up to 25 m long, cost about £18 and are easy to store as they coil up quite small. They are however not food grade.

Given that we only use the hose to fill up ( ie it is never plumbed in) and so water goes through quickly and that we don't drink the water from the tank, would you say that using it for the van will present any problems ?
Clearly we don't want to slowly poison ourselves ! :? 

G


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## 100512 (Aug 13, 2006)

*layflat wate hose too*

I used one for years on a boat with no problems.

Hoewever, I now use the Blue lay flat hose which costs about 5 to 10 more which I find prefereable. I think Outdoor bits stock this. There is an alternative version that is 25m and has a better casette thats easier to roll in from Force4 chandlery. More money though. I carry 2 so I can get to most taps without moving.

The only issues with the cloth type hose I used to use was, it kinks easily so when in the side of the van is a little dificuly to support when filling with out stoping the flow sine it weight hangs down casing a kink. It does puncture more asily thans the blue poly type. I always had a feeling it might grow some mould in the fibres and cause issues. I never saw that in practive though.

Whilst on hose I als have some 40mm flat wate hose that I use for emptying and cant or dont want to move it rolls up just like the freshwater hose.

http://www.flexiblehose.co.uk/flexflat.htm

But the 38mm stuff which seems to refer to the outside diameter of the pipe its fitted to.

I have a couple of short lengths of the flexable stuff to empty grey water, which is the type installed in most motor homes.


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## Telbell (May 1, 2005)

I have used a "curly whirly" type hose (garden centres) for a couple of years. As you say we don't drink straight from onboard tank/taps but biol kettles for hot drinks and take from site taps using jug filter for cold drinks.

No gut probs- still here


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## 89210 (May 16, 2005)

Hi
we use a flat food grade hose whilst away as they take-up little room in the locker, however we fill-up at home using the garden hose-pipe and have never had any problems. We mostly boil our water for tea though squash is made-up using the same water straight from the tank no worrys.


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## Grizzly (May 9, 2005)

Thanks everyone. I'm not sure whether I'm reassured enough to go ahead and put in an order for the curly hose or not though ! 

What I'm more worried about is leeching of chemicals from the polythene which may not have an immediate effect on us but possibly a long term one. I'm not sure, the way my brain and memory are going, that people will notice in a few years time, but it does concern me.

I wonder if anyone knows what the difference between a food grade and a non-food grade hose is ? I know the former is a lot more expensive than the latter but presumably, since we are told not to use the latter for drinking water, there must be a safety factor - ?

I wonder how many CL / CS sites have a garden hose buried underground supplying the tap in the camping field.

G


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## Scotjimland (May 23, 2005)

Hi G 

Food safety aside, do you think a curly pipe will be easy to stow and will it not have a lot of water trapped in the curls .. not only a nuisance if it dribbles out but more prone to algae growth especially when it's in storage between trips. 
If you flush well before using there will be little danger from leching chemicals .. that said, I prefer to play safe and only use the blue food grade. 
As far as CLs are concerned I doubt very much if the CC would certify the site if they weren't using potable water piping.


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## Spacerunner (Mar 18, 2006)

I use a cassette type flat hose. I bought it from a pound shop, it cost £7:99. Works perfectly, we notice no taste from it. We also drink water straight from the tap. We are both healthy, unless anybody else has noticed us acting strangely! What this proves, if anything, I don't know. 8O


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## Telbell (May 1, 2005)

With our "curly" hose all I do is tip it up and empty the residue water- a few seconds. I store it in a thick ish polythene bag so if there is a dribble it stays in the bag.

I used to have a flat hose but it took forever to squeeze all the water out- it wouldnt fit back on the reel unless ALL the water was squeezed out


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## Grizzly (May 9, 2005)

ScotJimland said:


> Hi G
> Food safety aside, do you think a curly pipe will be easy to stow and will it not have a lot of water trapped in the curls .. not only a nuisance if it dribbles out but more prone to algae growth especially when it's in storage between trips.
> .


