SECRET To NEVER Having Tangled Extension Cords Again! Wrap Them Like The Pros!
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- Опубликовано: 5 янв 2024
- In this video I show you better techniques to wrapping up your extension cords so you NEVER have to deal with tangles or knots in them again when you go to use them.
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Have you always wrapped your cords like I showed in the beginning of the video? Which method do you think you will use in the future?
I learned your last method from an old school construction worker back in the day and still use it today... 😊
The "loop thru the loop" is what I've been using since I learned it in the 1980s. I dump them into a bucket or tote. And FWIW, this is exactly the same as the basic starting crochet stitch for making lace and etc.
My son was an electrician in the Air Force and they were taught (and consequently he taught me) your last method of hand over reverse hand. Best way and easiest way in my opinion. Love all your videos! In fact, just getting ready to review your your video on Xmas tree light repair..need to use that method!
I started using the last method on my own with console controllers. I've tried the second method but it's kinda a pain with really long or stiff cables.
Good tip on last one. Will use.
My father was in the navy in WWII and was a contractor after that, and he always used the second braided method for longer cords and the alternating loops for shorter cords. He said that was how he was taught in the Navy. I do the same myself, and I like the look on peoples faces when I bring out a long braided cord at an RV park and toss it out its full length with no tangles. Always a show stopper.
As a Navy Brat, I learned the same way😂 It seems to mesmerized folks! (Esp. Cause I’m a girl😂😂)
Your dad fought on the wrong side.
@@lm4278 - WRONG! Can be verified by my 8 US Marine brothers.😉
The Amish taught me that daisy chain one; but now I prefer that last one. You gave me a real help, and u r the instructor A-1
@@lm42781000% cringe bro
As a senior DIY'er, I always find the information in your videos sound and very helpful. I try to learn and refine my technique every day. Thanks and keep bringing us these videos.
You are very welcome! Really glad to hear it was helpful. Thanks a lot for the feedback Robert!
I've heard of the last method referred to as the "Roadie Wrap" as it relates to dealing with all the various cables requires to set up a band for a concert.
Yup, specifically audio cable.
I'm a sailor and a DYIer. Most boaters loose-wrap their lines by rolling it with each loop, so that it looks neat and you have a bunch of round loops. I was taught to just let the line do what it wants to do (no rolling), so that when you drop it on the deck, it unrolls without tangling. On a boat in an emergency, it can be a lifesaver.
I think this is basically what I do. I've noticed over the years that just winding it around my arm ends up with some of the loops doing a figure 8, and making it get tangled when undoing it. I started doing it with the loops hanging off my hand, and if one tries to twist, I twirl the wire between my fingers to take the twist out of it. I think that might achieve the same end result. I'm going to have to experiment the next time I roll up a cord.
Long hoses do the same thing. In twist them by grabbing the hose and drawing a big arc in the air with it, which eventually flips the end of the hose over.
I am always stunned at the amount of useful information on RUclips that I wish that I would have known sooner! It's a snowy day here in Pennsylvania, so I think that you can guess what I am going to be doing besides shoveling. Thanks for sharing!
You are very welcome! Really glad to hear it was helpful. Yeah I was trying to get it out in time for folks picking up their Christmas decorations. Thanks a lot for the feedback!
I always learn something from your videos. I’ll definitely be rolling up cords like the last method instead of the first method that I’ve been using for years. Thanks for the info.
I have always wrapped extension cords the first way you showed. My husband always used the daisy chain method. I think I will try your last and favorite method next time. Thanks a bunch. No more frustrating tangles! ❤
So glad your favorite way is the "right" way of coiling a cord.
LOL! I kid, but it is the best!!
Thanks for all the help, great to have a library of videos to learn from.
I just want to let you know thank you for all your videos I really enjoy watching them. Keep them up🎉
You are very welcome! Really glad to hear you liked it. Thanks a lot for the feedback Mark!
