How Twist-Ties Saved Me Thousands of Dollars in Repairs

Everybody goes on and on about duct tape. But no one pays any attention to twist ties. Like many people, I used to think twist ties are only helpful in the kitchen. I used them to secure garbage bags, seal up bags of food that are going into the freezer, or replace those ridiculously hard-to-use plastic tabs on bagel bags. Unassuming and often given away for free, twist ties are taken for granted.

It took a broken toilet to show me their amazing value.

In my early 20s, I shared a two-bedroom house with a roommate. Our rent was reasonable, but our landlord was not particularly responsive to our needs. When our toilet broke, we knew we were on our own.

My roommate, a savvy, hardworking woman from a small town in North Carolina, rolled up her sleeves, diagnosed the problem (broken chain), and secured the chain to the flapper with twist ties. You might think this fix was temporary, but no hardware store visit or repair call was ever needed.

I saw twist ties in a whole new light after that. I've used them to fix doors that won't stay shut, organize electrical cords, hang holiday decorations and fortify loose keychains. I also bring them with me when I travel. They are helpful when a zipper breaks on a jacket or duffel bag in addition to affixing luggage tags. Over the years twist ties have probably saved me thousands of dollars.

They literally keep my household together.

More importantly, they’ve secured my peace of mind. My roommate’s MacGyver moment taught me the value of self-reliance, and that there is hardly a household problem that twist ties can’t solve.

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