Coil an Extension Cord Into a Tangle-Free Bundle With a Built-In Hanging Loop

The Problem

An extension cord looped over an arm and dumped on a shelf welds itself into knots, and a cord coiled in tight same-direction circles builds twist that kinks it on payout.

The Technique

1. Take both ends of the cord — plug and receptacle — in one hand. You're coiling the cord doubled, which halves the passes.
2. Loop the doubled cord into your other hand, using a figure-8 motion, and keep making the same loop all the way down the cord.
3. Stop when about three feet of doubled cord remain.
4. Wrap that tail a few turns around the whole bundle, then bring it through the loops at the top.

The wrapped tail cinches the coil so it can't spill, and the last pass through the top leaves a loop that hangs on any hook or nail. To use the cord, pull the tail back out and the coil pays off without a knot in it — the figure-8 puts opposite twists in alternate loops, so they cancel as the cord straightens.