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Old 02-06-2014, 06:42 PM   #1
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Water hose question

I stay in a large campground. I am guessing around 1000 sites. I use a water pressure regulator. I probably don't really even need it. The water pressure is never very good. I was looking to replace my current 5/8 inch water hose and noticed that they also come in 1/2 inch diameter as well. Funny thing is I have always used 5/8 inch and was not aware of the 1/2 inch size. Would switching to the 1/2 inch give me more water pressure? I would still use the pressure regulator. It just seems that the water being pushed through a smaller diameter hose would increase the water pressure. Your thoughts.
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Old 02-06-2014, 06:50 PM   #2
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I'm going to follow this because I sucked at physics.....
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Old 02-06-2014, 06:58 PM   #3
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Short answer, NO....

While you would be squeezing the pressure down only slightly in a thinner hose once it hits your regular TT plumbing the pressure would simply go back to it's regular pressure.

Let me also create an expanded scenario. Say you put a 1/4 inch hose on your trailer. You would actually lose pressure as the hose would not be able to fill the expanded volume of the trailers larger plumbing system and any water leaving a faucet.
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Old 02-06-2014, 08:41 PM   #4
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Let’s just throw the regulator out of the question for a moment.

Hoses and electrical extension cords in theory work very similar. Hose transport water, and cords transport electrons. Most of us have heard do not use the light weight 16 gauge cords for our TTs as they create a voltage drop over long distances which hurt our appliances. Most of us have heard to use a heavy gauge electrical cord at home to minimize voltage drop. Voltage drop is a type of friction this is similar to water hoses. Small diameter hoses have more pressure drop than a larger diameter hose over the same length of hose. In your case a 5/8” hose has less pressure drop per foot than a ½” hose due to friction against the hose wall. You may have other items inside your TT that will cause pressure drops such as items that have a neck down. Some items have a minimal effect on this due to the length of the device like a valve or a check valve. Inside your unit you most likely have ½” pex piping. This piping has a huge effect on your overall pressure drop. Farther away from the hose connection the more friction from the pipe walls there is and the more pressure drop there is. In my opinion, keep a 5/8” hose to minimize the compounding pressure drop.

Back to the regulator. Regulators can work a few different ways. The easy method is to have a calibrated spring that pushed back against the flow and pushed back against the flow and restricts the flow. These valves can really restrict the flow along with reduce the pressure. There are a number of ways to make a pressure regulators and some are better than others for affecting the flow rate.

Note: the cross sectional area of a hose; A = pi * Radius^2, A = Area, pi = 3.14
½” hose R = .25”, A = 3.14 * .25^2 = 0.19 in^2
5/8” hose R = 0.3125”, A =3.14* .3125 = 0.306 in^2
So a 5/8” hose has about 1.5 times greater cross sectional area than a ½” hose. In short a 5/8” hose can carry about 1.5 times the water volume of a ½” hose.

If you have an issue with low pressure, stick to the larger hose, to minimize pressure drop from the supply hose.


This is the simple version, we can get way more technical discussing the slip stream effect of the coefficients of friction on the hose wall, but that is way to technical.
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Old 02-06-2014, 08:51 PM   #5
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The smaller diameter hose will increase the flow pressure and reduce the volume of water delivered. Although an 1/8 of an inch would hardly be noticeable. If you filled a bucket with each hose and timed it there would be very little difference in the time taken to fill the bucket. If you are conveying water in large volumes over a long distance then there is a concern. Like Tex said if you make a drastic change in hose diameter you will initially lose pressure due to loss of volume, it finally catches up when the system is filled and pressurized. As soon as you open a tap or flush, then the supply (volume) decreases and it would take time to refill. I would choose the 5/8 diameter to take advantage of any difference in volume.
For example the Fire Service uses formulas for the various sizes of fire hose to calculate pump pressures in relation to the amount and distance that water is conveyed in order to pump efficiently and prevent damage to the pumps relative to the supply. The concern is the friction loss or resistance to flowing the water. In a hose or pipe the water that flows is from the center of the diameter. The water at the outside edge moves very little. Thats why when the municipal water service is shut off, there is rust or discolouring in the water when it is turned back on. It disturbs the settled rust and that moves when the service is reinstated.
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Old 02-07-2014, 05:13 AM   #6
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Theoretically there will not be an increase or decrease in pressure. For a given length of hose say 200 feet there will be a pressure loss due to the smaller diameter and higher friction losses inside the hose. There will be a decrease in flow when using a smaller diameter hose. Take this extreme example: A 1/4" hose will shoot a 10' stream of water and a 3/4" hose will shoot water only 3' at a given pressure. If the pressure in both hoses remains constant, it will take much longer to fill a bucket with the 1/4" hose.

Another good formula for figuring the area of a circle that eliminates a step is 0.7854 D squared. Most circles are denoted by their diameter not the radius so this formula uses information that is given directly...you don't need to divide the diameter by 2 to find the radius thus eliminating an opportunity for error.
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Old 02-08-2014, 10:40 AM   #7
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Your best bet would to use a different shower / faucet head. I know I saw a few posts a week or so back about them. Lady Gwendolyn had a link for one she bought and it had great reviews.
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Old 02-09-2014, 02:00 PM   #8
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You might be able to find a regulator that is adjustable with a pressure gauge so you know exactly what the pressure is.
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Old 02-09-2014, 02:28 PM   #9
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If you full-time at the site...there are solutions for boosting low pressure if it's an annoyance. You could install a water reserve tank and / or pressure boosting pump.

http://www.daveyusa.com/daveyusa/pro...ails.htn?id=17
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