During a recent hospital stay they had me wear a pair of non-slip sox as a fall protection. They were very uncomfortable. They had no heel and they were too short to even cover my ankles, and they wanted to slide down. I thought that with a pair of old sox and a tube of silicon seal I could do better.

I expected this to be a simple project that took less than ten minutes to complete. The silicon seal did not work and finding the right material turned out to be a more of a problem than I suspected. It took me four tries but I finally got it right. The steps below are about the different things I tried.

Step 1: First Try: Silicon Seal

Place your hand in the sock and paint stripes on the bottom with the silicon.

Let it dry.

They did not grip as well as the hospital issued sox.

Step 2: Second Try: E6000 Glue

E6000 is a good glue available at most hardware and craft stores. It dries semi hard and it should only be used in a well ventilated area.

They did not grip as well as the hospital issued sox.

Step 3: Third Try: ShoeGoo

Same as E6000, use only is a well ventilated area, did not grip as well as the hospital issued sox.

ShoeGoo is available at Ace hardware.

Step 4: Success at Last!

On my fourth try I got it right. Rubber cement is thinner and harder to apply than the other things I tried. It soaks into the sox and dries softer. The sox were more comfortable than the other tries and and provided as good traction as the hospital issued sox.

Use it only in a well ventilated area.