More Random Chatter from the counter at the Duct Tape Diner

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Post Surgery Running Bra I am an avid runner and I have run daily for the past 15 years since I quit smoking. Not only do I enjoy the physical benefits of running to stay in shape, but I also enjoy the psychological benefits of mood elevation and stress relief. Running was never more critical for me than when I was diagnosed with breast cancer this past year. Fortunately, I had a lumpectomy but after my surgery I remained very stressed because I couldn't run until my surgical wounds healed. There were no post-surgical running bras. Then I remembered the duct tape that I had recently purchased to temporarily hold the side mirror onto the door of my daughter's car until repaired. Could it work? With a little duct tape I tailor-made a support over the top of my running bra each day until I healed. And because I had already purchased the see clear duct tape it was also very discreet. Thanks to duct tape I missed only two days of running after my surgery and I was able to participate in The Susan G. Koman 5K Race for The Cure in Louisville, Ky. - Denise Mott

Christmas Tree on the Cheap I had a great use for duct tape one Christmas. I was looking to save money on a live Christmas tree and asked the salesman for his cheapest tree over 6 feet tall. He took me to the side of his shed and showed me a tree broken in half with the two pieces held together with a strand of bark. I bought the tree for $5.00, took it home and duct taped it back together. The tree looked great the whole season with the added bonus of the duct tape decorated trunk. - Jim Zellner

Doo Doo Don't Stick...
Last Halloween I was home alone, telescope star gazing in the back yard whilst listening for the Halloweenies to ring the door bell. Halloween style lighting in the house between the back door and the front door caused me not to see what I was tracking in the house each trip. I saw it in the morning when I let the dog out in the daylight. Even though I was vigilantly wiping my feet, the traction bottoms of my tennies kept some dog poop - giving me eleven unique poop marks on the carpet. Who needs all that traction most days - and most tennies have traction kinda bottoms to collect dried grass and stuff. My wife is much happier now that I've got Duct Tape traction covers. Me, too. - Yours Truly, Tucson Ted
PS. I'm all set for Curling, too.

A Gift of New Knees Being a carpenter, my pants quickly develop holes in the knees, which I cover with criss-crossed pieces of duct tape. Early one cold winter morning when entering the lumberyard store, the crew greeted me with a roll of warm duct tape for my pants. They got a big laugh out of their action. I simply took them up on their offer, mended my pants, and laughed with them -- a great way to start a day! - Jery W., Eureka, Montana

Tape over the mouth Usually withheld for a comment about wive's or kid's mouths by husbands and/or parents, the Lenny Bruce's audio compilation has used the duct tape over the mouth idea for the cover of their collection (seen at Barnes and Noble).

Duct Tape Suits Him At my retirement party, family members could not resist the chance to emphasize my affection for the stuff. They awarded me with a dress suit completely covered with duct tape from top to bottom, including the shirt, tie, jacket, and pants. To accomplish this feat, four rolls of duct tape were required. The suit came with a lifetime guarantee, plus a roll of duct tape for any necessary repairs. I think this requires some sort of special recognition for the extraordinary use of duct tape, let alone the skill and time required to accomplish it. - Jack C.

College Drinkin' Aid College party use of duct tape... The idea is, if you’re attached to your bottle, you need to finish it before you can go to the bathroom. If you’re really hard-core, you duct tape two bottles to yourself, one to each hand. So yeah, there’s me, attempting to prove how hard-core I am by taping myself to my drink, which I managed to finish, earning the respect of my peers in the process. It’s stupid, but it’s kind of fun to see who can do it and who can’t. - jess And, if you've had too much, duct tape your car keys to the ceiling so you aren't tempted to drive while tipsy.

Favorite Jacket
+ Worn Cuffs
+ Duct Tape
= Favorite Jacket
Restored
Matt, much to the chagrin of his wife, keeps wearing his favorite jacket - despite worn cuffs. Two bands of classic black duct tape did the trick and gave the jacket a few more years of use.

