Layflat is a discharge hose - it carries water away from a pump rather than sucking it in. Typical jobs are site dewatering, irrigation and crop watering, pool and pond draining, slurry and washdown, and temporary water runs where a rigid pipe would be impractical. Because it collapses flat when empty it rolls up into a compact coil, so it is ideal where the hose has to be stored, moved or transported between jobs.

No. Layflat has no wall stiffness when empty, so any negative pressure will collapse it instantly and starve the pump. It is a discharge-only hose. For the suction side you need a hose with a rigid helix in the wall - our PVC suction and corrugated reinforced hoses are built for that. Getting this the wrong way round is the single most common mistake with layflat, so if you are plumbing a pump, put layflat on the outlet only.

Our PVC layflat runs from 25mm up to 102mm internal diameter. Lengths are cut to order from 1 metre right up to a 100 metre full coil, so you can buy exactly what the job needs rather than a fixed pack size. If you want a full coil, choose the coil length option - it works out considerably better value per metre than buying cut lengths.

Our layflat is rated to 4 bar working pressure and an operating range of -10C to +65C, manufactured to BS6391. Keep it away from hot discharge and do not use it for compressed air - a layflat hose that bursts under air pressure releases stored energy very suddenly, whereas a water burst simply spills. For anything above 4 bar or above 65C, talk to us about a reinforced rubber or PVC alternative.

We stock blue and yellow. The colour is not a specification, it is purely for visibility and identification - yellow shows up well on a site or in long grass, blue is the more common choice for clean water and irrigation. Many customers use the two colours to keep separate runs identifiable when several hoses are down at once.

Layflat is normally fitted with a camlock, Bauer or nozzle coupling secured with a hose clip or crimped ferrule. Slide the fitting into the hose end while it is round, not folded, and clamp over the fitting's serrated shank. Two clips set at right angles to each other give a more secure grip than one on higher pressure runs. We stock a full range of stainless worm drive clips that suit layflat well.