This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Could a cheap roll of duct tape help protect your home from flooding? New research suggests it could make a surprisingly big difference.
In controlled tests, correctly applied duct tape on the outside of a household door reduced water leakage by 97%–98%. The findings suggest that a simple, low-cost measure could substantially reduce the amount of water entering a home during a flood. This is important because one of the key lessons from flood resilience research is that the best time to protect a property is before floodwater arrives.
The U.K. government's 2025 FloodReady Review called for practical, affordable measures that help households understand their risks and prepare for flooding. And one potential contribution to this agenda might sound unlikely at first glance. Duct tape is more commonly associated with household repairs than flood protection.
However, tests colleagues and I conducted at the University of Hull demonstrated how much water can enter a property through an unprotected doorway during a flood. Inside our laboratory, we tested modern wooden, uPVC and composite household doors, installed by trade professionals. We captured any water that leaked through the door in a sealed enclosure behind it as we increased water depth in 5 cm (2 inches) increments to a maximum depth of 60 cm (24 inches).
We pumped out any water that leaked through the door and continuously measured the rate of water leakage to evaluate the performance of doors and different types of protection applied to them. When testing sandbags, we stacked 54 sandbags with plastic sheeting between the door and the sandbags. For tape, the same person applied the tape for all tests to minimize any bias.
It took about 10–20 minutes to apply the tape to each door. For unprotected doors, leakage often reached thousands of liters per hour at a water depth of 60 cm (24 inches). Applying duct tape across the exterior door reduced that leakage by 97%–98%.
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