Summer is finally here! With this time of year comes the return of some of your favorite activities – gardening, hiking, outdoor work, and spring cleaning. When tackling these chores and lengthy to-do lists, there’s a secret weapon you should add to your arsenal – cable ties.
Cable ties are one of the most universal tools available. They can be used to hang, hold, attach, seal and bundle just about anything, making them the ideal of all the spring things you need to tend to. To help you work smarter and not harder, here are 35 ways zip ties can be used for spring things and spring cleaning.
1. Hang potted plants
Lengthen the hook on a hanging plant or make a hanging display out of ordinary potted plants. Zip ties can be strung together to make a loop of any length.
2. Secure tomato stems to their stakes or cages
To help your young tomato plants support their weight, loosely cable tie the stem to supporting cages or stakes to keep them upright.
3. Support sunflowers when they get too tall
Just like tomatoes, sunflowers can weigh themselves down as they grow taller. Loosely attaching them to stakes with cable ties can help them grow tall and strong!
4. Tie up Christmas lights for storing
You’ll thank us next December – bundle your Christmas lights in an untangled loop, and zip ties them on both ends of the loop. This will prevent the strand from tangling in storage.
5. Attach extra gear to a backpack on spring hikes
It’s finally time to get outside again, but finicky spring temperatures likely mean you need more gear. Use zip ties to secure or attach your extra gear and tools to your bag, saving you valuable space.
6. Seal up bags of driveway salt
If left unsealed, melting salt can actually go bad and therefore go to waste. To keep out moisture and prevent caking and mold, twist the top of the bag of driveway salt and wrap it tightly with a zip tie. This strong seal will keep it secure.
7. Seal dirt and soil bags used for planting
After you’ve planted for the season, you’ll need to secure your bags of planting soil to keep out bugs and moisture.
8. Hang up gardening tools
Don’t let that spring cleaning go to waste. Use zip ties to make loops on the ends of your gardening tools, so you can hang them up and de-clutter your space.
9. Replace broken weed whacker line
To get your yard looking perky this spring, make sure you whack those weeds. Did the line break? No problem! Zip ties act as a great replacement and are actually sturdier than traditional lines.
10. Tie together a flower arrangement
Keep that bouquet together and arranged perfectly – loosely tie a cable tie around the bundle to keep everything in place.
11. Keep the lids of storage bins attached
People lose the lids of their large storage bins all the time, but a zip tie can help keep things together. Some bins already have a hole punched in the handles and one end of the lid, perfect for looping a cable tie through. If your bin doesn’t have a punched hole, it’s very easy to add.
12. Organize wires inside or out
The original use of a zip tie was to bundle and organize wires, and you should too! Organize loose wires in the living room, office, or outside with a zip tie.
13. Hang springtime decorations – Easter, St Patrick’s Day, Memorial Day
Whether you like to hang eggs in trees for Easter, or you’re more into bunting for Memorial Day, zip ties are a great way to attach your decorations.
14. Train vines on a trellis
Using zip ties, you can guide a variety of vines and greenery up a trellis or post, giving your plants the shape you desire.
15. Attach labels to baskets for organization
During spring cleaning, many people will use baskets to organize various odds and ends around the house. To make accessing those baskets and items easier, affix labels or cards to the baskets using a zip tie.
16. Fix a fence
A quick fix for any type of fence, use zip ties to reinforce fencing or patch a hole that has worn over time.
17. Make a hanging herb garden with old cans
A great way to recycle your cans is to use them as mini-planters for an herb garden. To ensure they get enough sun, hang them from a curtain rod above a window. This can be done by punching two holes on opposite sides of the can and threading a zip tie through to make a handle.
18. Protect against bug bites
This might look funny, but keeping mosquitos and other pests away from ankles and out of pant legs when working outdoors does wonder. Simply zip-tie the ends of your pants tightly around your socks and ankles, preventing you from exposing any skin.
19. Clean up your workshop and hang tools
Most tools have a hole at the end of the handle, but do you know what these are for? This is a great place to loop a zip tie so you can easily hang and organize tools in the shed or garage.
20. Hold flashcards together to help study for final exams
For the students in the bunch – keep your notecards in the right order and readily available by loosely binding them with a zip tie. Simply punch a hole in each corner and add to the stack as you go.
21. Hang bug zappers
With spring comes bugs, and no one likes those pesky pests. To keep them at bay, hang bug zappers from the support posts on your porch, on a plant stake, or from a hook.
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22. Affix the patio cushions to your outdoor furniture
Many outdoor furniture cushions are waterproof and can withstand the elements, so keep them in place for the spring and summer with handy dandy zip ties!
23. Lock the safety handle on your lawnmower so your hands don’t get tired
This might sound dangerous, but not with releasable cable ties – which can be helpful tools for those long evenings of mowing.
24. Repair the chicken wire in your coop that was damaged in the winter
If snow has damaged your chicken wire, use a cable tie to attach a new piece, reinforce the pre-existing fencing or patch a hole.
25. Secure your outdoor dryer vent that was ripped off by the snow
A broken dryer vent can be incredibly dangerous, sometimes leading to fire. Secure your vent to the house with stainless steel zip ties that can withstand the weather and the heat.
26. Label your garden before it grows
To organize your garden and flower pots, use flag cable ties to identify the varieties you’ve planted.
27. Add trail markers when hiking, but make sure you pick them back up
As long as you collect them afterward, zip ties are a great way to mark your trail during spring hikes. Paths are often not worn down much and markings have faded in the winter, so cable tie markers can help you prevent them from getting lost.
28. Reattach netting to your outdoor equipment like soccer or basketball nets
You or the kiddos are likely itchings to get back outside to play, so shore up your equipment – such as basketball hoops or soccer nets – with nylon cable ties.
29. Make a DIY greenhouse to start planting early
This will require more than just cable ties, but homemade greenhouses are popular for those looking to get ahead of the planting season. To secure the frame and attach the plastic covering to the PVC support arches, use heavy-duty cable ties that can withstand the elements and cold.
30. Secure lights to your outdoor pergola
Edison bulbs are so in right now, but they can be a bit heavy to hang. If you’re looking to decorate your outdoor deck or pergola, use zip ties to reinforce the cables and their anchor points.
31. Pest-proof your garden fence
Deer, mice, and other rodents can get into your garden and undo all your hard work. Use cable ties to shore up your fencing and support taller fencing that will prevent the largest pests from getting in.
32. Make tomato cages
Premade tomato cages can be unnecessarily expensive – if you have some chicken wire and cable ties, you can easily assemble your own cages in no time.
33. Seal a leaky garden hose
If your hose connection is leaky at the spigot, a stainless-steel cable tie can help seal the leak until you have time to take a look at the larger problem.
34. Attach your clothespins bag to the line
To keep your clothespins within arm’s reach at all times, loop a zip tie through the clothespin bag and hang it on the line.
35. Seal storage bins that hold your winter clothes so bugs/moths can’t get in
To complete the transition from winter to spring, put away those heavy clothes and sweaters. Moths and critters do sometimes like to nest in wool sweaters, so to keep them out you can tightly seal and fasten the lids of your storage bins with zip ties.
No matter the season, cable ties are among the most versatile and affordable supplies to keep on hand for whatever job or project you need to accomplish.