Ranked #5 in Best Garden Hoses
Briggs & Stratton 8BS50 Heavy-Duty Rubber Garden Hose, 5/8 in. x 50 ft.3.6
3 sources$53.92The 8BS50 is a plain heavy rubber hose, and the two outlets that tested it disagree about how good that is. TechGearLab put it at 64 out of 100, tenth of twelve, faulting it for twisting, looping and weight, and framed it as a hose best left as a permanent fixture. Bob Vila backed a car over it, scored durability 5 out of 5 and gave it their best-rubber award. Both are describing the same object: a thick rubber wall with crush-proof nickel-plated brass couplings, no clever geometry, and enough mass that how you store it decides whether you like it.
Strengths
- — TechGearLab liked the spray performance and found kinks roll out easily rather than creasing the hose
- — Bob Vila scored durability 5 out of 5 and confirmed it withstood being driven over with no visible damage, and found no leaking at either end
- — Crush-proof nickel-plated brass couplings with industrial-style reinforcing, at roughly half the price of the Eley
Watch-outs
- — TechGearLab scored it 64 out of 100, tenth of twelve, with cons of "twists and loops easily, heavy"
- — The heaviest hose in TechGearLab's lineup by absolute weight, at 19.1 lb for their 100-foot sample
- — Bob Vila docked build quality to 3 out of 5 and noted it "does not have any grips for control" on the couplings
