***Story first aired April 8, 2013
The X-Hose promises to expand to three times its length and give the user a high power spray, but does it really work?
The X-Hose ranges in price from $19.95 for a 25-foot expandable hose to $59.95 for a 100-foot expandable hose.
Steele on Your Side put the device to the test in its latest “As Seen on TV” product testing segment.
Consumer reporter Lynda Steele tested the smallest version of the X-Hose, which is supposed to expand to 25-feet in length. When the water was turned on, it did indeed expand to the advertised size.
Next, Steele tested the water pressure. The commercial claims the diameter of the inner hose expands for a powerful high flow spray. But Steele found the pressure to be weaker than promised and the plastic connectors on the hose tended to come unscrewed.
However, once the plastic connectors were tightened up, the X-Hose did do a decent job of watering the plants.
Professional gardener Wade Hunter says he’s never seen anything like the retractable X-Hose.
“It seems fairly tough. The fixture itself may not last, but I think this is pretty durable material," said Hunter, a nursery manager at Vancouver’s Art Knapp Plantland.
The makers of X-Hose claim you can hammer it and the hose won't burst, or bend it and the hose won't kink. Steele found both claims to be true.
While the X-Hose was a bit finicky, it could be a good solution for people who don’t have much room or strength to move a full size garden hose.
For those reasons, Steele on Your Side gives the X-Hose 3.5 stars out of 5.
Reviews online for the product were not great, however. Many customers said the product works well initially, but breaks down quickly. Some said the inner plastic hose can spring a leak and the plastic connectors can crack and leak.