Man oh man, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I’m still amazed at some of the things you can get from Dollar Tree these days. I know, I know, it seems that I say that for every DT product review (or maybe it just feels like it to me), but it’s true: dollar stores have come a long way from where they were even ten years ago. I still remember going into a store called “All4One” (located inside a shopping mall, of all places) about thirty years ago; even my seven-year-old brain could tell just about everything in there was junk.

And now we have spray nozzles for just a buck? Okay, maybe that’s not high on the typical person’s list of “coolest Dollar Tree finds”, and it wouldn’t have even made my list if it were just your typical “let’s water the garden” variety. But this one is notable because it comes with seven different settings.

Just staring at it in the store, you can tell one major area where things were cut to bring it down to a dollar price tag: it’s made of plastic. Now, I have to say that – unlike the Dollar Tree sprinklers – this is a thicker, slightly more durable plastic. I wouldn’t leave it out year round in the elements, or anything, but with some proper care and/or light use, this should get you through a couple seasons with little problems.

Attaching to the hose is easy, as it just twists on the way every other hose does. Given the price point, I half expected it to leak everywhere once it was attached, but it didn’t leak at all…so far, our dollar investment is holding up!

We actually have a metal hose topper that we got from somewhere else (maybe Menards) a while back, and the settings are taken almost verbatim, so I used that one as a reference to gauge the individual settings here.

Mist: Mist is actually my favorite setting on our old hose nozzle, with a fine mist spraying out once the trigger is pressed. Dollar Tree’s nozzle misses the mark for me, with three jets of semi-fine mist shooting out about three feet. This is not anybody’s definition of “mist”. It is light, though, and might be a fun setting to use to spray down younger kids.

Soaker: I don’t even understand this one. To be fair, our hose leaks at the spigot, so maybe it’s an issue of water pressure, but this one just dribbles out a lot of water two inches in front of it. Literally, it’s just a lot of water falling straight downward. I guess it would be a decent setting to drink from, assuming you drink hose water, or to rinse off dirty feet, but most other settings could do that, too. Eh.

Cone: This is what “mist” should have been: a gentle, cone-shaped spray is emitted, which gently lays upon the skin. A great setting for quickly cooling down on those hot summer days, without getting drenched; also probably not one the kids will find all that fun.

Full: This setting is one of the bigger differences between the two nozzles. On our old one, it’s just a semi-strong stream of water that shoots out about four feet. Dollar Tree’s version has a single main stream shooting down the middle, which is then flanked with two lighter, mistier streams on either side. It’s a fun setting to play around with, but not sure the “full” moniker is quite fitting.

Shower: Much like the name implies, this shoots a heavy ring of water a very short distance, akin to the way a showerhead works. This setting on our old hose seems to be a little weaker, with less water coming out, but shoots it a farther distance (about three feet). It’s a wash on this one (pun intended); it’s a great setting that matches what it should be.

Center: On our old nozzle, this one is like the shower setting, but with a less wide circle shape, and a fairly short (maybe four foot) stream. Dollar Tree’s version of this shortens the circle even more, to about an inch diameter (I think; I suck at math) but shoots it out much farther, spanning around six feet. It’s a strong setting, and one of the most fun ones to use.

Jet: Here’s the be all and end all of hose nozzle settings, at least, in our household. It’s also the one that’s probably the most similar to one another across both nozzles that we own: a heavy stream of water shoots out, and reaches about 8 or so feet when placed parallel to the ground. Angle it upwards and you can get it to reach much farther.

So, overall, how is it? I have to say that I’m pretty impressed. While the soaker setting is an outright dud, it’s the only one; the others I could see being used from time-to-time. It’s also fairly durable, as our tired four-year-old has dropped it onto hard stone a few times, and it’s none the worse for wear. Granted, he’s short, so it only falls, like, ten inches every time, but still, it’s holding up a little better than I expected it to.

Again, you have to factor in the price, and while getting this for a buck might not qualify as an outright steal (Walmart has metal ones for just a couple of bucks more), it’s still a good product for a dollar. Switching between the settings is as simple as it should be (although younger kids might have some problems; our four-year-old did at first, but quickly adapted to it), while an audible “click” lets you know you’re properly on it.

Overall: 6/10. It’s made of a semi-durable plastic that’s built to last longer than some Dollar Tree products, and switching between settings is as easy as it should be. Surprisingly, it also attaches tightly to the hose, and doesn’t leak at all, which was actually a pleasant surprise. One setting is a dud (soaker), and a couple others are a little misleading (“Mist” and “Full”, I’m looking at you), but the rest are just as good, if not slightly better, than similar settings in other hoses. It’s not going to wow you, and I’m not sure what to expect in terms of longevity, but the plastic shell actually seems pretty durable. It’ll cool you down on a hot summer’s day, and a great way to kill some time with the kids…what more could you want?