Ive been in entertainment all my life so always used the last method but its never worked on home extension cords for me until they have lain out straight in the sun and lost their memory. Still always get tangled for me as long as the "new" is still in the outer sheathing or if theyve been stored in a mess and formed a new memory. Love it when they lie flat though. This is a great video!
I was taught to use a method similar to your method by a WWII NAVY man while on a Boy Scout tour of the Battle ship USS MASSACHUSITS.
He said always always twist the cord in your finger as you make the loops CLOCKWISE. This way it is uniform and anyone can pick it up and use it.
My son in law was in a band. He is the first person I saw roll his wires like I do. Method 4.while in the army we rolled heavy power cables that were used on our radio trucks like the 4th way also.
Just picked up some velcro hangers. Going to use the last option . . . had seen another creator doing the daisy chain and was looking for him when I found you. Thanx . . . great video.
That last method is sweet. It looks neat, all rolled up stores nicely and the best part - just give it a toss. Thanks for the video and please keep 'em coming. You've provide some great info for us DIY'ers.
You are very welcome! Really glad to hear it was helpful. Thanks a lot for the feedback Paul!
Great video! I use a modified version of your favorite. Yep, I do the loops around my elbow.
My most used and fastest method is like the first way, but figure-eighting it from elbow to hand, crossing in front of your forearm. Unravels in one throw and also doesn't introduce twist, just like your last method.
Wow! Thanks . I always have problems with my extension cords..
Thank you, always enjoy your videos!
Great information! Generations of movie/TV gaffers and rock-n-roll roadies proved the value of your last and favorite method! Thank you!
Yeah it is a phenomenal way of doing it. Glad you liked it. Thanks a lot for the input!
OMG this is brilliant!
The way that you think it's the best was so well explained that I can only thank you 1000 times. The vid just upside yours was so weirdly explained, I had to waxh it at slow-motion to comprehend the movement (mirror effect).
Anyhow, thanks alot! The time it took me to write this comment largely worth the time saved by doing your technic😂😂😂!
An electrician taught me this trick 20 years ago. Works great!
Great video Adam as usual. I like the Velcro straps also. I'll have to pick a few up.
These are all good options. I like the 5 gallon bucket method. Not new, there are many videos showing this method. At the bottom lower side drill a hole in a 5 gallon bucket large enough to put the male end of the extension cord thru. Then put a heavy piece of flat concrete such as a paver in the bottom of the bucket for stability. Start pulling the cord into the bucket. The bucket will hold several hundred feet of cord!! When using just grab the end and take off! You can run with it if you like, it will come out of bucket smoothly. When done just pull it back into bucket as fast as you want.
I enjoy your channel and great info. Thanks!
It’s all about the next time you use it. Thumbs up 👍
Now, do you have a trick for wrapping strings of Christmas lights ! 🤣
Best way I know of is to use spools. Christmas lights are just another animal 🤣
The Roadie Wrap is a winner!
Many yrars ago, I volunteered at a local public access studio and as one might guess at the time on a studio floor there were a lot of heavy-duty electrical cables were used for the cameras, mics, lighting, etc. One technique we used was very similar to the "over-under" method you used. Except one method we used was an "untwisting" motion of the cable by untwisting the cord with the tips of our fingers as we made the loops. When one makes loops with electrical cord, the looping will cause the metal wires inside to twist. One can often feel that when looping the cable. If one twists back on the resistance of the wires inside twisting one can unwind the twisting as one is looping. It's twisted wire that causes the tangles and knots.
Need to try these for winding cords. I use the cable cuffs for keeping cords together, like that they have different sizes for even 6' cords
Great demos. I usually use method 2 - toss it in the truck or bin with no bundling device, no worries. I use method 3 for stacking a garden hose into a decorative storage tub. For extension cords using method 3, you can just use the end of the cord to wrap 2-3 times & then use the very end to push a bight of cord thru the formed top loop, and flip then bight back over the stacked loop end & tighten - no separate bundling device.
