How to Control Your Cords

Cord management is one of the trickiest issues that we face in all of our spaces. It’s difficult to keep cords tidy but still accessible and useful, especially as our spaces become even more multi-use than they once were. Controlling your cords and keeping them from controlling you can be tackled in several ways. 

Define Your Cord Needs
We all live with dozens of different electronic devices across many spaces in our homes. Understanding what you need in each space will help you start to corral your cords. Every room will have different categories of cords: devices that need to stay plugged in, designated chargers for mobile devices, and chargers that move around. These will naturally be dynamic categories as needs change but recognizing that you might not need a charger for each of your various devices in every room can free you of a lot of cords! 

S.P.A.C.E. in Each Space
Every home that I’ve been to has a junk drawer, which often becomes the cord graveyard. Even if you’re taking on your cords one room at a time, we recommend collecting all the cords across your entire space to get an idea of how much you really have. Most devices come with chargers even if they are standard, so we end up with lots of duplicates that we don’t need. 

Once you have gathered all your loose cords and sorted them by type, take stock of what you need to keep. Most household devices require lightning, USB-C, or micro-USB cords to charge. If you aren’t sure what kind of cord your device needs, you can find most manuals on Manuals Library! Depending on the size of your household and your number of devices, it can be helpful to keep 3-5 spare cords of each type, or more if you would like to have varying lengths. Unneeded cords can be given away on your local Freecycle page or recycled at retail stores like Best Buy or Replay’d. 

Create Cord Land
You can create a designated space for cords in each space that needs them, or one repository for all cords in your space. We recommend keeping one common space for cords to help you keep track of what you need, especially when new devices enter the home. One organized drawer or container with all your cords will make dealing with your devices that much easier.

Helpful Products for Cord Management
Now that you have your unplugged cords contained and managed, you can work on your active cords. Every space is different, but we have some product recommendations for wrangling your cords across your home. 

Surge Protectors
Purchase surge protectors to protect your devices and to keep them tidy. We recommend purchasing those with flat plugs in a color that is most similar to your home baseboards to help them blend in. Surge protectors are a great way to keep your cords concentrated and hidden. You can also attach them to the underside or back of your counter, desk, or media center to keep them out of sight. If you can’t hide your surge protector, a Cable Box can help you disguise it.  

To keep yourself organized in spaces with many cords plugged in, we recommend labeling your active cords so that you can easily unplug and replug as needed. You can do this with washi or painters tape, or pick up some Label Tags. 

Cord Containment
If you have many cords coming out of your surge protectors, you can choose from a variety of products to hold them together. Basic zip ties are very affordable, velcro zip ties are reusable and easily adjustable, cable sleeves quickly contain a mess of cords, and cord clips are great for snaking cords around windows or other barriers. If you have earbuds that aren’t cordless, these Cord Wraps keep them neat and tidy from avoid getting tangled.

Floor Cords
There are lots of reasons why you may need to have a cord across the floor, but it is important to protect the cord (and yourself) from damage. There are a huge number of options for this that have a range of permanence. You can purchase floor cord protectors for long term cord protection. A more temporary solution is gaffer tape, which comes in a wide variety of colors and can easily be moved or adjusted. 

Other Products 
For cords that need to go up a wall, buy a paintable wire cover.

To keep your cords accessible on your desk or other surface, try out adhesive cord holders.

Don’t get discouraged when you start to see your cords jutting out around your house and furniture. There are so many ways to conceal them and make them more organized! Take a photo of your before and after and tag us @TLDBoston. We love to see your DIY projects!