Cable tie

A cable tie or tie-wrap, also known as a hose tie, zip tie, zap strap, or Panduit strap, is a type of fastener, for holding items together, primarily electric cables or wires. Because of their low cost and ease of use, tie-wraps are ubiquitous, finding use in a wide range of other applications. Stainless steel versions, either naked or coated with a rugged plastic, cater for exterior applications and hazardous environments.

The common tie-wrap, normally made of nylon, has a flexible tape section with teeth that engage with a pawl in the head to form a ratchet so that as the free end of the tape section is pulled the tie-wrap tightens and does not come undone. Some ties include a tab that can be depressed to release the ratchet so that the tie can be loosened or removed, and possibly reused.

The most common cable tie consists of a flexible nylon tape with an integrated gear rack, and on one end a ratchet within a small open case. Once the pointed tip of the cable tie has been pulled through the case and past the ratchet, it is prevented from being pulled back; the resulting loop may only be pulled tighter. This allows several cables to be bound together into a cable bundle and/or to form a cable tree.

A cable tie tensioning device or tool may be used to apply a cable tie with a specific degree of tension. The tool may cut off the extra tail flush with the head in order to avoid a sharp edge which might otherwise cause injury.

In order to increase resistance to ultraviolet light in outdoor applications nylon containing a minimum of 2% carbon black is used to protect the polymer chains and extend the cable tie's service life. Blue cable ties are supplied to the food industry and contain a metal additive so they can be detected by industrial metal detectors. Cable ties made of ETFE (Tefzel) are used in radiation-rich environments. Red cable ties made of ECTFE (Halar) are used for plenum cabling.

There are self-locking loops, based on the construction of the traditional cable tie, designed for surgery. The device (LigaTie®) is intended for ligation purposes and enabled a shortened duration of surgery. By compressing tissue haemorrhage is prevented. The same material is used as in surgical suture (resorbable polymers), therefore the implant can be left in the body where after the material is resorbed by the tissue.

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Wikipedia