In our recent video, my sidekick Lil’ Chu struggles with those tangled cables found in almost every home and office. Below I provide details on how to wrangle those tangles.
Untangle, Sort, Categorize
- Carefully untangle and unravel the cords. Put aside any broken or damaged cables and place them into an electronics waste pile. Please do not put them in the trash.
- Group cords of the same type together: USB-2.0, USB-C, Apple Thunderbolt, extension cords, etc.
Find Homes for Your Cables
- Set aside the cables you need to use frequently. For example, you may want a phone charging cable and a USB cord near your computer.
- It’s a good idea to keep one or two spare cables of each type if one breaks (or the cat chews through it).
- Decide on a storage area for your less frequently used and spare cables.
Label, Organize, and Store
- Label your cords. As we mentioned in the video, bread bag tags make “cheap and cheerful” labels. You can also use Washi tape, a label maker, or pre-printed labels.
- Use terms like “Linda’s phone cable” for the ones you use frequently. For cords in storage, describe them as “USB 2.0” because they could serve several purposes.
- Wind cords carefully to protect them from becoming tangled again. As we show in the video, you can use Velcro® cable ties or cable clips to keep cords tidy.
- Store cables in an accessories organizer, plastic shoe-box-sized bin, or even zipper-seal bags.
Hide Them Away
If you have messy cables behind your computer or media centre, consider a cable management solution, as we showed in the video. There are various kinds, including those that attach under your desk, sit on the floor or desk, or contain pieces to conceal unsightly cables along walls.
If you want ideas and tips to deal with those tangled cables or need other organizing solutions, contact the Out of Chaos team through our website.
Many thanks to the video production team!
- Dusty of Color Sound Lab
- Tara Travis Voice Artist
- Danielle Turner of Velvet Pumpkin Productions
Video Transcript
Linda: Lil’ Chu, what do you have in your hands?
Lil’ Chu: Oh, just so many cables!
Linda: More cables again! Isn’t that in every home? So, my three solutions: first of all, you need to bundle them, you have to tag it, and then you gotta hide it away! So. let’s get started here. To bundle, you have products like this: whether they’re Velcro® or you have sort of bundling apparatuses. One other thing is to tag it – a simple thing, such as these bread ties we all have these in our homes.
Lil’ Chu: Oh yeah!
Linda: Label the bread ties and you can tag your cables. Or you have items that are pre-purchased that already have the labels on them. And lastly, it’s “hide them away” in the products that you see here so no one can find them.
Lil’ Chu: Amazing!
Linda: Let’s get started!
Lil’ Chu: Yeah totally!
Linda: What colour do you want?