Great video.
Thank you so much I appreciate your help I always have issues with my extension cords and I take pride and trying that take care of them but the wrapping part makes them warp lol So this will help Thanks and I love all your videos very informative information that's explained excellent
You are very welcome! Really glad to hear it was helpful. Thank you so much for the feedback Mark!
A Navy diver taught me the last one, over/under, and I use it for air compressor hoses and garden hoses. Been kink-free for 40 yrs.
I’ve work in construction for 30 years and I was taught by my grandfather to use a lasso technique starting at the female end first, because when you unwind the cord you’ll plug it in and you’ll be at you work instead of having to walk back to your work, saving steps and time.
The last method is the method I use, for the same reason you do. Roadies do it that way, and I thought that is a profession that would know the best way. I'm in commercial HVAC, and it has never disappointed me.
Game changer! Thanks a bunch.
You are very welcome! Really glad to hear it was helpful. Thanks a lot for the feedback!
Good video! For the first OR last technique, create loops until there is about a foot of chord remaining. Then, rotate the loops until the plug you started with is just above/below 3 or 9 o'clock. You can then grab the other plug with your free hand and wrap the remaining foot of chord around the loops snugly-as-possible, and join the plugs together. With a little practice, you will have a tight bundle and will not need to wrap it with velcro. Hope this helps!
I've got cords that are 20 yrs. Old I use them every day they are in good shape with no kinks because someone taught your method many yrs. Ago
Thank you!!!
I was taught to roll the cord when wrapping (I’m a musician). This works great for. 20ft cord, but it’s been killing me with our longest speaker cable (40ft). Endless knots. Spent 20mins after the gig last night untangling.
Now going to use the under/ over technique going forward. Practiced it a few times this morning, works perfectly
Excellent and thank you❤
You are very welcome! Really glad to hear it was helpful. Thanks a lot for the feedback!
Great tips, I've always done the first way but will try the last way.
You won't go back!
Great job!🤗🙏
Really glad to hear you liked it! Thanks a lot for the feedback!
The problem with method 2 (daisy chain/crochet stitch) is many small radius bends. I’ve found if you do this with a 12 gauge cord and it sits in a 15 degree truck overnight you end up with something like a slinky.
Good video, with a unknown issue. The Ratchet Extension Cord Clamps can not hold up to a drop and hate the cold as they become very brittle. so if you will never throw your cords or subject them to cold temps (32 deg F or less) you should be fine. The velcro straps is a wise choice in any temp.
I don't use any kind of wrapping of electric cords. The best thing is cord reels available at any hardware store. Christmas tree lights are best stored on the inexpensive reels.
I like the 4 one over under one
THANKS
I used to do audio/visual work for a large hotel resort and they used that last technique for cord handling. They called it rodeo wrapping.
Ive never had a cord tangle like you showed in the first example.
My technique would be similar to that however i loop about twice the length each time so fewer loops.
WOW! Genius! Looks like you took lessons in knitting and crocheting and applied it to cords. Would these methods work for tree lights as well? Hugh problem solver!
Great video
Really glad to hear it was helpful. Thanks a lot for the feedback!
Thanks for the detailed explanation and slowness of showing the techniques.
For a person that's detailed oriented and very concerned about doing it right, I'm surprised to see the ends of the cord separated by pulling the cord apart by grabbing the *cord* (10:49) versus grabbing the female and male plugs. Sure, the plugs are firmly attached to the cord, but why weaken that joint. Many a plug has been replaced because of cord-mishandling.
I worked in TV and film industry... The last way was the standard for wrapping any cable no matter the size or material... Fiberoptic, coax, you name it, the over under technique is the way to go
I’m a theatre person and we use do the last one too.
There’s an art to art 😊
Awesome
Good vid. Now do a fair vid using a $5 cord reel. Every potential problem you noted is solved and no unwrapping, unplugging, throwing, backtracking to plug in, re-backtracking to other end to use.