ACE Vacuum Repair I'm a night janitor here at the only high school, and our floor vacuum's motor broke down, meaning we've had to send it away for at least 3 weeks. In the meantime, we only have wet-dry vacuums without beater bar attachments. Someone found an old beater bar which plugs in directly to the wet-dry vac to supply it power, and the hose from the wet-dry vac fits perfectly onto the hose from the beater bar with duct tape. The power cord from the beater bar is also duct-taped every 6 inches to each hose to reduce tangling, and since the end of the beater bar was too light, it kept doing pop-a-wheelies on me when I was trying to run it across the floor, so I grabbed a 3-hole puncher from a nearby counter in the library, duct-taped it to the top, and it went perfectly. - Ryan, Maple Creek, SK, Canada

Duct Tape Frame Job During a recent home show in Buffalo, New York, the resident picture framer, Walt, showed his creativity and duct tape prowise when asked by an attendee to frame the Duct Tape Guys' autograph photo. We think the duct tape matting compliments the oak frame quite nicely. Nice job, Walt!

Katrina Story I'm down here in New Orleans (I LIVED in the eastern part). Before the storm I had tape everywhere. I always keep a roll in my truck, my friends have often referred to me as "the duct tape lady." When I had to evacuate to Denham Springs, LA to my girlfriend's house, I brought my tape with me. My daughter has a black 1993 Ford Escort GT hatchback. She and her boyfriend had to evacuate to Arkansas and live in a camp ground area for almost three weeks. When they finally got back home they got in a fight and he threw a rock which hit the hatch. The glass shattered but didn't fall out. The glass with defroster coils alone will run about $900.00. We can't find a spare hatch at any junk yards because all cars have to be crushed so no flooded cars are sold. Needless to say, we cannot afford $900 for new glass so my daughter (like her mother) got some black ducttape and taped the hatch so the window would not fall out. It actually looks pretty good!! This was more than 3 months ago and it is still holding strong. I wish I could get it fixed for her but there just isn't x-tra money around this area and no junk yards. So ducttape will have to do. I am a true believer in ducttape. I work for attorneys and I can't tell you the ways to use it around here! - Lynn B.

Duct Tape: Prototyping Tool (above) is a photo of a working prototype of an Internet-based pet treat dispenser I invented. The first working model relied heavily on duct tape as you can see. This gizmo allows me to give my dogs treats while I'm away from home. - Gary

Tatoo People call me duct tape for several reasons but it started back in junior high when i was uh...lil more developed than the other girls on the soccer team and used to duct tape the "girls" down so they'd stay out of my way and its been with me ever since. I'm 22 now, and 6 months ago I got my Duct Tape Tattoo. we had to use a mixture of battle ship gray and stone gray to get the right shade but I think it worked out fabulous. anyway thats my retardo story though you'd have a good laugh. love the calendars by the way...i keep two round the house and one at work. - Liana Laugh, nothin! We're duly impressed! - Jim and Tim


Duct Tape on the Wagon This is "The Wagon" it's made with 3 shoeboxes, a skateboard, a plastic bag, and a lot of duct tape. I put drinks in the middle part with the plastic bag in it so the drinks will stay cool. On the cover to the middle part on the outside there is a little box for putting a video game or a couple CD for when I bring it to my friends house. The side parts of "The Wagon" open and close using folded over duct tape. I will usually put a small bag of chips, some candy, a role of duct tape, and other things inside. On the top "The Wagon" is written in blue tape. This was all built on a duct tape covered skateboard so I can wheel it wherever it needs to go. - Chris S-R., St. Albans, Vermont

Duct Tape Desk Repair One of my teachers told me she had a broken desk and she new exactly who would have a roll of duct tape to fix it. The desk never looked better! - Emilio B.

