An easy and satisfying project to keep all your hoses organized.

A friend of mine has a very large motor yacht and the degree of “comforts of home” and the associated complexity of plumbing in the engine room is astounding.  While helping him deliver the boat to her new home port, I noticed that every seacock — and there are many — had a black plastic engraved hangtag attached to it labeling its function. Brilliant! 

I recently bought a new boat, which is not nearly as complex as my buddy’s, and I remembered his clever idea to label all of my new and unfamiliar hoses and through-hulls. Being of more modest means, I went to the Dollar Tree and spent $1.25 on a plastic placemat with a white back.  If that is too much for one’s budget, sections cut from a bleach bottle will work also.

The author used a cheap placemat and a Sharpie to create hose labels.

To complete this simple task, I cut 1-inch by 2.5-inch strips from the placemat and used a hole punch to put two holes in one end so they would lie flat against the hose. I then labeled each one with a permanent Sharpie marker (a label maker would also work) and used zip ties to attach them to the hoses. Easy as that! Now there is no more confusion about which hose does what.

An ideal solution to keeping hoses and through-hulls organized.