How to get rusted-up bolts/screws free with restricted access - help!

ilesmark said:

Any suggestions?

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Crow foot spanner.

Mottie said:

Crow foot spanner.

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Yep, that would probably have done it too. It's just irritating having to buy a tool for 1 use

ilesmark said:

Yep, that would probably have done it too. It's just irritating having to buy a tool for 1 use

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When I fitted my bath, I needed an adjustable tap wrench for just two turns of a nut. I bought one from B&Q along with a lot of other stuff. I didn’t remove the tag, tightened my nuts and took it back for a refund.

ilesmark said:

All - many thanks for the further suggestions, esp the wiresaw one - that might have got in between even if a hacksaw didn't.

I was loth to buy a basin wrench (or any tool) for a single use but luckily got lent one. But even then the access was bl00dy tight - would have been better off with the 8-in-1 tool! Why DO they design these things like this - I thought the air-suspended Citroens I used to drive were bad enough!

Kind regards, Mark

PS: And yes, if I'd known at the outset how it was going to go I would have paid someone!

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I've a few tools I've only ever used occasionally - but they can still pay for themselves. In your case, a few quid on a basin wrench is a no-brainer to me because sometimes, there's no better thing than the right tool for the job. You could also have bought a half-decent multi-tool for around £70, and it would still likely have cost you less overall than a plumbers bill for this job. Unlike the basin wrench, if you do much in the way of DIY, you'll probably find a multi-tool is a genuine investment and you'll wonder how you ever did without one. I've had my Bosch mains one for years and it gets used for all sorts. Pleased you sorted it.

ilesmark said:

Hi all
Am trying to fit a replacement bottom-entry flush valve in my toilet cistern - that's not the issue.
What IS the issue is that it's a close-coupled one (didn't even know what that meant before today!) and I have to get the cistern separated from the toilet bowl so i can unscrew the old valve assembly and replace it before reattaching the cistern to the bowl.

Here's the problem: the cistern is attached to the bowl by the 2 bolts/screws you can see circled red
in the photo BUT they are rusted solid plus the access, as you can see from the pics, is extremely limited. I have pulled away the rubber washers that were there originally, plus chewed away at the screw heads as best I can with pliers / claw hammer etc but the lack of access, plus the fear of cracking the ceramic cistern/bowl, means I'm currently stuffed. What to do?

HELP!

Mark

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Get a cordless multi tool with a metal cutting blade, much easier than a hacksaw

YorkshireMidge said:

I've a few tools I've only ever used occasionally - but they can still pay for themselves. In your case, a few quid on a basin wrench is a no-brainer to me because sometimes, there's no better thing than the right tool for the job.

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That's the way I look at tool purchase - they are an investment, and can save you lots of money in the future, avoiding the need to pay someone to do a job.

May have already been mentioned, the fixings need to be rust proof ie stainless steel or similar. Asking for trouble fitting steel fixings where they will be wet all the time

Mottie said:

I bought one from B&Q along with a lot of other stuff. I didn’t remove the tag, tightened my nuts and took it back for a refund

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Yeah, I would have done that (and have on occasion!) but the basin wrench, from the place i was looking at buying it from, was packaged in a way that prevented that

Multi-tool – if any of you have any recommendations for any particular good ones, feel free to post them here.

All – thanks again. It’s a great comfort knowing there are supportive people out there if I end up in a DIY predicament in the future.

Some things to consider rather than a recommendation, as mine is a Bosch PMF180E mains one which I paid £70 quid for many years back. Been really happy with it but it has been superceded. Only tiny niggle is the blade is secured with an allen headed bolt but I can live with that.

Mains or cordless. There weren't many cordless ones around when I first got mine, and I find I don't use it it quite enough to warrant a cordless one even now.

Blade locking. You will find some are still an old blade standard called OIS the same as mine (a circle of holes, which mesh with a circle of pins on the multi-tool) but most are now Starlock where the blade is moulded to fit in a multi-point star shaped receptacle on the machine. Its a bit faster to locate a Starlock blade on your machine when you're changing blades, than an OIS.

Quick change blade system. The replacement for my machine from Bosch has gone up in power to 220W (Screwfix code 5092T for £72 currently), and is now Starlock, BUT the blade is still secured with a hex-headed bolt. Ditto the Bosch pro version of it for a few quid more. You'll be paying a lot more for a Starlock machine with quick blade change BUT you can still get some machines that use a variant of the old OIS blade and offer a quick change. For example, Screwfix sell such a machine under the Titan brand for £47 (currently incorrectly listed as having Starlock) where you will see the OIS blades supplied with it have a section cut out the back.

So if you just want a cheapo and you're happy to stick with the particular flavour of OIS blade it uses, the Titan might be worth a look.

If mine gave up the ghost, I'd find the quick change blade Titan appealing, but as most of my blades are Starlocks now (Starlock is backwards compatible with OIS). I suspect when I do my sums and consider the usage, I'd probably end up with the Bosch mains again.