Can Sugru Fix Anything? My Honest Review
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Looking for a Sugru mouldable glue review? Here’s how I got on using this silicone to fix things in my home.
Have you heard of Sugru? Sugru is essentially a bit of self-curing silicone – available at Robert Dyas and Amazon.
It’s mouldable glue that you can use to repair or bond almost anything made of wood, plastic, glass, metal, ceramic, or even fabric! It’s even removable, in case you change your mind.
If you want to know more about how Sugru works and if it’s any good, I’ve tried it out and put my thoughts together in this review. Read on for what we fixed, how durable it is, and more.
Initial Thoughts On Sugru Mouldable Glue
When I first heard of Sugru, I thought, “Right, it’s just a bit of silicone, how good can that be?” But then I kept reading more and more about it.
I got quite excited reading about all the different things people had used Sugru mouldable glue to repair. From broken parts in fridges and freezers to fixing chips in your sink, leaking joints, and more, people were using it to fix all sorts of things.
I was in! We had a couple of things in our home that needed repair. So we took the plunge and ordered a three-pack of white Sugru. We then waited with bated breath for the post to arrive.
This is what came:
When it arrived, we thought “Oh, that’s not a lot of Sugru”. And to be honest, we felt a little disappointed and short-changed. It didn’t look like a lot of product, and we didn’t think it would go particularly far.
But then we got busy with it. And to put it very mildly, we were very pleasantly surprised by the adhesive. If my family weren’t probably reading this, then there might be expletives to describe just how surprised/amazed we were!
What We Fixed with Sugru
First, we repaired my partner’s laptop power supply, which was on its last legs. The wire had suffered wear from where it attached to the battery. We used Sugru to cover the wire, and that fixed our problem.
It would have cost us in the region of £40 to buy a new power supply, so this was £40 saved straight away.
Then there was enough Sugru left over to repair my partner’s drum stool. The stool folds up but lately had been folding up of its own accord, even when we didn’t want it to!
Now, thanks to some Sugru action, it can be sat on without fear! It would have been £140 to buy a new stool of similar quality, so that was quite a big saving.
We used quite a lot for that fix, as it has to bear weight, but there was still a tiny bit left over. You only get 30 minutes from when you open the Sugru until it starts to set, so you do have to act quickly!
Thinking fast on my feet, I made two little hooks for the inside of our bathroom cabinet. Now I hang my nail scissors and a bag containing hair baubles from it. Just a little organisational hack that makes life a bit easier.
We were so pleased with the results that we immediately bought another three-pack of silver Sugru.
That was used to fix a problem with our shower that was causing it to drip all night long. We had tried replacing the washer, but it seemed the problem was more intrinsic than that. There was possibly an issue with the actual screw fitting, which would need replacing. We are not particularly technical when it comes to anything to do with plumbing, so that job would have required a pro.
The silver Sugru did the job and blended in with the metalwork. We didn’t do the neatest job in the world with the Sugru – we figured it was better to be safe than sorry!
As well as saving our sanity, it would have cost us £50 in plumber call-out fees. It would then have cost us probably at least another £50 in parts and labour (maybe more) to repair the shower. That one pack seemed like an absolute bargain.
What We Saved In Total
I totted it all up, and I realised that just by spending £20 on what I originally dismissed as just a bit of silicon had actually saved us at least £280 in just one week. So £260, discounting the cost of the Sugru.
What’s more, the Sugru mouldable glue has diverted a few things from potentially going to landfill or needing to be recycled.
We still have two packs of silver Sugru left over. As such, I’m fervently eyeing everything up around the house to see what can be fixed. Next on my repair list is a broken pan lid, and then we’re saving the rest for future repairs or hacks.
But Is Sugru Eco-Friendly?
It wouldn’t be a review on Moral Fibres without looking into whether Sugru is made from eco-friendly materials or not.
I would say that Sugru in itself isn’t particularly eco-friendly as a standalone item. Sugru was upfront about this on its website, and it used to say (before being bought over by Tesa) that: “A small amount of Sugru can help to prolong the life of complex and large items, but in itself, as a material, it’s not particularly innovative from an environmental perspective”.
Sugru went on to explain that:
- Sugru is a silicone. It’s not petrochemical-based, but it’s not biodegradable.
- Sugru is manufactured in a low-energy, low-heat mixing process. However, this is not necessarily true of its raw ingredients.
- Sugru encourages using the minimum possible for the job, and using any left for other potential improvements.
I think it’s an upfront and honest look at the complexities of repairing an item, and the trade-offs that sometimes need to be made. As a nation, we throw away millions of items each year that could be repaired. Fewer than one in 10 people in the UK attempt to repair or restore items if they are broken. Imagine the impact if we all tried to repair an item rather than bin it.
My Final Thoughts
To conclude my review, I would say that Sugru Mouldable Glue is not the greenest product in the world.
However, I personally feel that, from a make-do-and-mend perspective, it’s a really handy product to have to hand. I think that anything that makes it easy for us to repair complex items without having to buy new ones should always be encouraged. This is just as well because I’m going to make sure I always have some Sugru to hand!
Have you used Sugru? What did you think of it? What have you fixed or made with it? And if I’ve inspired you to get fixing, then check out my handy guide to repairing clothes.
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I received a multi-pack of Sugru as a birthday present, which was great because I got to experiment with it a lot:
It doesn’t seem to take weight-bearing very well. My most successful men’s with it were repairing a pair of ear buds with it, and using it as the structural join parts on a wire-and-bead lamp shade I made. I may get some to reattach a piece of plastic that fell off the hatch of my car.
Ooh, good present!! Interesting to hear about weight bearing – on the drum stool it’s weight bearing and my partner sits on it quite a lot (he uses it as a work stool as well as drum stool) and so far so good (About 6 weeks in). He did use quite a fair bit of though on the seat – nearly two out of the three little packs so maybe that’s helping? I’d like to buy more to experiment with – might do a follow up post in 6 months!
Have to say, I’ve not been that impressed with Sugru. The three times I’ve mended items with it – an Ipad charger, a laundry basket and the plastic carrier on top of a metal water bottle – they’ve all broken fairly swiftly. I wouldn’t recommend it.
Oh no, sorry to hear that Andree. Our items are getting on for the 6 week mark of being repaired and are holding up really well – especially the drum stool which gets sat on quite a bit for prolonged periods (it’s multi-tasking and gets used as a desk chair as well!). My partner used quite a lot on the drum stool (nearly two out of three sachets) so maybe the key is to be generous with it?
Interesting read, I have been wondering about buying some to try and fix my winter boots -I’m going to take the plunge!
I did read that some people had used Sugru to fix their shoes!