Click through our slideshow to see how to turn your hose into a basket. | Photos by Lori Eanes

I used to think of my garden hose as a helpful tool—good for watering the plants, cooling off my kids in summertime (at least before the drought in California kicked in), and taking refreshing sips of water on hot days. But after reading about research done by Ann Arbor, Michigan's Ecology Center, I see it as a hazard—a poisonous snake coiled menacingly in the backyard. The Ecology Center tested the water from a hose left in the sun for a few days and found that it contained high amounts of lead, phthalates, and bisphenol A. 

But fortunately there are alternatives: hoses made from nontoxic materials like polyurethane or natural rubber, which won't leach toxic chemicals into the water. I'm going to buy one of those and, just for good measure, store it in the shade. In the meantime, I've found a new, safer function for my old hose. I wound it into a durable basket and bound it tightly with a lot of sturdy zip ties. It's perfect for storing stuff in the backyard or garage.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED

hose (55 feet)
8" zip ties (pack of 100)
scissors or wire cutters

DIFFICULTY LEVEL: 3 (It takes some work to wrap the hose nice and tight.)   

CONSTRUCTION TIME: 2 hours

Based on a project by Deandra's Crafts at instructables.com/id/recycled-water-hose-basket.

Wipe down your hose with a rag to remove any dirt. If it's very stiff and hard to bend, stretch it out in the sun to warm it up and make the plastic more pliable. Fold one end over on itself tightly. Snip off the brass fitting if it seems too bulky (The fitting on my hose had a big piece of plastic attached to it, so it had to go). Coil the hose once around.

Fasten the coil with a zip tie, pulling it tightly but not too tightly—if the pieces of the hose are too snug, it will be difficult to slip the zip ties between them.

Wind the hose a bit more and attach three more zip ties—there should be four, each about a quarter of the way around from each other.

Keep winding the hose and attaching the zip ties. Each new zip tie should overlap by one row of hose with the previous zip tie and wrap around a new row of hose, slowly forming four separate lines of zip ties. Stop when you have 9 or 10 rows of hose—this is the base of your basket (the size will vary depending on the thickness of your hose). Pull the zip ties very tight and trim off the ends.

Begin to stack the hose on the outermost row of the base and attach a zip tie.

Keep stacking each new coil of hose on top of the previous one and attaching zip ties. Continue pulling on your zip ties tightly but not so tightly that the shape is too rigid; you want to be able to shift the basket's shape as you work.

Stop when you have stacked approximately 8 rows and have about 4 feet of hose left. Tighten and trim the zip ties.

Fold the remaining 4 feet of hose in half (two lengths of hose will make a sturdier handle). Bend the nozzle so that it lays flat against the top row of hose and secure it with a zip tie.

Attach the folded end of the hose handle to the other end of the basket with a zip tie.

Add one more zip tie near the base of each side of the handle. Tighten and snip the remaining zip ties. Put stuff in your new basket.