Plug it in, walk away unspooling cord, plug in other end and use. When done, unplug and reel it up.
Cherry on top, I sore 8 spools of various length cords and several pig tails in one Rubbermaid tote. Never missing, never tangled and out of sight when people want to borrow an extention cord.
Those ratchet handles work great for reusable grocery bags also.
Daisy chain is always good.
One things about it, you can't mess it up. Appreciate the input!
Loveit!!!
Really glad to hear it was helpful. Thanks a lot for the feedback Lewis!
I like to buy the reels the let you manually spin a wheel to roll up the cord on a tidy reel. I leave the male end on the outside end to easily plug in where I need to. Then just unwind it enough to bring the female end to where it needs to go.
Seems like another solid way. Thanks for the input!
All those tight loops is a great way to break the wires
😂…oh you’re actually serious. No, that’s not going to happen.
and yet it has@@HowToHomeDIY
I always use that last method. I call it the “over-under” method and make sure anyone “helping” me put away my cords or air lines knows that’s how I want it. One of the best features of that method is that one or both ends of the cord can be left plugged in as there is no net twist when it is coiled. The only downside to the over-under method is if the held end is accidentally pulled through the coil as it is tossed out to deploy. You will end up with a long series of overhand knots. I always check to ensure it’s going to uncoil correctly before I commit to the toss!
I've used the over under method for 40 yrs. Hoses, cords, wire, you name it. My method is a bitt different than yours but never ever a kinked air or water hose. Once you learn it, it's hard to do it the old way.
OH come on now! We all know fully well that cords get tangled up when the lights go off and little Gremlins sneak in to tangle them up. COME ON NOW!
ROFL
😁😅😂🤣👍
j/k
Shhh don't tell anyone that they actually exist 🤣 If they don't I know for a fact sock gremlins exist. Can never find all of my socks!
I've done quite a bit of electrical and cord management has always been a peave of mine. I use the second method. I don't remember where I learned it, but it separates the men from the boys on the job site. I like the 3rd method, but my overall results are mixed.
The reason stage hands do that is because they handle audio cable, which gets damaged when you introduce twists or tight bends. Works great for hoses, too.
I personally use the climbing cord method, but if cable is dirty... meh. Thank you, I now know the ladder method ;)
Yeah that can cause quite the mess!
My dad was an electrician. I can’t wait to see him in heaven and ask him why the hell he never showed me this.
I hold the cord in my left hand and as I coil it I roll the wire between my fingers so the loops stay flat. The last five feet or so (depending on the coil size) I weave in and out of the coil to complete the final loop/s. This usually doesn't need velcro straps, but I find myself using them more often for opened rolls of romex. An extension cord (or wire for that matter) that lays flat is less of a hazard.
I wrap all of my cables in 3rd way. I find that cables do form a memory, and that it helps to always start with the same end everytime.
Yeah it is great! Thanks for the input!
please show best manner with 12/3
Yup we do the over under in the entertainment business and when we are coiling cable in a box we call it west coasting
Yeah, works extremely well! Thanks for the input Danny!
All good ideas (thank you) but I've found the best way is to use a plastic, rectangular wrap. They're especially good for lesser-quality cords that twist.
As someone who has worked with pro audio equipment for over 40 years, your last method can also be referred to as cross-coiling, or over/under. To help remember which loop you're currently on, we would repeat this little mantra, "OVERworked, and UNDERpaid." There is a caveat to cross-coiling, if you pull the wrong end through the middle, every loop becomes a knot, so do be certain which end is up.
I wonder if the over/under method works with garden hoses.
It does.
I don't double my cords, because I almost never need the female end to be close to the male end. but I do the finish from method one - (I double the last 6 feet of the male end over to make the loop) then the loop can hang over a hook, or it can slide over the top of the bundle to secure it lying on the floor. then i just stand by the power outlet and throw the cord to where I need it.
