Does It Work? Mighty Fixit

A leaky faucet, a broken vacuum hose, a frayed electrical chord, whatever bind you're in,  there's a tape that promises to repair just about any hole or tear.

It's called the Mighty Fixit.  But does it really work?

We put it to the test.

The commercial says it's "the easy way to fix seal and repair virtually anything fast and make it last."

The Mighty Fixit, a self-fusing silicone wrap, promises to create "an air and watertight seal in seconds."

Handyman John Runciman has fixed more leaks than he cares to remember.  He assembled just the right equipment to help us find out if the tape maker's claims "stick."

To test the product we have several different types of plumbing and a hose to see if the tape works under high pressure, medium pressure and low pressure.

First up, the air hose.  John already had a leaky one thanks to some fellow workers.

"They threw a board off with a nail and it landed right through my new hose," he says.

After a tight wrap he says "I'm impressed, i don't have to go buy another hose now."

But a few seconds later we hear the screeching sound of air leaking..

Ouch!

Not a perfect fix but Runciman is quick to acknowledge, at 70 pounds per square inch,  the air compressor is a pretty intense pressure.

So let's take it down a notch and test the water pipes, after all the commercial says:

"Use it to fix a leaky pipe without calling a plumber."

Runciman begins by wrapping the plastic pex pipe with the water still running, like in the commercial, but unlike the add, the leak never really stops.  

First, a slow drip.  Then, only 3 minutes later one pop after another.  The tape doesn't hold at 55 pounds per second, the standard pressure for indoor plumbing.  

Maybe that's why the written directions advise "on in-house or high water pressure, should only be used as temporary fix."  We asked the mighty fixit distributors why the commercial never says that.

They told us "the tape has been tested through two independent laboratories and the results verify all claims made on TV," said Brad Specter with Natures Pillows Inc.

But the news isn't all bad for the Mighty Fixit.

The tape holds much better for the straight copper pipe, even though it's the same amount of pressure.  After 25 minutes, there may be a little bulge, but no break.

Leading Runciman to conclude:

"If you apply it right and you can get into a place to where you can physically pull it tight enough to do this then it probably will work."

The S-shape pipe proved the opposite is true. 

"I'm not finding it as easy as he makes it look on the commercial," he said.

When you can't get a good stretch around a curvy pipe the mighty fixit is mighty unreliable.

Still with a little learning curve on the application, and at least one straight pipe mended, Runciman thinks "for a homeowner who is in a jam, this would work for you."

But this handyman adds, it's still only a temporary fix.

The Mighty Fixit is available online and is sold at the As Seen On TV Store in Greenville for about $20 dollars.  The store says it's one of their most popular items.

OTHER CLAIMS

We also tested the other claims in the commercial.

The tape definitely held up to the fire test.  compared to the electrical tape, the Mighty Fixit was virtually unchanged.  And it seemed to mend a broken branch just as well as the add claims.

But when it comes to being as strong as steal, our handyman proved human strength is enough to break the tape, though the more surface area connected, the stronger the hold.