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Ask any DIY expert if they have duct tape stocked at home. Chances are that you are going to get an absolute “Yes, of course!” answer.
Developed and introduced back in World War II, duct tape, which is also referred to as “duck tape”, has been sort of the fix-it-all solution for any kind of problem that needs repair.
Being water-proof and resilient, this versatile tape should be in every survivalist bug-out bag as it can serve a wide array of uses. Designed to be ripped by hand and not cut with scissors, duct tape can be used as an instant repair solution to numerous SHTF situations that you may encounter.
In fact, the highest form of endorsement regarding the versatility of duct tape for emergency situations comes from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) engineers and astronauts as they have always stowed duct tape on every space mission since the start of the space program. NASA even used duct tape to repair a damaged fender on the lunar rover during the Apollo 17 lunar mission.
If NASA trusts duct tape, then why shouldn’t you.
Every time you try to fix something with duct tape, just remember this old saying:
If you can’t fix it with duct tape, you have not used enough!
With that, here are the 16 uses of duct tape that every hard core survivalist must know as compiled by our awesome friends at MyFamilySurvivalPlan.com:
- Fix a tear in your tent. If you have to sleep outdoors, in a tent, you’re going to want to conserve heat any way you can. In which case, tears and/or a broken zipper are your worst enemies. Luckily, all you need is some duct tape to cover the holes inside and out, for double protection.
- Fix your sleeping bag. A good rest is essential if you want to have the power and the focus to keep the battle for survival going. This means your sleeping bag needs to be in good shape. To keep it that way, you can seal tears and holes with duct tape and make sure you don’t lose the feathers in it.
- Fix your water bottle. Wrap it all up in duct tape and you can forget about leaks. Every drop of water is crucial when you’re trying to survive, so any patch work will do.
- Fix your clothing. Yes, duct tape can repair pretty much everything, even the clothes you’re wearing. If you’ve got a rip or tear in your shirt, your skin gets exposed to scratches, blisters, burns and freezing cold. To protect yourself from these accidents, cover the tear with duct tape on the inside and on the outside. And since we’re on it, did you know that you can …
- Add insulation to your clothes and shoes. This is one of the greatest things about duct tape. You can’t just fix things, but also prevent them. If you want to keep yourself warm in cold weather, patch you clothes with duct tape on the inside. This way, your body heat will be sealed inside your clothes. The same way goes with shoes. Stick some duct tape inside them (sticky side down) and you’ll stop losing heat through the soles.
- Make emergency repairs on your car. It’s not ideal, but when you’ve got nothing else on hand, duct tape will do. It can temporarily repair leaking hoses, broken tail lights, and cracked windows.
- Fix broken windows. No, that doesn’t apply only to your car window. If you’re at home and your windows cracked in the middle of a snowstorm or a hurricane, duct tape can fix the problem for a short while. It can’t work miracles, but it can keep you from freezing.
- Make your own shelter. When you’ve got nowhere to sleep, you get creative. You’ll need some clothes, blankets, trash bags, carton boxes — or whatever else can keep you protected from wind and rain — and some duct tape.
- Attach shelter elements. Just a few trash bags and some duct tape, and you have a survival shelter roof, or a sleeping bag cover, or a wind break, or …
- Repair a broken tent pole or fishing pole. This is clearly an emergency solution and you’ll need a LOT of duct tape to make it work. But, after all, keeping your family warm and well fed for another day or night is important enough to try anything.
- Make a hat. Sunstroke must be avoided at all costs, so the best thing to do is to make yourself a hat from whatever you’ve got on hand. Duct tape and some cardboard and you can make a hat that will reflect the heat and keep you protected.
- Make a drinking cup. I don’t have any blueprints for making a drinking cup, but when you’ve got duct tape, you can make one with pretty much anything: paper, leaves, a carved piece of wood …
- Fix your glasses. If you wear glasses and you happened to misplace them at some point, then you know how important they are. Especially when it comes to emergency situations, even one hour without your glasses can bring your chances of survival close to zero. So why risk it? If you break your glasses, fix them with some duct tape.
- Reseal food packages. When it comes to survival, you can’t afford to lose any food at all. So if you’ve opened a package and haven’t eaten everything inside, you’ll need to keep the leftovers as fresh as possible. Use duct tape to seal up the package until the next meal.
- Reinforce knots. If you have duct tape, you don’t need to make perfect knots. Just reinforce them with duct tape, but make sure you’ve got a knife or scissors to cut it when you want to untie the knot.
- Start a fire. If you haven’t got anything else on hand, you can wad up a piece of duct tape and use it as a fire starter.
If you want to learn 14 additional uses of duct tape that every hard core survivalist must know, head over to our friends at MyFamilySurvivalPlan.com. It’s a great list for you to keep handy to remind you that duct tape is one of the most essential items you should have in your bug-out bag.
