The main cause of valves becoming stuck is when they are opened fully and left there. The correct way is to open them fully and then close them half a turn or so.
This enables a little ‘wiggle’ room for the valve when it slowly becomes stuck again over the years. A valve stuck hard against the stops is very difficult to persuade to move again.
They always stick. Make sure you never leave them fully open.
On stuck valves I always use a penetrating lube the day before, WD40 or such like. Try a little gentle tapping around the valve with a timber stick at the same time as trying to ‘rock’ the valve back and forth.
Some valve designs have a gland nut which can be slightly loosened to relieve pressure on the seal/washer etc. Be prepared for some small weeping/leaking when the valve finally moves.
Use extra leverage like wrenches at your peril, you might get away with it or it could go horribly wrong…
Any water valve or stopcock stories that turned into nightmares when you couldn’t get them opened or closed? Feel free to share in the comments…
Stay well
Ian
Comments 4
I know this is an old post, but we used to use WD40 to soften the rubber on the rubber tyres for radio car control racing.
Although the rubber of o rings may be more chemically resistant, in our case it was definitely breaking down the rubber.
Author
Interesting that happened Martin! I suspect you’re right about the quality of the rubber. I’m noticing these days that all my medium sized tyres (read sack trucks, trolleys, wheelbarrows, etc.) are rubbish, more plastic than rubber. Some are perishing and falling apart after only 6 months!
The WD40 use has been a long running argument online for sure. I personally have seen no degradation using WD40.
The off road motorbike guys give their equipment some pretty serious stick, watch this for info… motorcyclistonline.com/will-wd-40-destroy-your-motorcycle-chain-o-rings/
They found no affect on the O rings, even after weeks of immersion.
Thanks for your thoughts Martin, thanks for dropping in 🙂
Ian
Using WD40 on taps & stopcocks is not always a good idea. The solvents in the can can rot the rubber O rings used in many taps.
Author
Hi Paul,
Thanks for your input Paul. Have you experienced WD40 rotting rubber though? It’s been my understanding that it is an urban myth and certainly the manufacturers of WD40 state that it is rubber safe (https://wd40.com/faqs). My own experiences with WD40 has not shown up any problems. Don’t forget WD40 is not a petrochemical, it’s actually based on a fish oil I believe.
Faced with a stuck stopcock I’d still give WD40 the go ahead.
Let me know if you disagree 🙂
Stay well and thanks again for reaching out,
Ian