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Best Garden Hose Pumps in 2022
- Booster Pumps
Imagine watering plants, washing your car, or showering pets with trickling water. Frustrating, isn’t it? Yet a lot of people live with it even though they’ll need more time and energy to finish the job. If you had good water pressure, doing all those things will not only be faster and easier but even enjoyable. All you need is a good pump you can connect to a garden hose.
In this article, I’ve compiled the best garden hose water pumps on the market. I chose them thanks to their innovative features, great performance, and complete practicality.
| Wayne PLS100 | GreenExpert Utility | FLUENTPOWER Utility |
|---|---|---|
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Best inline garden hose pump |
Best garden hose utility pump |
Best utility pump with float switch |
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1 HP |
1/4 HP |
1/3 HP |
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Editor Rating: 4.8 ★ |
Editor Rating: 4.7 ★ |
Editor Rating: 4.9 ★ |
The Best Garden Hose Pumps
Best inline garden hose pump
- Pros
- Can be used to suck water from 25' below
- Max flow of 850 GPH
- Maintains pressure up to 60 psi
- Stainless steel housing
- Lightweight and portable
- Cons
- Seals could be better
The Wayne PLS100 is a 1 HP stainless steel pump you can use with a garden hose. It draws water from sources as low as 25′ below, perfect if you have a lake, pond, or river. It’s lightweight and portable making it easy to use anywhere outdoors.
The PLS100 makes good use of its powerful motor and can reach up to 775 GPH at 10′ of elevation. You won’t even have to worry if you have a hundred feet of hose. Just make sure there are no kinks anywhere.
Best for watering small gardens
- Pros
- Responsive pressure switch
- Max flow of 180 GPM
- Shut off pressure: 55 psi
- Cut in pressure:f 40 psi
- Corrosion resistant diaphragm
- Cons
- Just enough power for a small garden
Use this Shurflo Revolution pump to water your small garden from rain barrels easily. It’s equipped with a pressure switch to turn the pump on and off automatically. Protecting the pump from getting too hot and avoiding damage.
Despite its modest size, the pump is capable of delivering up to 180 GPH. Just the right amount for a standard garden hose. It’s also available in 12V DC for RVs and other remote applications.
A powerful and great looking pump
- Pros
- Great design
- Max flow of 1585 GPH
- 25' long cord
- Comes with two fittings: 1 1/4" and 3/4"
- Cons
- Hose fittings can be more durable
The Green Expert utility pump is my personal favorite for use in the garden. Its beautiful design blends perfectly with the space outside the home. It’s not all aesthetics though, this ¼ HP pump moves water fast reaching up to 1585 GPH. You can use it to drain water in barrels and totes to water plants or wash your car. It comes with two attachments sized 1 ¼” for high flow and ¾” for the typical garden hose connection.
The best garden hose pump with float switch
- Pros
- Reliable float switch
- Max flow of 1700 GPH
- 26' cable cord
- 1 1/2", 1", and 3/4" connections
- Cons
- No significant disadvantages
Anyone who’s ever used pumps knows that it won’t take long to damage it when you run it dry. This submersible FLUENTPOWER pump has a float switch to make its operation automatic. What this means is that you won’t need to always check the water level as you’re using the pump, the switch does it all for you.
This is a reliable pump with a max flow and lift of 1700 GPH and 21’ respectively. It has several hose connectors included to accommodate whatever type you may have. What I like about it the most though is the extra-long cable cord that lets you use the pump further away from your home.
The best utility pump
- Pros
- Great construction
- Max flow of 1800 GPH (1/4 HP)
- Easy to clean intake screen
- Available in 1/5, 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, & 12V models
- Cons
- Only 10' cord length
Superior Pump’s utility pump series is one of the most popular pumping products out there — and for good reason. It’s a submersible thermoplastic pump that’s jam-packed with power. You can connect it to your garden hose thanks to its ¾” adapter and empty your pool, aquarium, or basement. It’s available in ⅕ to ½ HP variants with the largest moving up to 3300 GPH of water.
A great inline garden hose pump
- Pros
- Comes with a suction strainer
- 1600 GPH @ 10'
- Durable cast iron housing
- 3/4" suction and discharge
- Cons
- Cast iron may rust after some time
If you always have to drain water from the pool, basement, or heater, you should get yourself a pump like the Wayne PC4. This ½ HP cast iron pump can move up to 1600 GPH of water at 10′ of elevation that makes the job a breeze. It is cast iron though, so expect some rust after some time. But if you’re using it for non-potable purposes, it should be worth it. Also, it comes with a strainer so use a stronger hose on the suction side to keep it from collapsing.
Best engine powerd garden hose pump
- Pros
- Lightweight and portable
- Max flow of 32 GPM
- Max pressure of 52 psi
- 0.9 hr. at max discharge
- Self priming
- Cons
- A bit expensive
Honda is a no brainer when it comes to engine-powered pumps. This Honda WX10 pump can reach max flows and discharge of 32 GPM and 52 psi respectively, thanks to its GX25 engine. Despite the power, its super lightweight(13 lbs.) thanks to its aluminum volute and impeller.
It’s also super compact making it portable enough to bring anywhere with one hand. The pump has a 1” NPT suction and discharge but there’s a ¾” adapter included for use with your standard garden hose.
Buyer's Guide
1. Type
Choosing a pump that fits with your garden hose depends on what you’re using it for. If you want to drain water from the pool or a basin, a submersible is a great choice. It can remove water until there’s only a fraction of an inch left.
Inline garden hose pumps are great when you need to take water from rain barrels where only a hose can fit through. These pumps can suck water up to a certain height making your job easier. This type also lasts longer since you don’t have to expose it to water directly.
2. Capacity
Another consideration is to look at the capacity of the pump. This comes in two forms: flow rate and pressure.
Flow rate, usually in gallons per hour (GPH), is the amount of water that the pump is capable of moving at a certain time. Pressure, usually in psi or feet, is the amount of “compression” the pump does on the water. It determines how high and how far the water can reach.
Choosing a pump depends on what you need it for. When draining pools, for example, you want to have as much flow as you can get to finish the job faster. But you don’t want that same amount of water when watering plants or showering pets.
If you have more than a hundred feet of garden hose, you’ll need lots of pressure. Otherwise, all the water’s energy is ‘spent’ before it even reaches the discharge. If you have a shorter one, you won’t need as much pressure or else you’ll damage parts of your plants.
3. Ease of use
The last thing you have to consider is the ease of use. You’ll be using the pump for at least a few years, might as well have one that won’t cause a headache.
Will you be using the pump right outside your home or somewhere farther? If it’s the latter, you might want one with more than 15′ of cable cord. If you need more, you should consider getting a battery or engine-powered pump like the Honda WX10.
Will you be pumping water straight or with a few stops here and there? For intermittent applications, get a pump with a pressure switch. Or you can get one and attach it to your system.