Toothpaste Tube Fix Don't you hate trying to squeeze toothpaste out of an almost empty tube? I taped the rolled up tube to avoid the pesky re-rolling. - Matt L., Millville, PA

Airplane Repair
I am a pilot and used to fly regularly. I was exiting my tie down at Dulles and since just getting from the tie down to the run way is the most difficult navigating I am going to do for the whole trip I have my airport map out and am watching it more than I should have. I clip the nose of a parked Piper Chieftain. I am only about 2" into the nose, but that is enough to take out their weather radar antenna/dish. I tear off the plastic ends to my wing.

Long story short, I leave my aircraft at Dulles to be repaired and fly home. When I get back I call the guys who owned the aircraft I hit to be sure my insurance company had contacted them. I asked they what it cost to get it fixed. When they told me I was surprised. FBOs at airports like Dulles are not close to reasonable - their cost of repair was damn reasonable. They said that was because the duct taped the nose and flew it back to TEXAS!!! - Dave S., New Albany, IN

Caleb's wart removal system Covering a stuborn wart with duct tape not only protects it, but kills the wart. A week or so being smothered under the silvery wonder tape and Caleb will be wart-free. His dog whole-heartedly endorses the method of treatment. A follow-up report from mom Amber says, "It worked!"

Another Wart Removal Endorsement Every user wishing to remove a wart should know this! After much trial and error, I have found that DUCK brand duct tape sticks to the skin better and longer than 3M brand duct tape. - Dan S., Midland, Michigan

Dishwasher Repair Somehow, someway, the plastic water feed line on the top rack of my dishwashing machine got a hole in it. Instead of wasting money by buying a new one and going through the hassle of replacing it -- three or four strips of duct tape wrapped around the plastic pipe has worked just fine. It isn't water tight, but it is good enough to clean the top rack. And the dishes smelled like duct tape for the first couple of washings! - Gus Miller, Clemmons, NC - Maybe you have something there, Gus - duct tape scented dish washing soap! Thanks for the note.

Got Craft?
Michael's stores nationwide feature Duck brand colored duct tape. So, if you are making a purse, wallet, prom gown or just fixing your rusted out vehicle, Michael's is a good source to turn to for your colored Duct Tape. You can also go to our "Where to Buy" page for other stores.

Rock and Roll Tape On Friday March 10, 2006 as I was watching a concert by Rhonda Vincent & The Rage at the Douglass Theater in Macon, Georgia, and Duct Tape became part of the show. During the first song Rhonda's microphone went out. She moved over to the next microphone and finished the song. The band moved the non working microphone from the center of the stage to the far right of the stage. After the second song while Rhonda was speaking to the audience, Josh Williams (guitar player) started working on the microphone. While he was fixing the microphone, Hunter Berry (fiddle player) ask the audience " Does any one have some duct tape?". Well that drew a large laughter from everyone. I sure wish I had taken my duct tape to the concert. That would have been "A Duct Tape Moment". - Billy


Duct Tape Idle Screw Fix Last year a good friend bought me your calendar for a Christmas present. Little did I know how helpfull it would be. The same friend had a turn of bad luck with a car accident a very long way from home we had to trailer the car back but not without duct taping the trailer light back together and the wireing harness back together after being pulled over by one of New Hampshire's finest. It also came in handy to bind the chains together in sub zero weather.....at night......on a mountain....in the wind. But wait we still aren't to the end yet she got another friends car and the ignition switch had broken (sorry no fix for that) when she received it back from the dealer it would constantly stall so I popped the hood and tried to fix it but the idle screw could not be adjusted, I told her sorry and was about to send her on her way when SHE suggested - yep you guessed it - good ole duct tape. Now it purrs like a kitten and the gun metal grey matches the aluminum nicely. (see photo above). - Mark

Fishing with Duct Tape I just retrieved the metal piece from a floppy disk which had come off inside the computer and was hoplessly stuck. The solution was to duct tape the sticky side out wrapped around the blade of a plastic knife. Success! - Mike F.

Schedule Management What do you do to make a little schedule (above) easier to read? Carolee (the Duct Tape Guys' favorite talent escort) simply duct taped over everything that wasn't pertenate to the Duct Tape Guys. Good thinkin' Carolee!

