The Garden HotZot

Because Weeds Never Sleep

Kill weeds organically, safely, and quickly with the Garden HotZot

UPDATE 4/19/18 – WE’LL HAVE THE NEWEST PROTOTYPE IN TESTING NEXT WEEK

 

Kill your weeds with an espresso machine?  Really?

Yep – really!  The Garden HotZot is a re-engineered espresso machine that sits quietly in the palm of your hand until you push the button.  Then, instead of making you a nice triple shot, it boils weeds to death.

The Garden HotZot is a power tool designed specifically for gardeners.  It is an organic point and shoot power sprayer that kills weeds with jets of boiling water.  No stooping, no kneeling or crawling in the mud – just point and shoot.

 

Since the dawn of agriculture, gardeners have had the same enemy – weeds.  And until recently the only solution was weeding by hand – a hard, dirty, tedious task.  More recently science has given us herbicides which, although effective, are hazardous to our health and the environment.

The Garden HotZot solves both these problems with a point-and-shoot variation of the method that our grandparents used – boiling water.  Point the HotZot wand at a weed, push the button and the weed is scalded by jets of boiling water – literally cooking it in the ground.

Is it safe?  The short answer is “Yes”.  The volume of water sprayed is tiny – just 2 ounces every 15 seconds!  That’s the secret sauce of the HotZot – a tiny amount of hot water applied to just the plant you want to kill.  The hot water transfers the heat to the weed and then cools and runs off  harmlessly.

Does boiling water really kill weeds?
These gardening sites say “YES”
GardenWeb
Dave’s Garden
National Gardening Association
Gardening Know How

 

 

Some of the outstanding features are;

1.  Warmup time from cold start – 4 seconds

2.  Recovery time between applications – none – you can spray for hours and never run out of hot water.

3.  Weight – approximately 3.75 lbs.

4.  Multiple jets of hot water so that you can kill an area of weeds or a single weed.

5.  Runs from hose pressure as well as pump pressure so you have the option of using either a backpack tank or garden hose as your water source.

6.  Reservoir for organic amendments that can include citric acid (to descale the heater), ammonia, hydrogen peroxide, etc.

The Problem

Since the dawn of agriculture, gardeners have had the same enemy –  weeds.  Until recently the only solution was weeding by hand – a hard, dirty, tedious task.  More recently science has given us toxic herbicides which, although effective, are hazardous to our health and the environment.

With a half-life of up to 9 months, toxic herbicides continue to affect our health long after their application. Whether in our parks and schools or homes and gardens, the damage done by residential use of glyphosates doesn’t stop with the death of the weed. Over the next week toddlers will crawl, pets will chase balls, children will play tag on the lawn and flowers and produce will be brought into the house. With residential glyphosate use at over 50,000 tons/year and municipal use many times greater, individual gardeners as well as entire cities and states are looking for safe, effective alternatives.

Studies regarding the environmental and health effects of glyphosates;
Scientific American
National Institute of Health
The New York Times

Now there is an option to toxic herbicides

The Garden HotZot

 

 

The Solution

The HotZot shoots needle thin jets of boiling hot water at the crown of the plant literally cooking it while it is in the ground.

Killing weeds with the GardenHotshot.
Killing weeds with the HotZot.
Same weed 4 days later
Same weed 4 days later
10 days later - nothing left but a memory
10 days later – nothing left but a memory

Features

What Makes the Garden HotZot Different?

THE ROOT OF THE PROBLEM – Unless you kill the root, the weed will just regrow.  Because the heat from the HotZot is concentrated at the crown and penetrates below ground, the weed’s root is severely damaged and regeneration is less likely.  Steamers and torches cannot do this – their heat does not penetrate the surface of the soil.

THE APPLICATION ZONE – Steamers and torches leave a large zone of destruction and torches cannot be used around flammable material (dry conifer needles, dry grass, wood chips, etc.) because of the fire danger. The Garden HotZot avoids these limitations by using needle thin jets of scalding water which have a kill zone the size of a dime allowing you to kill the weed without harming the surrounding plants.

EASE OF USE – The Garden HotZot only requires an electrical extension cord and water  from a garden hose or a backpack tank and you’re ready to go.

EFFECTIVENESS – The HotZot is 100% effective on small to medium size weeds. Weeds taller than 1 foot can be killed with the HotZot but you’ll still have a dead 1 foot tall weed in your yard. Better to pull it and then shoot it as it tries to return.

NOTE – Weeds such as blackberries, ivy, morning glory (field bindweed), etc. propagate by runners.   Killing a single runner will have no effect on weeds such as these.

* Compare HotZot to other weeders with this PDF

Our Story

The Garden HotZot was invented because too many times I watched my wife (Master Gardener, Landscape Designer and Major Plant Nerd) put on her “weeding” face and head out to spend 2-3 hours weekly doing the gardener’s equivalent of cleaning the toilet.

I decided that there had to be another, easier method for killing weeds – so I started experimenting with different options . . .   It had to be organic, fast and easy to use and above all it had to be safe.  After many bad ideas, I was making myself an espresso one morning when I hit the wrong switch and a jet of hot water shot out on the counter!  That’s what I wanted!  That afternoon I went out and bought a half dozen used espresso machines, tore them apart and put together the first prototype.  It was literally a boiler bolted to the end of a one-by-four and it looked dangerous – but it worked!  Many versions later we have a hand held espresso machine that cooks weeds.

Faster and easier than weeding by hand, safer than herbicides and torches, the HotZot makes it easy to walk through your yard or garden and kill weeds individually without harming the plants you want to keep and without leaving toxic herbicides in your yard or environment.  With a target retail price of $150 the HotZot is a revolutionary new tool in a very old market.

Where can you buy your own HotZot?  You can’t, yet – we will be starting production in Spring of 2019.

Does boiling water really kill weeds?
These gardening sites say “YES”
GardenWeb
Dave’s Garden
National Gardening Association
Gardening Know How

The GardenHotzot – Because Weeds Never Sleep

garden-hotzot-00_01_08_15-still003
Got weeds growing in cracks in your sidewalk or driveway? The HotZot is ideal for killing these weeds safely, easily and quickly.
garden-hotzot-00_01_21_11-still002
Even cracks running across your asphalt driveway can easily be kept free of weeds by using the HotZot.
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