11 Things to Do with Coat Hangers
Updated: Oct. 04, 2018
Are those old wire hangers in your closet gathering more dust than coats? Make them useful again whenever you do caulking jobs, hang plants, paint, and more!
Stop caulk-tube ooze
To prevent caulk from oozing from the tube once the job is done, cut a 7.5-centimetre piece of coat hanger wire; shape one end into a hook and insert the other, straight end into the tube. Now you can easily pull out the stopper as needed.
Secure a soldering iron
Keeping a hot soldering iron from rolling away and burning something on your workbench is a real problem. To solve this, just twist a wire coat hanger into a holder for the iron to rest in. To make the holder, simply bend an ordinary coat hanger in half to form a large “V.” Then bend each half in half so that the entire piece is shaped like a “W.”
Extend your reach
Can’t reach that utensil that has fallen behind the refrigerator or stove? Try straightening a wire coat hanger (except for the hook at the end), and use it to fish for the object.
Make a giant bubble wand
Kids will love to make giant bubbles with a homemade bubble wand fashioned from a wire coat hanger. Shape the hanger into a hoop with a handle and dip it into a bucket filled with 1 part liquid dishwashing detergent in 2 parts water. Add a few drops of food colouring to make the bubbles more visible.
Create arts and crafts
Make mobiles for the kids’ room using wire coat hangers; paint them in bright colours. Or use hangers to make wings and other accessories for costumes.
Unclog toilets and vacuum cleaners
If your toilet is clogged by a foreign object, fish out the culprit with a straightened wire coat hanger. Use a straightened hanger to unclog a jammed vacuum cleaner hose.
Make a mini-greenhouse
To convert a window box into a mini-greenhouse, bend three or four lengths of coat hanger wire into U’s and place the ends into the soil. Punch small holes in a dry-cleaning bag and wrap it around the box before putting it back in the window.
Hang a plant
Wrap a straightened wire coat hanger around a 15- to 20-centimetre flowerpot, just below the lip; twist it back on itself to secure it, then hang.
Make plant markers
Need some waterproof marks for your outdoor plants? Cut up little signs from a milk jug or similar rigid but easy-to-cut plastic. Write the name of the plant with an indelible marker. Cut short stakes from wire hangers. Make two small slits in each marker and pass the wire stakes through the slits. Neither rain nor sprinkler will obscure your signs.
Make a paint can holder
When you are up on a ladder painting your house, one hand is holding while the other is painting. How do you hold the paint can? Grab a pair of wire snips and cut the hook plus 2.5 centimetres of wire from a wire hanger. Use a pair of pliers to twist the hook and wire firmly around the handle of your paint can. Now you have a handy hanger.
Light a hard-to-reach pilot light
The pilot light has gone out way inside your stove or furnace. You’d rather not risk a burn by lighting a match and sticking your hand all the way in there. Instead, open up a wire hanger and tape the match to one end. Strike the match and use the hanger to reach the pilot.