Good point Jim but I think the same argument could be applied to any hose that is rolled up and stowed away - you're always going to get water trapped in it and it only needs a tiny amount to grow things. The lay-flat one was a pain to fold as Telbell says. Even off its reel it took ages to fold. The fact that it is now full of minute holes is witness to the fact that one of us -no names, no packdrill- used it partly folded and creased with the high pressure water system at the C&CC site Kendal. I don't suppose the warden there will forget the soaking he got. We have a 2 metre piece of food grade hose for when we can drive right up to the tap and that drains nicely slung over the bike rack. I hope a curly hose would do that too.

I'd just like to find out what is the difference in the plastics used in food and non-food grades.

Thank all

G


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## TonyHunt (Oct 10, 2005)

Cant believe all the hassles and problems you guys cause yourselves over a simple little thing like filling up your drinking water tanks. spend a few extra quid on a good food quality flat hose that folds up in seconds ( no reel needed even) and which drains the water as you fold it and then couple it with a Nature pure water filter and you will get no problems at all. Water comes out of the tap tasting like mineral water out of a bottle. All this hassle of carrying gallon containers to make a cup of tea or a glass of squash is bordering on the idiotic and totally unnecassary. Our Nature pure filter has been in two years now and water still tastes as good as when we bought it. I will change it as a matter of course now before we go away again considering that £43 for another couple of years worth of pure water is money well spent. Had experience of a cheap garden centre hose once, never again. The water tasted vile. You get what you pay for in this life thats for sure.


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## Scotjimland (May 23, 2005)

Hi G

I did a bit of googling and found this item..

Quote
Most hoses are made with a compound called polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, and that's the cancer causing ingredient. "Drinking once in a while from the garden hose, while kids play out there, they kind of do that, as an opinion, I would say you're safe. If you use a garden hose as a primary source of drinking water all the time, then probably it's not a good idea to do that," says Dr. Prakash Neupane.
UnQuote

http://www.krcg.com/news/news_story.aspx?id=10450

and this snippet ..

What makes a bucket or plastic bag "food grade"? And where can I find them?

Plastic films and containers of food grade quality are made from polycarbonate, polyester or polyethylene. Their characteristics in terms of density, permeability and strength vary. To limit permeability to moisture and oxygen, films of the above plastics are sometimes laminated together, frequently with a metallic layer


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## Grizzly (May 9, 2005)

Many thanks Jim..exactly what I was looking for !

Tony ..thanks for reply but we've had flat hose in every sense of the word and won't go that route again - see above !

I don't like "filtered" water - and don't see why I should pay to buy a filter. All the filters I've tasted make the water salty and unpleasant. As you say - it makes it taste like mineral water - full of salts. 

We're quite happy with water from the campsite tap in a plastic milk bottle and have never had stomach upsets or anything else from that. I'm surprised the water from a cheap - or even expensive garden hose, tasted unpleasant. The plastics are unlikely to be washed into the water in that quantity or the hose would not last long. 

I'm not worried by the cost of the thing. What I want is a hose that is convenient to use and to carry. Neither the layflat on or the plain food grade hose -or the cheap garden hose for that matter, fulfils those criteria but the slinky type curly hose does. It does not appear to be obtainable to the public in food grade however though I bet it is used in pubs and so on so must be made.

G


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## spykal (May 9, 2005)

Hi

Just a thought....many years ago we all had lead piping supplying our houses...then it was realised that this could lead :roll: to a build up of lead in our bodies with consequent poisoning experienced in very old people living all their lives in houses supplied through these lead pipes...so what happened...all the pipes were replaced..what with..... *PVC Pipes* :roll: :roll: :roll:

I use a well used garden hose...on the basis that if anything is going to leach out it has done it already :roll: ...and if I only live another 30 years before it poisons me I won't worry....mind you, I don't drink the tank water :lol: :lol: 
Mike


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