Are you looking for the best kink-proof air hoses currently on the market?
Welcome to the club! Every day, several people find themselves searching for the same thing and find little to no information to help drive their decision.
A great air hose is invaluable – but finding the perfect one can be tricky. You have to make sure that you’re sticking to your State’s air hose regulation, that you’re buying a high-quality product, and that the appliance is the right tool for the job.
In this guide, we’ve covered everything you need to know in order to find yourself a great air hose that will last a lifetime.
Whether you’ve picked up an air compressor that includes a cheap plastic hose, or your old hose just isn’t the right one for the job anymore, we’ve got you covered.
If you’re just looking for a brief table comparison between hose materials – Plews-Edelmann have a fantastic one you can check out. However, if you want additional useful facts and general information, you’re definitely in the right place.
Keep reading to find an air hose you can rely on!
Best Air Hoses: Compared
A Quick Recommendation
If we only had to recommend one air hose to suit almost anyone – it would be Flexzilla’s ‘hybrid’ air hose, which you can find on Amazon, Lowe’s, and The Home Depot.
These hybrid hoses, which we’ll cover in detail later, are fantastic all around. They’re light, flexible, and work just fine in almost any temperature. Their price is generally great value for money, and Flexzilla is a very reputable brand known for its durable products.
Also, the model in the link above comes in a wide variety of sizes, lengths, and fittings, which makes it very easy to switch between them and find the right one for a specific job.
If you want more information on finding the best air hose out there, please keep reading.
Which Air Hose Is the Best for You?
There’s a lot of different types of air hoses on the market, so picking the one that’s just right for your particular situation is key.
The most important aspect you should look out for when going shopping is the air hose material. There are many varieties, including:
- Rubber – heavy (doesn’t kink), easy to roll up, flexible, resistant to varying temperatures, fairly expensive.
- PVC – cheap and light, it does tend to kink but not to a great deal. The standard hose type included with most air compressors. Bad performance in cold weather.
- Polyurethane – designed to be a lighter and simpler version of its rubber counterpart. Expensive and prone to kinking. Good for working on the move, but bad for heavy-duty/static work.
- Nylon – The lightest option of this lot. It kinks easily but can also be coiled up without much effort. Great for moving around, but not very durable.
- Hybrid – a combination of two or more of the materials listed above (typically PVC and rubber). The best of both worlds.
Now that you know what the best air hose materials are, let’s move on to cover where you can use them for everyday applications and what concepts you need to take into consideration in the process.
A Flexzilla Air Hose Kit. Image Via: Lowe’s
Length
Air hoses generally come in 25, 50, or 100 feet lengths. Granted, you might lose a bit of power over a longer hose, though it’s not very significant.
What is significant is your workspace and conditions. If you’re on the move, a longer hose will typically give you more freedom to move around, which is great if you typically need to reach high places.
On the other hand, if you’ll be working in a garage or shop, a long hose can be a challenge to store properly. A 100ft coiled-up hose doesn’t exactly tuck itself into a corner, so sticking with shorter versions in these situations is advised.
Weight
Whether you want a heavy or light hose depends on what you’ll use it for. If you’ll be outside and moving around, you’ll want something light enough to carry with you.
However, if you’ll just be working in one place, heavier hoses tend to kink much less. Also, they’re a lot easier to set them where you want them and forget about them, whereas lighter hoses tend to move around and kink much easier. Trying to keep them still and stored tightly can quickly become a challenge.
Hose Diameter
Typically, air hoses come in two diameter sizes – 1/4” (6.3 mm) or 3/8” (9.5 mm). The larger 3/8” hose carries more compressed air, which means more power. However, you do need a good air compressor to fully make use of it.
The smaller 1/4” hoses are more suited to less powerful tasks, like inflating a tire or air bed. A good air compressor should be able to control the air pressure coming out of it, so you could have many diameters if you so wish, but generally, a 3/8” hose diameter should do the trick.
It’s essential that you always look out for any issues with your air compressor, as the hose you attach to it will only be as good as its pressure source.
Brand
Tools like air hoses are products that no one ever wants to replace. Making sure that you’re purchasing a product from a well-known and reliable brand is the best way to ensure the longevity of your appliance. Good brands often offer the longest warranties and best customer service, too.
Some names to look out for are:
- Amflo
- FlexZilla
- Goodyear
- Hitachi
- TekTon
An indicator of a good product is whether the hose is manufactured within the USA. If the company has stuck to manufacturing its product in the US, its returns and customer service centers are likely within the country too.
Conclusion
That about covers it!
Trying to find the best air hose on the market can be challenging, especially when there’s not a ton of information available out there.
I hope this piece has helped you better understand the main advantages and disadvantages of the different air hose materials out there, so you can pick the one that best suits your needs. Remember to always consider your workspace and the daily tasks that you perform, as these will greatly determine what you should buy.
I really appreciate you sticking with me all the way to the end. If this article was interesting and educational, please check out our other incredible resources below to keep the learning going.
Have a great week!
— Craig.
Types of Air Hoses
Rubber is the traditional material of a good air hose. Heavy, strong, flexible, and durable – these hoses last for years. Their flexibility and weight make them easy to coil up and store.
Considering their weight, rubber hoses are ideal for using in a static location, like a garage or workshop. The heavy weight means that rubber doesn’t kink, and you don’t need to worry about it moving around as you work. Their flexibility also makes them very easy to coil up and store. Just expect a bit of a workout if you’ll want to use a rubber air hose on the move.
