Friday Tips, Tricks, and Tools

Okay, I don't have any pictures or pretty video here, but let me try in my own humble way to describe how this tip works.

Storing electrical cords (or any lengthy material, rope chain, cordage) without having to untangle them every time you need to utilize them.

I have a 100' extension cord that is a pain in the ass to wrap, and if I put it coiled over something, it never fails that I grab the wrong end, or it tangles and snarls into a 5' mess of knots.

I took a large plastic dry detergent tub, and cut a hole slightly larger than the diameter of the cord in the top and on the side near the bottom. I cut crossed lines through them to enable me to get the plug and socket ends through with a bit of force.

(I never said their wouldn't be diagrams!)

I pushed the plug end through the bottom hole from the inside, so that I could put the bucket near the electrical outlet, and I can pull it out and push it back fairly quickly. (I try not to pull it to far out, as the greater the length taken out, the more of a pain it is to shove back in!)

Then I pushed the socket end of the cord through the underside of the lid, and pulled the entire cord through. This left a section of cord going from the plug outside of the bucket on the bottom through the inside, and out the lid from the underside.

Place the lid securely on the plastic bucket, (gallon jug, empty bleach bottle, whatever, as long as its large enough to contain the length of the item) then shove the cord from the top into the bucket. The cord wraps itself in loops on the inside, and with the opposite end through the whole on the bottom, its almost impossible to tangle.

I use this constantly, and it doesn't take long to shove the cord back through the lid, and definitely saves time untangling the damn thing!

I've also got three bleach jugs full of paracord, with a knot outside the bottom end, that have never given me any trouble!