Fresh water Hose

I don't think it matters one way or another. Unless you are hanging the hose vertically so all the water can drain out, I don't think a coiled hose with open ends is ever going to dry out inside. So I don't think a coiled joined hose is going to be any worse as far as bacteria goes than a coiled open hose.

Mostly I cap the ends so that no water leaks out in the compartment where I store the hose and end up with mold in the compartment.

Steve

Connecting the ends together is a good idea to keep bacteria out. Shouldn't let the ends touch the ground where they can pick up bacteria or organisms on the ground. There can be nasty stuff on the ground that you don't want getting in the hose. I hold the hose in the air or lay it on the picnic table to drain it first. Leaving a hose for long periods with any water in it can allow bacteria to grow though. Flushing a hose before use can help. JMO...

If you ever take a water sample into a lab for analysis, you always have to heat the end of the faucet with a lighter to kill bacteria. Faucet ends and hose ends can *look* perfectly clean but may have unsafe bacteria on them. You only need one bacteria cell to be present to reproduce.

docsouce wrote:
The label says it protects against bacteria and fungus and such.

Some filters have KDF or silver in them to kill bacteria but KDF or silver only prevents bacterial growth on the filter cartridge. They do NOT prevent bacteria from getting through.

Filters with carbon in them (to improve taste & odor) are not a good idea because you want chlorine in your piping system to kill bacteria. A carbon filter is best used as a point of use (POU) filter at a sink. Those blue filters often have a high micron rating and aren't much more than a sediment filter. Filters that aren't NSF approved can have exaggerated claims so beware. Sediment filters that have paper in them promote bacterial growth. String wound cartridges are best. What's inside those blue inline filters?

Some filters can remove some bacteria, organisms and even some viruses if they have a micron rating below 1.0. Doulton has some ceramic cartridges that do this. Some organisms are chlorine resistant.

Your water hose is probably 50 feet long does it really make any difference if the hose is sealed at both ends? Either way the bulk of the hose is going to be wet and a breeding ground for mold and bacteria. Add some mineral scale and sediment deposits and the situation is even worse. Sealed or not, you should rinse your hose well before you hook up to the RV or use it to fill your tank.

Before you put your hose away for the year, you might even consider rinsing it out with diluted bleach.

For the last 60 years I've walked up to any and all manners of garden hoses hooked up to an outside valve, turned the valve open, allowed the water inside the hose to be flushed with fresh water, and had a drink from the hose. I've never been sick or felt the slightest discomfort from this behavior. I've never heard of anyone getting sick from the same. I have heard of some folks suffering from ulcers or heart problems related to stress.

Caveat: This method hs been used mainly in the Midwest, the West, and in New England. I have not tried it in the middle of the Okefenokee swamp.

If using chlorinated water, I drain and screw the end tight. I'm not a biologist but it seems to me that keeps the chlorine from evaporating.

If I know it's well water, I drain and screw the ends just enough to keep critters out and let it get air. Common sense will tell you that it really doesn't dry out inside, at least not for a long time. A little air will keep some fungus from growing but I'm sure will help others.

When I sanitize my tanks, I pour a little in the hoses and slosh it from one end to the other and allow it to sit for a while

That has worked for me for years, but nothing says it the best way, it's just my way.

Either way, I don't leave the ends open for the bigger critters.

I do empty, dry, and then plug our water filter. Failed to do that one time after a Florida trip and about 2 months later, it took 2 hours to get the fungus out of the cracks.

Now let's take it a bit further....I put a new in line water filter on today too (one of those blue tube type). The label says it protects against bacteria and fungus and such. However there is a warning on the package flap that reads "do not use where water is microbiologically unsafe". Again if I'm using the hose everyday or very often fine. But now I'm thinking even if I drain the hose, as I always do, the inside of this filter will stay wet and after a couple of weeks of non use do the bad things grow inside the filter? I'm thinking I should only use these filters when I plan to use the hose every couple of days and give the hose and filter a good flushing before connecting to the RV.
Oh, we like to use the onboard water for everything. This is our third season of RVing and we haven't had a problem yet. I just unhook,drain,coil and couple (with the filter on.) No problem. Just had this thought.

I do screw the ends together to keep the drips contained, but about 95% of the time, I'm unhooking in the morning and reconnecting the same afternoon, so I doubt that bacterial growth is any risk. The other 5% are the overnighters enroute when we don't bother to hook up the water.

The exact correct answer is yes....or no....Either scenario works just fine. I doubt you are going to keep much debris out since there won't be a lot of debris where your hose is stored.
If you like to connect the ends, feel free. If you don't feel like connecting the ends you will do no harm. In the last 20 years of full timing I have never connected the ends and I am still doing pretty well. However, that still does not mean that not connecting is the right answer. Only you have the right answer as it's simply a personal preference thing.

It seems to me that screwing the ends togather invites bacterial growth.

I can deal with spiders and dirt :)

I leave the ends open, and rinse before connecting to the house.

Have always left them open over the last 30 years of RVing so they dry out.
I always run some water through the hose before connecting to my RV.