The many uses of duct tape
(Photo: flippbonq / Flickr)
It's no secret that prolonging the life of stuff you already own is a smart way to save money. It's also good for the planet since fixing things (instead of buying new) saves the resources needed to make a new product from scratch.
Luckily, there is a low-cost, ubiquitous household staple that can handle many simple repairs. Duct tape, which is available in a variety of funky colors, can come in handy in a number of situations from the practical to the downright wacky.
There's even a study showing it can take off warts, although more evidence is needed to confirm this.
Here are just some of its many uses:
At home:
- Prevent stale chips. Fold up the top of a partially finished bag and seal it with a piece of duct tape.
- Repair a vacuum hose by wrapping duct tape around it.
- Fix a plastic trash can.
- Replace a shower curtain grommet. Cover the broken hole with duct tape and then make a new hole for curtain ring.
- Reinforce a broken book binding, or use it to cover books.
- Fix flip-flops, or build a better sandal.
- Repair broken game cartridges.
(Photo: Francis Bourgouin / Flickr)
Outside:
- Catch flying insects by hanging strips of duct tape from porch and use it like flypaper. (You can also try this one inside.)
- Protect yourself from ticks by wrapping duct tape around your pant cuffs so ticks can't crawl in.
- Repair outdoor furniture. You can use it to cover holes in outdoor cushions or to replace lawn chair webbing.
- Stop a leak in a garden hose.
- Temporarily repair a leaky tent.
- Cover an old pair of sneakers with duct tape to make an instant pair of waterproof shoes. You can also use it to keep rubber boots from leaking.
- Extend the life of sporting equipment such as hockey sticks (wrap bottom of stick with duct tape) and skateboard shoes (place duct tape on worn out areas of shoe).
(Photo: Queen puff puff / Flickr)
Interested in some fun applications?
- High-school students can enter a contest to win a college scholarship by making the most creative prom outfits. Check out their extraordinary dresses and tuxedos.
- You can use duct tape to make everything from arm and leg weights to a ghetto headphone amp. Get more DIY ideas from Instructables.com. No time to make your own? Etsy has a wide selection of homemade duct-tape wallets, purses, flowers, and more.
- Duct tape can come in handy for home-sewers. A duct-tape dress form is easy and inexpensive to make. Once you have a form made to your own size, you can customize clothing, make repairs, and sew from scratch.
- The Duct Tape Guys literally wrote the book on duct tape. Check out their website for an endless supply of creative ideas.
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Environmental journalist Lori Bongiorno shares green-living tips and product reviews with Yahoo! Green's users. Send Lori a question or suggestion for potential use in a future column. Her book, Green Greener Greenest: A Practical Guide to Making Eco-smart Choices a Part of Your Life is available on Yahoo! Shopping and Amazon.com.You do not appear to have Yahoo! Messenger installed. Click here to download and install it.
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