Honestly, nobody has ever presumed that flying a flag can be problematic. I mean, it might look super easy, but it’s not until you fathom the techniques.
Speaking of this, one of the biggest problems that most of the flag flyers encounter is when the flag slides down the pole instead of staying steady.
And to get past this occurrence, there are few tricks that you can perform. Initially, keeping your flag from misplacing refers to securing the flag or making the grip stronger and firmer around the pole.
Hence, to help you do that today, we will learn how to keep the flag from sliding down the pole. Let’s get in!
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Before proceeding to the main topic, I would like to enlighten you with some crucial facts.
So, basically, there are few common mistakes that dummy flag flyers make while hoisting the flag.
And these fumbles also affect your flag’s stability. For instance, when you leave the flagpole halyard too loose, the flag wraps around the pole instead of flying.
On the flip hand, when you don’t have a halyard to fly your flag and choose flagpole clips or snap hooks, you may let the hooks untighten.
As a result, the flag doesn’t get adhered to the flagpole properly, and it causes sliding or falling apart. During every season and atmosphere, your flag must keep flying regardless of the wind intensity.
Thus, security measures exist to prevent these complexities, such as;
- While flying an American flag along with multiple other flags, make sure you keep the American one on top.
- Always fly the American flags on the taller poles if there are different flags to be hoisted.
- Avoid hanging the flag upside down.
- Use cleats and knots to secure the flagpole halyard so that it doesn’t come off or fall apart.
- Refrain yourself from letting the flag touching the surface.
- If it’s not necessary, don’t hoist the flag in unpleasant weather.
- Check the flag flying guidelines of your region before you do so. In some regions, flying flags after dark is prohibited.
- Replace the rope if it’s torn up or damaged.
- Consider using grommeted flags for easier installing as well as better steadiness.
How to Keep Flag from Sliding Down Pole – Step by Step Guide
Here, I will tell you how you can prevent your flags from slipping down the pole step by step;
Step 1: Flag Hoisting
The very first thing is to hoist your flag in a proper way. And in order to do that, you have to follow these tricks:
- Take the halyard from the cleat at the bottom of the pole.
- Separate the two halves, making sure there’s no twist.
- Tie a small loop in one end of the halyard about the size of your thumb.
- Then take the toggle on your flag and pass it across the loop that you just have created.
- Now, work down the headband until it gets to the tail line.
- Tie the tail tight to the downhaul end of the halyard.
- Put the ends together and tie a simple overhand knot to secure them.
Here, this gentle tug will ensure keeping the knot tight and secured. Now, pull the rope while controlling the downhaul rope to hoist your flag up to the top without flying too far from the pole.
Step 2: Securing the Rope
After hoisting the flags, you can’t let the rope free or exposed.
It will affect the overall balance, and thus your flag will come sliding down the pole.
To keep the rope in place, you can cleat it off. So, here all you need to do is to,
- Take the upper rope first.
- Pass it around the cleat attached to your flagpole priorly. However, if your flagpole doesn’t have any cleat, you can attach it anyway by drilling down some simple holes and shoving the screws tightly.
- While passing the rope around the cleat, do a full turn and repeat the same step with the downhaul rope. Make sure there’s plenty of tension.
- Do a couple of figure-of-eight turns, and on the final turn, put a twist in it so that it locks in place.
- With the leftover rope, you can spin it or coil it and neatly trap it behind the halyard on the back of the flagpole.
And you are done! That will secure the rope as well as your flag from sliding down the pole. The cleats keep the rope straight and stiff so that the flag flies ideally without facing too far from the pole.
Hence, it not only deters sloppiness, sudden glides, and falls but also ensures flying at an accurate posture.
End Quote
So that’s how you can keep your flags from falling apart. Here, using the cleat is paramount.
However, if you want to consider using something else rather than cleats, it’s totally understandable.
In this regard, you can use grommeted flags and flag hanging clips or snap hooks that are used to hoist flags outside residences.
Well, the final result might not overwhelm you as it’s pretty basic, and the grip won’t be better than moderate. But if you crave perfection, then using the cleats is the way to go!