So while they’re not the cheapest, a rubber air hose is great if you’re looking to get a heavy duty, capable air hose that will retain it’s quality for years to come.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Durable and strong | Heavy |
| Works well in almost any temperature (except extreme freezing) | Sticky - collects dirt easily |
| Very flexible - doesn't kink | |
| Easy to repair if punctured |
Our Verdict
A rubber air hose is ideal for anyone with a home workshop or working space that needs lasting, reliable quality. They do collect a dirt easily due to being a bit sticky, so we recommend keeping it coiled or held on a mounted roller.
We’ve mentioned in the importance of a good brand before – and Goodyear are the undisputed kings of rubber hoses. Use the link below to see Goodyear’s cornerstone air hose on Amazon. It’s hands down one of the best air hoses on the market – rubber or otherwise – and one of the few types still made in the USA.
In contrast to rubber, polyurethane is a much newer type of air hose material.
Used for a wide variety of products (including packaging foam, sports clothes, and even condoms), polyurethane is extremely elastic, abrasion resistant, and durable.
When it comes to hoses, polyurethanes are light, easy to use on the move, and very resistant to abrasion and temperatures. If you’ll be working outside, on the move and in the elements, polyurethane hoses will make your life a lot easier. They’re also fantastic for marine use, being easy to move around and install, without being easy to tear or puncture.
However, these chemically-made hoses don’t come cheap. They’re also not the most flexible, either – be ready to fight with a few kinks if you’re working at an angle.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Light - easy to use on the move | High price |
| Abrasion resistant | Kinks quite easily |
| Unfazed in cold weather |
Our Verdict
Polyurethane is ideal for anyone needing an air hose that’s easy to use on the move: resistant to abrasion, light-weight, and efficient in any temperature.
While they can be more expensive, the Amflo 12-25E (pictured above) is a great value polyurethane hose – and is one of Amazon’s bestseller (at the time of writing this). While it’s only available in 25-foot lengths, it’s unbeatable value for money for a hose of this kind.
While rubber and polyurethane hoses are quite expensive, PVC is the value-for-money material that generally comes in at the lowest average price.
Standing for PolyVinyl Chloride, PVC is the third most-produced synthetic polymer, used in a huge variety of applications and products – including pipes, cables, signs, flooring, and of course, hoses.
This cheapness and wide availability means that if a product includes a free air hose, it’s almost certainly going to be PVC.
As well as being cheap, PVC hoses also don’t weight much, and are well suited to quick outside jobs or working at height.
However, we’d advise using these hoses in cold temperatures as they tend to stiffen up. They also kink fairly easily, too.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Cheap | Kinks fairly easily |
| Lightweight | Stiff in colder weather |
Our Verdict
If you’re just looking for a cheap, good value air hose – PVC is a great option.
While these hoses aren’t as durable or temperature resistant as the more expensive materials, sometimes you just don’t need these kinds of properties.
For a great example of a PVC hose, check out Campbell Hausfeld’s ‘Heavy Duty’ 50-foot air hose using the link below (it’s the hose that the couple are using in the picture at the top of this post).
Hybrid air hoses are a combination of both PVC and rubber – developed to provide the best of both worlds. They give you the low weight and easy manoeuvrability of PVC, but maintain the flexibility of rubber. This provides pretty great kink resistance, but of course it’s not quite the same heavy ruggedness you get with a fully traditional rubber hose.
We like to think of hybrids as great all-rounders. They can perform well in almost any application, from quite cold weather to working at heights, but aren’t as specialised as the individual material types on this list.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Fairly light weight | Jack of all trades, but master of none |
| Good flexibility | |
| Decent in cold weather (below freezing point) |
Our Verdict
If you’re just looking for simple air hose solution, hybrid hoses can be a fantastic option.
They’re not as effective at individual tasks like rubber is for static working, or PVC is for working on the move, but hybrid hoses can still take on almost any task. The price, of course, is generally an “all-rounder” too.
A great hybrid hose option is Flexzilla’s Heavy Duty Hybrid air hose. Not only does it embody all of the good aspects of hybrid hoses, Flexzilla also offer a huge range of lengths, diameters, and end fittings. All of these are included in the link below.
Nylon hoses are a bit of a weird one. They’re generally very cheap, and super light weight – the lightest out of any of the hoses on this list. They’re also really easy to naturally coil up, almost like a spring.
However, Nylon air hoses about the opposite of durable. Easily punctured and easily kinkable, we really wouldn’t recommend Nylon hoses for general home use.
Generally, these types of hoses are generally only used in factories or professional workshops where the hose can be hung from the ceiling. The light weight and easy coiling means that they can be left to dangle and easily grabbed when you need to use them.
Unless you’re looking for a hose to fill that specific purpose however, we wouldn’t really recommend a Nylon hose when compared to the other options on this list.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Very light weight | Kinks easily |
| Easy to coil (almost spring-like) | Vulnerable to wear and tear |
| Generally cheap |
Our Verdict
Nylon hoses definitely have their place, but it’s generally only for very specific tasks that involve static working with a wall or ceiling mounted hose.
However, if this is what you’re looking for, these light weight hoses are easy to set up and very cheap.
A great suggestion to consider is Amflo’s Nylon air hose – linked below. It’s a got everything you can expect from a Nylon hose, and from a well-known manufacturer.
Conclusion
With the materials covered, that’s about all there is to know about choosing the best air hose for you.
If you’re till not certain we recommend to:
- Think about the main application you’ll want to use the air hose for
- Think about any other tasks you may want the hose to perform
- Think about what kind of budget you’re willing to spend, and how long you want the hose to last.
Once you know these three things, you can identify which of the above material types will be best for you. Then, use the initial categories at the top (length, diameter, brand, weight) to refine your selections down to products that meet those conditions.
If our individual recommendations for each material didn’t catch your eye, be sure to check out this list of the bestselling air hoses on Amazon. There’s plenty of good options out there, and we hope that you’ll now be able to find the right one for you after reading this guide.
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