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Many (mis)uses of tape
These uses have not been approved by the author of this article and have in almost every situation failed to live up to the hopes and expectations of their installer. The manufacturer might cringe at the sight. Not even a trained professional is capable of pulling off the following repairs with tape. The following is for the express purpose of entertaining the reader – and reminding you that MacGyver was a fictional TV character!
(mis) Use No. 1
Use tape to repair the leaking downspout near the front door. Interestingly, the gutters and downspouts were copper and looked beautiful. There is no product more durable or expensive on the market for gutters. I imagine this repair worked for 10-15 minutes before the leaks returned.
(mis) Use No. 2
Use tape to repair the leak under your kitchen sink at the drain. This just hides a problem and will give you a false sense of security. Even if this was to reinforce the connection, it tells us home inspectors that something is wrong. While this is called “duck” tape, it is not water proof tape. Water will work its way around the tape and cause issues.
(mis) Use No. 3
(Related to No. 2) If duct tape is not water proof it is worth studying the physical qualities of vinyl electrical tape. After all, parents use it to re-wrap tennis rackets, baseball bats, repair broken reading glasses and super soakers. Let me fast forward to the outcome… this was actually working but not for long.
(mis) Use No. 4
Use tape to hold a loose light fixture in place. It was hardly noticeable at first glance because of a fresh coat of paint. However, tape adhesive has a limited life and soon pulls apart and this was happening here. This light cover was just a slight nudge from falling. This was a repair in a “flipped” house. No further comment.
