Here’s a technique for siphoning water out of a container with a garden hose without having to suck on the hose to prime it, because let’s face it, who wants to 1. put the end of a dirty garden hose in your mouth, or 2. risk drinking what’s coming through it? I used this technique to drain a small pond in our back yard.
Along with a garden hose, you will need a working tap and a nozzle that can be closed . Most typical hand-nozzles should work just fine.
- Attach the hose to the tap and the nozzle to the hose.
- Run some water through the hose to fill it with water.
- Close the nozzle. Close the tap.
- Remove the hose from the tap, holding the open end up to prevent any water from spilling out. Your hose is now primed for use.
- Carry both ends of the hose to the place where you’d like the water to drain to. Be careful not to spill water from the hose. Leave the nozzled end there.
- Place the open end of the hose in the container you’d like to drain.
- Return to the nozzled end and remove the nozzle.
- Watch as the container drains. Smile because you didn’t have to taste any of it.
Ken Dyck 