As with any shop, we carry many accessories designed to make the job easier. Locating these accessories is not always an easy task, particularly since one may not even be aware they exist. The article that follows is a buying guide for many of our accessories. None of these are essential or required, but can make the task to which they’re oriented significantly faster and easier.
The article is broken up into four sections. Section one deals with accessories to garden hoses, hose bibs and general hose threaded connections. The second section is dedicated to accessories that are specific to drip irrigation. The third section is dedicated to products that are general garden supplies; in this category, think of things like landscape fabric, pruners/shears and similar general garden items. The last section is dedicated to those miscellaneous products that either don’t fit into another category, or dip their toes into multiple categories.
Please do not hesitate to reach out to us any time if you have any questions regarding these products or uses and applications.
Hose End Accessories
Hose end accessories covers quite a few different items with different uses. From faucet splitters, to hose threaded caps, all of these items are designed to interact with a hose threaded connections. Hose threaded connections are the type found on hose bibs and garden hoses.
There’s nothing flashy about this, just pure functionality. Use this cap to close off the end of any male hose threaded connection. Most commonly found at the hose bib, the end of a garden hose, or on a Perma-Loc Tubing End Cap, this cap does exactly as expected: it closes off the end of any male hose threaded connection. If you lose a cap on one of your Perma-Loc End Caps, this cap can be used as a replacement.
This 30 mesh washer and screen can be used to replace the gasket inside of any female hose threaded connection. You’ll see these a lot on hose threaded items that should have some filtration to protect it from debris. Items such as hose end timers and garden hose nozzles frequently feature one of these. This item is nearly universal in the sense that it can be used with almost any female hose threaded inlet.
These faucet adapters have many uses. Their primary use in our industry is for faucets that have low clearance; that is, faucets that are too close to the ground to be able to do much with. As you can see from the shapes above, these can be used to turn a vertical assembly (which will hit the ground if the faucet is low to the ground) into a horizontal assembly so it can be built out instead of straight into the ground.
Brass faucet adapters can be found at this link: Brass Gooseneck Faucet Adapter.
The Garden Hose Saver is exactly as the name suggests. It helps prevent premature failure of your garden hose. The best place to install this is right at the spigot, as that is where a garden hose is going to be under the most tension during normal use. Instead of pulling, twisting, bending and possibly kinking the garden hose itself, allow this garden hose saver to bear that burden and spare your hose the strain. A kinked hose creates a point of failure, the integrity of the kink is often compromised and may eventually rupture.
When you need an entire hose bib, these lead free brass models will get the job done. With options available for ½” and ¾” male or female pipe threaded inlets, these are compatible with a wide variety of connections. The outlets are standard ¾” male hose threads.
Faucet Splitters and Faucet Manifolds
Available in two and four-way splits, these are sometimes referred to as Faucet Y or Hose Y splitters. The independent outlets allow the hose bib to be split. This can be particularly handy when you want to use the faucet for a drip irrigation system but still need it to operate a garden hose, or to function as a simple garden tap, etc. These also allow a single hose bib to be used for multiple drip irrigation zones.
The 4-way faucet manifold can be found at this link: Brass 4-Way Faucet Manifold.
Drip Irrigation Accessories
The items in this section are all specific to drip irrigation systems. Here you will find items compatible with poly tubing and drip irrigation components. While not strictly necessary to a system, the items in this section can be used to improve the performance of existing systems or included in the design of a new system.
The Tidy Bow by Antelco is an alternative to elbow fittings for ¼” tubing. It allows ¼” tubing with a maximum outside diameter of .250” to make gentle bends and corners without the use of an elbow fitting. The curve is gentle enough that the tubing will not kink, but tight enough for near 90° angles, containers and beds. In addition to helping the system keep a tidy, neat appearance, it’s also a time saver since the tubing does not need to be cut and then subsequently connected to tubing barbs. Also features a mounting hole to secure to structures.
Through testing, we have recently discovered that the Tidy Bow can also work with 1/8" (0.185" Outside Diameter) tubing. While not specifically for 1/8" tubing, we found that it made a pretty snug fit in the Tidy Bow. Not as snug as 1/4" tubing of course, but enough to hold in normal operating conditions. If wind or heavy foot traffic is present a Tidy Bow may not be the best choice as an elbow for 1/8" tubing, but if this is for an indoor operation or one where it won't be too disturbed by the elements or foot traffic, it would serve great.
Bug Plugs are often confused with goof plugs. While used similarly at the end of ¼” tubing, bug plugs do not seal the end of a ¼” tubing run. With these Bug Plugs, water is still able to emit from the end of the tubing run, but insects cannot enter the tubing. Anyone who has used a drip manifold to feed uncapped ¼” tubing can attest to the annoyance in having insects set up shop in the tubing. Bug Plugs prevent these unwelcome guests in addition to helping block non-organic debris.
Salco now makes a bug cap that is compatible with 1/8" (around 0.187" outside diameter) tubing, ensuring the most common sizes of microtubing can be capped to prevent insect intrusion.
Ideal for subsurface drip irrigation systems, the Hunter Eco-Indicator pops up out of the ground when system pressure is between 12 and 60 PSI, and then retracts at shutdown when the system drops to 10 PSI or less. This provides a visual indicator that the system is currently in use. The Eco-Indicator connects to the system via a ½” female pipe threaded inlet that’s compatible with any ½” male pipe threaded connection, such as PVC tees and PVC risers.
