If duct tape has thousands of uses than chances are its junk drawer companion and skinny little cousin the zip-tie does as well. Two things I wish I would have invented.
The electrical company of Thomas & Betts invented the zip-tie in 1958 to help neatly secure wires in airplanes. Today the slender piece of plastic with its ratcheting toothy edge goes by several different names like the hose tie, zip tie or tie wrap. Whatever you choose to call it is irrelevant; the number of ways you can use them is relevant. Today they come in a variety of colors, sizes, lengths and strengths and are made of steel or plastic and the best part is these little do-it-all doo-dads are pretty inexpensive which makes them even more ideal for the home prepper.
A Few of the Endless Things You Can do with Zip Ties
- Bundle wires or cables
- Secure containers or baskets in place
- Car Repair
- Arts and Crafts
- Organizing
- Handcuffs
- Loop several together to form a strong chain
- Instant lock, great for child proofing cabinets, gun cases and other items
- Use with tags to create ID tags for tools, luggage, gifts and more
- Tie down for tarps and tents
- Securely bundle garden or air hoses
- Home Security
- Household repairs
- Make hinge for gates or doors
- Use in the garden to gently secure plants to stakes
Help us, and your fellow preppers build out the list. Give us your best uses for zip ties in the comment section.
[lisa] 
How ’bout “belts for da Bangers”? You ever wonder how so many of ’em carry guns, but can’t keep their pants up?
I’d like to add a little to this: with tie wraps and carabineers you can do almost anything but it helps to have a good, smell pair of side cutters in your stash to cut the tie wraps. They can be tough to cut even with a good knife.
Guys, one word of caution, the article contains very good advice.. however you might not want to carry duct tape and zip ties big enough to be used as handcuffs together in your car or truck as part of a bug-out bag or survival kit… keep them in separate locations. Reason: It might save you from having awkward moments with the police some day. If you should ever have the police search your vehicle for any reason… they might have concern that you have what they consider as being a possible ‘rape kit’. Rapist have been known to use large zip ties to quickly restrain and duct tape to silence their victims. In this day & age, you just can’t be too careful. There are some cops out there who don’t have a lick of common sense and would find you guilty until proven innocent… like in NY & CA to name a few places.
Thanks GWO I will take your word for the booby trap suggestion. Also excellent idea re: earthquake safety. Thanks for sharing.
Well I’m not going to tell you how, but if you have any Imagination, they will make a wonderful booby trap, and lets be clear, not to harm, but to “DETER”.Just make sure you use the right colors, & the sky is the limit. You can even make them like a trip wire, as you can determine, the break away pounds, and not even have them locked completely in. I’m happy someone has taken the time to put this out ,for people who do not know. As with anything, don’t harm, but scare them, they wont be back, that is unless they are, completely stupid, but they are out there also!!! Then it’s like Million dollar man, bigger stronger, faster…Thank You, G.W.O. PS: If you live in the earthquake zone, they are wonderful ,for securing almost anything you do not wish to fall and do serious harm to children , adults , and pets….