Wind Thread Seal Tape Onto a Drill Bit to Tape Threads in Tight Spots

The Problem

Wrapping thread seal tape means passing the spool in a full circle around the fitting for every wrap. On a pipe stub recessed behind a wall plate, up under a sink, or crowded against other lines, there's no clearance for that orbit — the spool is too fat to make the trip, and trying anyway ends with loose, bunched tape on the threads.

The Technique

1. Wind off a working length of thread seal tape onto something slim and smooth — the shank of a 5/8" drill bit in this case, but a pencil or even your finger works.
2. Reach the bit into the tight spot, press the tape's free end onto the male threads, and orbit the bit around the fitting. The slim shank clears where the spool couldn't.
3. Wrap in the direction the mating fitting will screw on — clockwise as you face the open end of the pipe — keeping light tension so the tape pulls into the threads. Three or four wraps is plenty.
4. Pull the tape to snap it off and smooth the tail down with a finger.

What You'll Need

Thread seal (PTFE) tape and any slim, smooth rod — a drill bit shank, a pencil, a chopstick. Nothing else.