How To Protect Your High Pressure Hose While Pressure Washing -

Intro

If you use a pressure washer in your exterior cleaning business, you’ll know just how important the high pressure hose is.

I’ve been using mine for a while now, and I’ve started to notice quite a bit of wear and damage on the outer sheath. I’ve also seen plenty of posts in Facebook groups where people have shared videos of their hoses bursting mid-job.

The reality is, it’s only a matter of time before mine does the same. And as you probably already know, high pressure hoses are not cheap, especially a 40 metre one like mine, which costs hundreds to replace.

On top of that, the hassle of having a hose blow halfway through a job is something no one wants to deal with.

I think I’ve found a simple and affordable way to avoid this or at least reduce the risk massively. Below, I’ll share what I’ve done, and you can decide for yourself whether it’s something worth trying.

One simple and cost-effective way to protect it is by using something called plastic spiral cable wrap.

This article will show you exactly how this works, why it matters, and how you can use it the right way to extend the life of your hose.

What I Used for Extra Hose Protection: Plastic Spiral Wrap

Spiral Wrap for Hose Protection

To help extend the life of my high pressure hose, I decided to fit it with plastic spiral wrap. The idea is simple, the wrap takes the beating of the wear and tear as the hose is dragged along the ground or pulled around corners, reducing direct damage to the hose itself.

In my view, it’s a practical and cost-effective way to make the hose last longer.

Fit and Performance

I’m using a 3/8 high pressure hose, and I chose 20mm spiral wrap, which fits nicely. If you have the option, I would go for and 18mm wrap for a 3/8 hose. I think this will fit even better and be a tighter fit on the hose. When installing it, you’ll want to stretch the wrap slightly as you go, to prevent it from binding up or going slack in places.

Once installed, I was pleasantly surprised by how well it worked. The wrap adds hardly any weight, and it hasn’t affected how the hose winds back onto the reel. It doesn’t snag, catch, or create any inconvenience, it just does the job.

Overall Thoughts

Hopefully, you’re reading this before experiencing the joy of a hose blowout. In hindsight, this kind of protection is best installed on a brand new hose, but even if your hose is already in use, adding spiral wrap will almost certainly help prolong its life.

A simple solution that’s well worth the effort.

A Few Drawbacks to Keep in Mind

While the wrap has been useful, there are a couple of small drawbacks worth mentioning.

Time to Install

I ordered a 40 metre length of spiral wrap, which arrived in four 10 metre pieces.

It took me around an hour and a half to fit it onto my high pressure hose. To make the process a bit easier, I cut the spiral wrap into shorter, more manageable 3 metre sections. This definitely helped, but it was still quite a time-consuming job. Also to connect each 3m section I used thick electrical tape to joint them up. Over time this will wear put it’s easy enough to re-apply this when needed.

It’s not the most exciting task, so I’d recommend throwing on your headphones and putting a podcast or some music on while you get it done. It’s a bit of a slog, but once it’s on, it’s done and well worth the effort in the long run.

Quality of the Wrap

For 40 metres of spiral wrap, I paid £28.90 including VAT, which is very cheap compared to other options I came across.

Here is the link: 20mm Spiral Wrap Black

If I’m totally honest, I don’t think the wrap I bought is actually intended for outdoor use. It’s most likely not designed to handle the level of wear and tear I’ll be putting it through on a regular basis.

I’m not entirely sure how durable this particular wrap will be over time. It definitely offers protection. I’ve used it on one job so far, and it’s already clear that it helps shield the hose from scuffs and wear.

That said, the concept of using spiral wrap to protect your hose is absolutely the right idea. Even if this particular wrap doesn’t last forever, it still helps reduce direct damage, and there are more heavy-duty versions available if you want something built to withstand tougher conditions.

If you’re thinking about using this method to protect your high pressure hose, I’d recommend looking into a slightly more heavy-duty wrap if you want something that will hold up long-term.

So far, so good — but time will tell.

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Conclusion

Protecting your high pressure hose is normally overlooked until it’s too late, picking up on this early will save you money in the long run, I’m certain of it.

Using plastic spiral wrap is a simple and affordable way to reduce wear and extend the life of your hose. For a more expensive hard wearing wrap it may cost around £80-£100 for 40 metres of it, that is, after doing my research. If I need to re-do mine I will no doubt invest that little bit more next time.

If you’ve been noticing wear on your hose, or just want to stay one step ahead, this is a smart move to make.

It’s not perfect, but for the price, it’s worth it for the peace of mind, it’s a no brainer in my opinion.

Give it a go, you might just thank yourself later.