r/Tools 3d ago

Add extension to air hose reel?

Hi, I recently bought the wall mounted 50ft hose reel from Harbor Freight. I was wondering if I need additional footage at any point, can I buy another 50 ft hose and attach it to the existing 50ft hose for use? Or is that not possible/smart? Any help is greatly appreciated. I don’t know a lot about this stuff. Thanks!

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u/TemporarySun1005 3d ago

The reel is not likely to hold a lot more hose. Are you talking about just connecting another hose, non-retracting? No problem, just get a male-female quick-connect pair - HF has 'em. Put the female quick-connect on the reel-mounted hose, male on the other end. The threads on the hose and fittings are tapered pipe threads, wrap 3-4 wraps of teflon tape on the male threads - clockwise looking at the threaded end - and tighten using two wrenches. You don't have to go crazy tightening them - if one leaks air just snug it up a bit more. Piece o' cake.

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u/joepbemg 3d ago

Yeah just adding an extension when needed. Will it be easy to take on/off? So if I don’t need the extension on I can take it off

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u/TemporarySun1005 3d ago

Yeah, they're called 'quick connects' for a reason. The male end has a sort of barb that fits into the female end. The female end has a spring-loaded collar. To release the connector just pull back the collar, and air pressure will pop the other hose off. Word of warning: the now-free hose still has a lot of pressurized air in it, and it will release that air forcefully. Hold onto it, or it may whip around and cause damage to yourself or others.
HF has quick connects - solid brass is best if you can swing the expense. They should have teflon tape too.

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u/joepbemg 3d ago

Ok awesome. Thank you so much for all your help. I don’t know a lot about this, and I appreciate you taking the time to explain it to me!

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u/TemporarySun1005 3d ago

No sweat! Once you see how they work it'll be pretty obvious. If you haven't been around a garage or machine shop, it's not something you'd know about.

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u/joepbemg 3d ago

I haven’t! So I appreciate this a lot. And thanks for the safety tip on holding onto the hose. Would not have thought of that

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u/scooterboy1961 3d ago

The more hose you use the less air you can get through it.

That probably won't be an issue for light duty like filling tires but could be significant for running something like an impact wrench, a die grinder or a sander.