Any tips for stuck external stopcock?

[jelboy]

Hi all
I have an external stopcock that is approx 900mm down and is an old 3/4 square head type.. I can't budge it at all and really need to as I want to replace the lead main inside the house.. Can't afford to dig up my driveway at the mo so I wondered if anybody had any tips for cranking the old valve off? Obviously I have a bar etc but still can't move it? Any solution I could pour down the hole to loosen it up?
Thanks in advance
Jelboy

 

[Rico99]

Hi there,

Only 1 solution really, phone water supplier and tell them is goosed, they will come and sort out or replace for free.

Rico

 

[jelboy]

Will they not insist I have a meter? Bad news for the lawn..

 

[Rico99]

They may do, but I dont really see that you have any other option.

If you try and for the existing tap you may snap of worse still unscrew completely and have a nice fountain in the street.

Rico

 

[jelboy]

Might chop the lead inside the houes with a leadloc standing by and the kithen tap on.. Live life to the full!

 

[Paul Barker]

dig a big hole on your land fit a plasson universal coupling to some 25mm pipe ducted to a drain with a stop tap at the coupling end. Do it live with tap open then shut tap once the fitting is compressed and water tight.

If you got wrong plasson fitting fold lead over hammer lead flat and try again with correct fitting.

 

[superdupergasman]

dig a big hole on your land fit a plasson universal coupling to some 25mm pipe ducted to a drain with a stop tap at the coupling end. Do it live with tap open then shut tap once the fitting is compressed and water tight.

If you got wrong plasson fitting fold lead over hammer lead flat and try again with correct fitting.

Wear your best speedo's and have goggles on!!!

 

[draper3000]

Thanks for the above tips... I've successfully remove my old outside tap and changed for a fresh new one (with plumbers pf something or other tape) rolled like strike and then wrapped around the taps thread which I screwed on.

For anyone who encounters a problem with a stuck stop cock.

• Ours was outside the house on the pavement, underneath a square metal flap.

• Opened up with a screw driver by levering it open, had to remove about 3 inches of mud to find the tap (I think a flood before we lived here had built up lots of silt).

• The tap was stuck, so managed to loosen slightly by reaching down with a spanner an wedging it on awkwardly from above.

• I still could'nt turn it enough to stop the water pressure at all.

• Solved by getting a long bit of 3" thick square timber and cut a triangle into it so it would go over the tap handle. This meant I could get the purchase needed to easily turn the tap off from above...I say easily it still took some effort but did turn another 5 full turns and went off.

• The water did'nt stop completely, but stopped enough for me to brave changing the taps.

• Success!

 

[dogfonos]

Had the same problem about four years ago. No matter how hard I, and a retired plumber friend, tried to shift the jammed stopcock (under the metal flap in the pavement) we couldn't. We had the proper tool and tried the usual tricks but it wouldn't budge. At some point, you have to give up because you know something is going to break if you put any more effort into it.

Thames Water (name and shame) wouldn't come out to free the stopcock so the only way I managed to get them to do it was to request a water meter. Bit drastic but it did the trick and because there's only two of us living in the property, we now have slightly lower water bills to boot.

 

[HERTS P&D]

This would have fitted:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0001P0FUY/?tag=hydra0b-21&hvadid=9550952949&ref=asc_df_B0001P0FUY

Or hire a plumber with a freeze master machine.

Andy

 

[draper3000]

that tool would have worked wonders...

Though considering I had the bit of wood in the shed and a saw I was able to create a pretty similar bit of kit...

Alway happy when I start a DIY job and it does'nt go wrong... it normally goes the other way..