Gilmour Medium Duty Thumb Control Garden Hose Nozzle with Adjustable Spray Pattern, Water Hose Nozzle for Watering Garden or Lawn, Black/Aqua

Why it's worth it

A thumb-control nozzle with an adjustable pattern from a fine mist to a concentrated stream, plus a swivel base that keeps the hose from twisting. It's the grab-and-go nozzle for filling watering cans, rinsing vegetables, and washing the dog.

The thumb control is the whole appeal. You push the lever to set flow and it stays there, so you're not squeezing a trigger for twenty minutes while you work down a border. Owners with grip fatigue or arthritis single this out. You can also set it and set the nozzle down for a minute without water spraying everywhere.

The swivel connection solves a problem you've stopped noticing. Most nozzles transmit every twist of your wrist straight into the hose, which is how you end up with a kink halfway across the yard. Gilmour's base rotates independently, so the hose stays flat and pulls easier. Owners who've cycled through a dozen nozzles over the years call this the feature that made them switch.

From our review of 5 garden hose nozzles and watering systems, by Genevieve Dubois, Home & Living Expert

What we like

• +The thumb control is the whole appeal
• +The swivel connection solves a problem you've stopped noticing
• +There's a metal water passage inside rather than an all-plastic channel, which is part of why it holds up better than its size…
• +It's a light, simple tool with a lifetime warranty behind it, and owners who've filed a claim report the process being…

What to know

• –The thumb guard can be stiff
• –A few owners can't get a forceful jet out of it
• –It's handheld only. There's no way to leave it running unattended over a bed the way you can with a sprinkler