The real issue with the elbow wrap is that the cord gets forced into a bad position and retains the resulting figure eight kinks. I have cords that are 20 plus years old and the unfold perfectly straight every time. They only have one kink at the end because I wrap and tie a simple knot to secure the end.
I was in bands for years and attempted to learn the over/under but never got the hang of it. I just lay mine out straight and spin the cord a bit with every loop.
I use the last method
Yeah it is great! Thanks for the input!
Sounds good when it’s cold that wire is really stiff to bend it’s a pain.
Remember the final way by”overworked and under paid “ when you switch your hand around.
I like that!
Buy a couple of Bucket Winders.
Better to just get the $5 orange HD reel and use the hole hack. Stores neat, never tangles, has a handle for easy transport, and you can only unwind as much as u need
Oh why don't I just buy the cord holder so I can wrap it up and keep it even nicer
You’re telling me for 40yrs 😂
Ain’t no way 😂
I usually do my cords this way. However, I have NEVER had one tangle like you showed. I guess I was just lucky. I will start using your last example. Just sayin'.
These options should be referred to as the contortionist way to store a cord.
For the people who can afford to buy velcro.
Check out hospital garbage depots on a regular basis and be very nice to the staff you come across. If they are cool, the will probably be VERY unhappy with how much stuff gets thrown out by hospitals.
If you tell them you are into reUSING stuff for home projects and to help out neighbours, they are often very happy to see stuff diverted from landfill. It pays to get to know names, just in case you get harassed by a Karen.
Velcro is often used to hold down washable coverings on chairs. Most hospital furniture is tossed out regularly to prevent deep contamination becoming a problem. ANYTHING used in a hospital is heavy duty because of liability issues. All you need is box cutting knife to cut it off the edges of the lining, and a shopping bag to collect it.
ALWAYS leave the depot cleaner than you found it. I go out of my way to pick up anything lying about.
Always keep some hand sanitiser in your kit.
Problem with the 2nd method is that the cord after only a few months will not be very clean straight anymore... Once uncoiled.
Damn, seeing this after I just put all mine away :(
Dang it! I was trying to get this out in time for folks cleaning up their Christmas decorations.
I'd be pissed if I came home and my cords were like that. I find the twist that is 'naturally'in the wire, and make about 12 inch loops. Doesn't force the cord into a twist it doesn't want to be in.
Over under is the only acceptable answer. You do it weird though, use your holding hand face up. Always start from the male end.
The reason this is the only acceptable answer is, when you go to use it you hold onto the male end and can throw the cable out to unwind it entirely without tangling. Or if you only need a little, plug the male end in and lay the coil female side up to unspool just as much as you need.
I recommend tie line for the cable. Useful stuff to have, just tie a piece to your preferred end and leave it on the cable.
It doesn’t matter which side. One end will be on top and one on the bottom. If you want one or the other it will unravel just the same. And there are different ways of doing it, it’s not weird, just different than you.
That's the way roadies roll up cables so if one goes bad while the band is playing or they need another cable fast they can just throw it across the stage.
the secret is BIG loops. the smaller the loops, the more the cord will have a memory of those loops. it's why I quit daisy chaining.
Wait...what ? We are supposed to wrap up the cords ?
I mean, you are definitely free to to with them what you please haha
The final method is nice but is confusing for right handed people. Watch it in a mirror.
This is years old mate.
Cool. Not everyone knows. Glad you do.
Of course the link takes you to your store where you can never find anything. How about a link to the item.
There are links to all of the individual items.
153_🧐👍🇺🇸🇮🇱✝️
I absolutely hate the hand through the loop.
The last one is right but you still not doing it right , cause your hand let go every time you loop it again ! Is the way you start it when you are doing WRONG 🤷🏽♂️🫡🫢
I let go to try and illustrate exactly what I was doing.
I’m an electrician in the entertainment industry and your last procedure for wrapping the cord is correct except for one thing. You always start from the male end because Cable is engineered to spool clockwise from the male end that will take all your twists out.