How To Fix A Zipper Yourself – It Is Possible!

It’s important to know how to fix a zipper yourself as it will be face-saving in some circumstances. because, almost every dress, jacket, skirt, and pair of trousers in your wardrobe has a zip. Fixing a broken zipper isn’t straightforward but rather the most awkward fashion piece to repair because, the more you try and move the slider up and down (in various states of distress), the more broken the zip can often become.

We can give our dress or bag to a fashion designer to fix our zipper when we’re not in a hurry or say we aren’t going to use it immediately. What if you’re on your way out and your dress or bag suddenly breaks, you want a quick and simple solution. How are you going to do it? With the simple home tools discussed here, you can fix your zipper on your own.

Zippers do not just go loose or break without a reason. But before that, let’s make sure we know the names of each part of a zip (including the teeth, slider, and puller) so the guidelines for how to fix a broken zipper are as clear as possible.

Fix A Zipper That Separates Or Comes Undone After Fastening.

Use Pliers

Is your zipper all functioning well until you fasten it and all the teeth come undone? If so, the problem is the slider (the piece that’s meant to lock the teeth together). As you wear your dress steadily and use the zipper, these sliders start to loosen and gape, which makes them less effective at fixing the teeth in place. While you can take your clothing to a fashion designer to replace the entire zipper, there is a simple, more affordable hack you can try first because you can’t just spend a dime on something you could probably fix in the comfort of your home.

To fix a broken zipper with this issue, while the slider is still attached to your clothes, get a pair of pliers. The part of the slider that attaches to the puller (on the outwards facing side of the cloth), is known as the top plate. While the part of the slider that faces the inwards side of the clothing is called the bottom plate. With the tweezers, pinch the top and bottom plate together which will help restore the slider to its original form before going loose. An easy way to gauge whether the pliers are working is to check that the gap between the two places (where the teeth live) is getting smaller.

While fixing your zipper with the plier, don’t press too hard at once because too much pressure can break the slider. Press the plier gradually while compressing the plates on either side of the puller until it’s right.

Grab a Screwdriver

What if one or both sides of the slider come off the track? You don’t need to replace the zipper; you only need the slider to be reattached. To do this, first, find the ‘bottom’ of the zip. The bottom of the zip is the end that is closest to the floor when you’re wearing the dress. If you can’t fathom the right side, look for the end part with a square tab of fabric after the zip finishes.

Once you have gotten the end, feed the teeth from that end into the slider. You can also use a flathead screwdriver If you need extra leverage to push the teeth into place. Once the teeth are inside the slider as they should be, now, use the puller to move it up and down the track to lock it in place.

Fix a Stuck Zipper

Use Tweezers

You need to confirm that nothing is blocking the zip path like another cloth, even rogue fibers. If any, remove these obstructions by hand before retrying the zip.

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If this object won’t move, then try removing it with a pair of tweezers to slowly pull the blockage out of the teeth. Sometimes wiggling the puller gently up and down as you tug on the slider can also help remove tougher items.

Use a Pencil or Washing-up Liquid

If a pair of tweezers couldn’t pull it out because it’s so strong where it stuck and will probably damage your zip if you try pulling it with force, then try using a pencil to coat the teeth surrounding the lodge with a light coating of graphite – this will act as a lubricant to help give it a smooth run. If this doesn’t work, try a small amount of washing-up liquid, to further aid the slider to move up and down the teeth.

Try Vaseline

So, the pencil and washing-up liquid didn’t remove the stuck item? Then try Vaseline if you’re not worried, they might stain your clothing. Get a cotton bud, coating the outside of the bud with a tip of Vaseline. Then, use the cotton bud to work the jelly into the teeth surrounding the stoppage. With this, you can remove any smaller items that may be stuck in the zip.

Fix A Zipper That Is Missing Teeth

If your zipper teeth are missing, it won’t be easy to fix at home. You can check out a fashion designer nearer to you to repair this specific issue. In the meantime, read further to see our quick fixes until you have time to get to the alterations shop.

Fix A Zipper That Won’t Stay Up

Use Pliers

If your zip keeps falling, its either the teeth have either been dislodged or worn out. You should inspect the zip itself to see if any of the teeth are simply out of alignment. If so, get a set of pliers and gently bend the rogue teeth back into position. But, if they all appear to be in the correct place, move on to the next step.

Try Nail Polish

If your zipper teeth have the word out from too much use, a hack that might work is painting the teeth with clear nail polish. This will thicken the teeth and help restore the zip to its former working glory. If the zip still doesn’t fasten after your first coat of polish it might be worth trying another coat or two.

Note: make sure you allow enough time for each layer to dry properly before going in over the top with another coat, otherwise the teeth will become sticky and rough.

Quick Fixes For A Zipper

Use a Paper Clip

If all the steps above couldn’t fix your zip, you might need to replace the zipper entirely. Until then, a short-term fix involves feeding a paper clip into this loop on the slider:

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And hook the other side of the paper clip over the button or clasp at the top of the zipper to hold the whole zip in place.

Or a Safety Pin

You can also use a safety pin to fix a zipper, simple pin either side of the zip closed, like this:

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These solutions are temporary and you should take your jeans, dress, or bag to a fashion designer to change the zip or get it repaired.

To prevent your zipper from breaking again, remember:

Don’t Yank It

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To avoid breaking your zipper make sure you don’t use too much force to fasten it. Instead, use steady, consistent pulls to guide the sliders up and down the zip. If they should get stuck, don’t force it to slide rather release it gently and observe the cause of why it stopped.

Make Sure The Zip is Not Under Too Much Pressure

If you’re trying to fasten a bag that’s too big or jeans that are too small, the zip may buckle when there’s too much pressure and force the teeth to pull apart. The hack here is to avoid forcing the zip.

When you face significant resistance when sliding the zipper, there’s a possibility that after fastening the zip, the zip might still break. Instead, reduce the load in your bag and fasten it again.

Now you should be able to fix a zipper yourself with our go-to tips and hacks for fixing a broken zipper.