Duct Tape Desk Repair Josh of Dearborn, MI fixed his worn desk edges with duct tape. Nice look!

CactusAid A friend from a website I frequent told me about your great website after a comment I made in a discussion topic concerning removing pesky cactus needles from a woman's backside. I had had a couple of rogue splinters in the soft part of my palm that I could see but couldn't get to. After it took a razorblade, a pair of pointy tweezers and a lot of cussing to get just one little one out I tried putting a little little piece of duct tape over the area so I could keep woriking and ended up leaving it for an hour or so. When I peeled it off, most of the splinters came with it. The others had to work their way closer to the surface before another piece worked on them. - Lin-Z F., EL Paso, TX


Car Remote kept setting off alarm To keep his key-fob remote from setting off his car's alarm, Tom turned to duct tape. A simple strip over the touchy button and Tom was no longer inadvertantly waking up his neighbors.

Wife Pleaser My wife was recently freaking out over an unruly wet-wipe container. Realizing that the lid itself was hopeless, I instinctively reached for the duct tape. After taping the lid closed, I heard a phrase I had never heard before, nor had I ever expected it. "Thanks, you're a great fix-it husband." - Peter von H., Decatur, GA


Duct Tape at the Miss America Pageant
Rob G. found this on the CNN.com site (AP photo) Adrienne Rosel, Miss Kansas, poses for a photo Thursday as she enters the dressing room during rehearsal for the 2006 Miss America Pageant at the Aladdin Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. It seems duct tape now helps to preserve the virtue of Miss America contestants, as well!

The Duct Tape Demolition Dude Leroy uses duct tape when doing remodeling demolition to seal off ductwork, drains and pipes - keeping them free from debris.

Pocket Patch Everyone knows how annoying it is to have holes at the bottom of your pockets. For some unknown reason, it seems like I always manage to put my valuable items in the bad pocket. Why just today I had a pencil, pen, and my car/room keys through that dreadful opening. I suppose the best answer to my problem would be to sow the hole shut. However, I don‚t own a sowing machine and I certainly am not going to go out and spend hundreds of dollars on one of these machines just to fix a cheap pair of pants. This is where duct tape comes into play. Just invert the pockets and place a piece of duct tape over hole and the pockets are as good as new. - Andy Overy

Another use for duct tape on the farm:
Huge Tom Turkey while mating with the Hen, pulled off the right side of her breast with his claws, it was just hanging down.  After cleaning her up and spraying with medicine here comes the duct tape. This happened a couple of days ago and the Hen, though confined, is walking around now.  Duct tape still keeping her together.  We are keeping our fingers crossed. - Toni


Gettin' Jiggy With It Grove from Floral Park, NY came up with great use for duct tape - to fix a broken plate on the bottom of his jig saw, the fix also make his jig saw glide effortlessly over the object he was cutting (paneling - which, with the fix, didn't splinter at all). Kind of like a silicone-coated sled. Good thinkin', Grove!

Table Resurfacer A photo of a table that i re-topped with duct tape. the other top was leather and was all moldy from the fish tank that i did have on the top. - Matthew A., Redding, CT

Ridin' with Duct Tape I keep a downsized spool of 4 inch wide duct tape in the saddlebag of my Harley, aside of many obvious practical uses, I find the 4 inch wide tape makes excellent instant chaps, when there's unforeseen weather changes. - Carrie

Blister Preventer I'm a figure skater, and I would get horrible blisters in the same places every single year. Practicing for hours with blisters on your feet is very uncomfortable. I would get blisters year after year, and it would take a few weeks for me feet to toughen up. I tried to put bandaids on my feet, but they would never stick. My grandfather suggested that I use duct tape. Now I swear by this, it's been years since I've started doing this and I haven't gotten a blister since. I suggested the idea to a bunch of my friends, and now they all duct tapes their feet before they skate. Great performances have been possible because of duct tape. - Melissa