This unique product is one you might not bump into during the course of normal searches for irrigation supplies. The Watering Rock is a self contained, portable gravity fed irrigation system that comes with six adjustable drippers and features a reservoir of almost 5 gallons. The watering rocks come with the necessary tubing and fittings for installation. These are frequently used for short vacation irrigation and out of the way locations. They do not require a water source other than when filling.
Garden Accessories
In this section you’ll find items that are handy to have around the garden. From hand pumps for flooded valve boxes, to garden hoses, to hand-tools, this section has unique items designed to improve the garden space and its necessary labors.
Landscape fabrics have a myriad of uses. It makes a great alternative to potentially toxic forms of weed control, provides for greater soil moisture retention and offers some freeze protection to anything below it. Our landscape fabric is UV treated to resist UV deterioration and is constructed to resist biological degradation. A variety of these, with varying thicknesses, widths and lengths are available to meet almost any application that calls for landscape fabric.
Landscape fabric applications and uses are such that the fabric gets its own information center. If you'd like to read more about landscape fabric specifically, here's the link to our article going into more detail: Using Landscape Fabric.
Got water in your valve or sprinkler box? Water collecting at a low point on the property? One of these hand pumps can bail you out. Able to pump 12 to 19 oz of liquid per stroke, these are some of the smoothest hand pumps available. Each one completely disassembles for cleaning and maintenance. Durable and effective, these hand pumps get the job done, time and time again.
Pruners, Shears, Snips and Tools
Yes, we carry those! Our lineup is manufactured by Corona, long recognized for their quality, performance and durability. Everything from Avocado Shears to Weeders to Folding Saws, there’s a tool for almost every need.
TurfSpy Stress Detection Glasses
Underhill’s TurfSpy glasses are designed to detect problems in your turf or lawn days before they would be visible to the unaided eye. Working off the principle that struggling vegetation absorbs and reflects sunlight differently than healthy vegetation, the TurfSpy Glasses can identify a host of issues, from drought to fusarium patches to pythium blight, before they cause significant damage. Finally, function and fashion all in one handy utility item.
Though it may look like it came straight out of science fiction, the Orbit Yard Enforcer is a simple motion activated sprinkler that deters critters and other animals from encroaching on a garden or yard. The yard enforcer is a humane alternative to potentially toxic repellants or expensive fencing. The yard enforcer can spray up to 35’ away and can provide up to 7500 activation cycles with just four AA batteries.
Tree ties are used to help a tree grow upright and can be used to “train” a bent or crooked tree. These straps are flexible enough to allow the tree its own natural movement in the wind, something that’s very important to a tree’s development. Despite this flexibility, they are strong enough to provide the necessary support to nurture strong, healthy trees. Jain’s tree straps are UV treated to withstand direct exposure to sunlight.
No garden accessories category would be complete without garden hoses, perhaps the most common garden accessory out there. Because of their prevalence, quality can vary significantly. Many of us can attest to picking up an inexpensive garden hose at a big box store just to find out that not only was it inexpensive, but also cheap. Garden hoses should be expected to enjoy a long, productive life in the garden.
Our line of garden hoses are all produced by Underhill, a manufacturer dedicated to quality. Their lineup of garden hoses are no exception; these are durable, able to withstand up to 300 PSI at the high end, and up to 125 PSI at the lower end. All of them have standard hose threaded inlets and outlets. When you want a garden hose that will get it done for years to come, Underhill’s hoses are a great choice.
Garden hose nozzles are one of the most common garden accessories and are easily recognizable. These could technically be in the hose end accessories list rather than the garden accessories list, however coming right after the garden hoses themselves makes the most sense as they are most frequently used at the end of a garden hose.
We currently carry garden hose nozzles from two manufacturers, Claber and Underhill, both reputable manufacturers recognized for their quality and durability. There is a nozzle available for almost any garden purpose, from high pressure cleaning to gentle rain like droplets for irrigation. Many of them have multiple settings in one nozzle. If you’ve never used a name brand, quality nozzle, expect it to be a game changer.
Miscellaneous Accessories
This section contains items that don’t quite make a perfect fit in the above categories. These stand-alone accessories are not necessarily limited to irrigation purposes, but can find uses in almost any garden or home.
Paige Outdoor Mechanical Timer
Paige’s outdoor mechanical timer is an economical alternative to pricey electronic lighting controllers. Though a simple, mechanical timer, it is capable of two start and two stop times per day. This timer has an operating temperature range of -20°F to 140°F, making them one of the more broad application outdoor timers.
Sidewinder Flexible Mist Stand
Orbit’s Sidewinder Flexible Mist Stand comes with a single 0.5 GPH mister capable of cooling the surrounding air by up to 20°F. It comes with 30” of memory tubing that allows it to be used in a wide variety of locations. The inlet is standard ¾” female hose threads, making these compatible with any outdoor hose bib or other ¾” male hose threaded connection, such as standard garden hose outlets.
Duct Tape hardly needs an introduction, it has been used the world wide to patch up and fix issues it has no business patching up and fixing. Duct tape is used for an extremely wide variety of applications, some of which you’d never expect. We have duct tape available in both Heavy Duty and Economy models.
Our storage buckets are by no means limited to storage. Like any bucket, they can be used to transport substances or materials from one location to another, temporary or permanent storage or even as a planter for some plants. We have buckets available in 1, 2 and 3.5 gallon sizes. Each bucket comes with a lid and can withstand temperatures up to 180°F. We’ve found a good use for these is storing extra ¼” and ½” fittings. ¼” fittings, in particular, are quite small and easy to lose when not stored in one location.
Thank you for reading. If you have any questions, comments or feedback, please Contact Us. We read and reply to every message we receive and would love to assist with your questions and learn from your feedback.