extension cord winding

[bracconiere]

so, i thought i'd ask how all of roll AND unroll an extension cord? i swear nothing know how to tangle in my head like an extension cord!

 

[DBhomebrew]

I'm a stagehand, I coil cable for a living. Over under, my friend. Over, under.

 

[Malticulous]

Good cold weather cords are expensive.

 

[bracconiere]

guess i'll have to do some research on that...i got a 100' cord....

 

[bracconiere]

so at this point, i need a new extension cord don't i?

 

[bracconiere]

 

[Malticulous]

IDK. What do you do with your cord? Most thermal plastic cords are junk.

 

[bracconiere]

just to finish off my results, and @DBhomebrew can i do the same with arm thing, but just reverse my hand every other turn?

 

[bracconiere]

IDK. What do you do with your cord? Most thermal plastic cords are junk.

various things, it's a generic extension cord...i think over under sounds like the solution, just seems like it'd be time consuming for 100' cord...or now that i think about it maybe not? if isn't twisting wouldn't need the elbow to make it worse?

 

[DBhomebrew]

arm thing,

Do not, DO NOT coil a cable over your arm. That's the #1 cause of twisted cables.

 

[Brewsmith]

I'm a stagehand, I coil cable for a living. Over under, my friend. Over, under.

I’m a musician and music teacher. Over and under for me as well.

 

[bracconiere]

Do not, DO NOT coil a cable over your arm. That's the #1 cause of twisted cables.

i'm starting to realize that...at this point i've done it so many times with this cord, i think i should just buy a new cable now, and leason learned! Thanks Very Much!

 

[bracconiere]

Do not, DO NOT coil a cable over your arm. That's the #1 cause of twisted cables.

but if i do it with the reverse hand palm every other turn, wouldn't it be the same thing? but i did get to thinking, just in the hand if doesn't start binding up probably wouldn't need the arm anyway, and it'd be just as fast?

 

[DBhomebrew]

It'll be a bit slow as you learn, but you can get pretty quick. If the cable gets too heavy in your hand, you can put it on the floor and continue building on top.

but if i do it with the reverse hand palm every other turn, wouldn't it be the same thing?

Nope

 

[Brewsmith]

but if i do it with the reverse hand palm every other turn, wouldn't it be the same thing? but i did get to thinking, just in the hand if doesn't start binding up probably wouldn't need the arm anyway, and it'd be just as fast?

No. The reversing of the coil every wind cancels out the twist when you unroll it, resulting in no net twist

 

[bracconiere]

No. The reversing of the coil every wind cancels out the twist when you unroll it, resulting in no net twist

so i'd have to twist then put on my arm, and pull taught?

 

[Brewsmith]

It'll be a bit slow as you learn, but you can get pretty quick. If the cable gets too heavy in your hand, you can put it on the floor and continue building on top.

This works for garden hoses and air compressor hoses fantastically

 

[Brewsmith]

so i'd have to twist then put on my arm, and pull taught?

It doesn’t have to be on your arm. In your hands or on the floor is more likely. The idea is that you can pull an end of the cord away from the coil and the result is no twist. You can leave the coil in a pile on the floor and just run the end to wherever you need it

 

[Red over White]

This is an option, a $9 100' reel that allows you to pull off just enough and plug in. One hole with a forstner bit makes it practical.

 

[IslandLizard]

This is an option, a $9 100' reel that allows you to pull off just enough and plug in.

No-no-no!!!
Never operate an extension cord coiled up on a spool, it will generate heat and may even melt. Unless you only use it at a small fraction of its rated capacity.

 

[seatazzz]

HBT. The only forum where I have seen an entire thread dedicated to how to properly wind extension cords. And learned that I've been doing it wrong all these years. Thanks HBT!!

 

[Red over White]

No-no-no!!!
Never operate an extension cord coiled up on a spool, it will generate heat and may even melt. Unless you only use it at a small fraction of its rated capacity.

Damn it Jim! This joker must have been built on a Wednesday then. I have used it daily for years with a Taski 175 floor machine at various lengths and it's never melted. SHHH! Don't tell the lady from OSHA.

 

[bracconiere]

HBT. The only forum where I have seen an entire thread dedicated to how to properly wind extension cords. And learned that I've been doing it wrong all these years. Thanks HBT!!

and to think i was just going to google it, but thought it'd be more fun to ask a bar full of BYOB'ers!

 

[DBhomebrew]

Before you start coiling, extend your cable all the way across the floor in a straight line. As you coil, the floor's friction will give something to pull taught and straight against.

If you really want to coil over over, the floor will help drag each turn's 1/4 twist through the cable and out the end.

 

[z-bob]

Every 3 or 4 turns I cross over and wrap the other direction. It's kinda like wrapping in a figure 8 pattern except I don't cross on every wrap. The twists cancel out when you open it up; you can almost just hold one end and throw the coil and it will unwrap, almost.

 

[bracconiere]

Every 3 or 4 turns I cross over and wrap the other direction. It's kinda like wrapping in a figure 8 pattern except I don't cross on every wrap. The twists cancel out when you open it up; you can almost just hold one end and throw the coil and it will unwrap, almost.

huh, i'm so glad i had human beings to ask this to then a AI!

but wouldn't that still shorten the life of the cable?

 

[khannon]

Twist the wire opposite directions each coil.. Always. I guess excepting the 3-9ft cords. The coils edit:winders are OK if you pull them all the way out every time.
I suppose I have never tried the chain sinnet of coiling rope though(kind of like the way grain bags are sealed.. pull one end and it coils out nicely, like it ever works..)

 

[bracconiere]

Twist the wire opposite directions each coil.. Always. I guess excepting the 3-9ft cords. The coils edit:winders are OK if you pull them all the way out every time.
I suppose I have never tried the chain sinnet of coiling rope though(kind of like the way grain bags are sealed.. pull one end and it coils out nicely, like it ever works..)

my brother tried teaching me that one, i just was clueless and stuck with hand and elbow......

 

[Zambezi Special]

I do the same with ropes as electric cables
Stretch in front of me, loop, stretch, loop etc
Difficult to put in words, but was thought this as a little kid while sailing. Lots of ropes on a sailing boat
Alternatively, just make a frame, and loop your cable around it. Take it off when you use it (as said above)
Or a cable on a spool and spool off totally when using

 

[hottpeper13]

I'm with the stretch in front and loop,starting with the male end so you can take the coiled cord to the work and uncoil one loop at a time walking to the source, lay the rest down and plug in.
Funny story, I'm left handed and the worst for a cord is to be wrapped both ways(it'll make knots) so on the job I had 3 rules:
1-you can use my extension cords but I put them away
2- you can't love your job as much as I,and finally
3- If you see a pretty girl you better let me know
Pretty easy to work with eh?
I agree with the uncoil a tight loop as it becomes a magnet and melts the casing. I set my dad up with 300 feet on a hose real for his new lawn mower and told him how to use it UNCOILED, of course dads don't listen and the first 100 foot cord was melted to itself so much I had to cut it off.