Cannot undo supatap washer

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Hi. Husband and I, both 85, have done our own plumbing all our 52 years married but are finding it harder now to get under sinks etc.!!

Our current problem is a sixty year old supatap in kitchen sink. It has not needed attention for many years but is now dripping badly.We are unable to unscrew the releasing nut at the top of the tap. It is difficult to get a firm grip because the nut has become bevelled over the years. When we do manage the only result is that it doesn't move but the tap starts to turn where it connects to the sink. We have tried penetrating oil but no help. We think it is probably jammed with deposite as our water is extremely hard and the stopcock under the tap will not close either. (This is mains supply, by the way.) Any help much appreciated as our water bill has rocketed!

 

[Chuck]

To be honest, I think you have to get a plumber to help.

Your stopcock needs to be fixed so it works properly before tackling the supatap. It needs fixing in any case as you need to be able to turn off the water in the event of a leak.

It might be possible to dismantle the tap with a good quality spanner and something, such as a basin wrench and some padding, to restrain the tap-body. With 60 year old taps and hard water I'd only give it a fifty-fifty chance of success and if it doesn't work a new tap will be needed.

If your water usage has 'rocketed' recently, once the tap is fixed, get the plumber to check for other leaks, e.g. by monitoring the water meter while no water is being used. A leaking tap does waste water, of course, but one drip per second is about a litre per hour or 24 litres a day. That's less that 10% of what two people at home all day typically use (175 litre / person).

 

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To be honest, I think you have to get a plumber to help.

Your stopcock needs to be fixed so it works properly before tackling the supatap. It needs fixing in any case as you need to be able to turn off the water in the event of a leak.

It might be possible to dismantle the tap with a good quality spanner and something, such as a basin wrench and some padding, to restrain the tap-body. With 60 year old taps and hard water I'd only give it a fifty-fifty chance of success and if it doesn't work a new tap will be needed.

If your water usage has 'rocketed' recently, once the tap is fixed, get the plumber to check for other leaks, e.g. by monitoring the water meter while no water is being used. A leaking tap does waste water, of course, but one drip per second is about a litre per hour or 24 litres a day. That's less that 10% of what two people at home all day typically ,use (175 litre / person).

Thank you, Chuck, for your advice which we really appreciate. Firstly, fortunately the stopcock only serves the tap and is secondary to the mains one under the sink, so not a problem. As you say we may, in the end, need a plumber but will try a bit longer, as we love our old taps! Re costs, the tap is more than dripping, it is now running quite fast and we have been trying to fix it for some time. We are working on a temporary block for it. Also we had another leak from overflowing cistern which has now been fixed so hopefully things will improve. Many thanks.

 

[Ric2013]

I thought the Supatap could IN THEORY be serviced without isolating the water?

 

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I thought the Supatap could IN THEORY be serviced without isolating the water?

Yes, thank you Ric, you don't have to turn off the water. I've easily changed washers on this. tap several times in the past, but unfortunately not for perhaps 15-20 years, hence the seized up top nut!

 

[Ric2013]

Gotcha. Yes, I was trying to remember how a Supatap worked as I was typing.

 

[Chuck]

I thought the Supatap could IN THEORY be serviced without isolating the water?

That was the Supatap's USP. They have a cylinder that drops down to stop the flow when the outer body is removed. My worry was that, if the OP is applying enough unbalanced torque that "the tap starts to turn where it connects to the sink", the disturbance might break open a mains pressure leak under the sink. In the absence of a functioning stopcock, I think that would be a serious problem for them.

 

[Last Plumber]

You could try warming the female area a bit? Just a thought. Don't go mad or you'll damage it. Try boiling water over the outer part and a tight fitting key.

 

[Ben-gee]

You could try warming the female area a bit? Just a thought. Don't go mad or you'll damage it. Try boiling water over the outer part and a tight fitting key.

I started reading this and wondered if I’d stumbled across an adult area of the forum

 

[Last Plumber]

I started reading this and wondered if I’d stumbled across an adult area of the forum

See what you mean. That's tickled me!
Maybe I'll quit Plumbing and go into writing for magazines.

 

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You could try warming the female area a bit? Just a thought. Don't go mad or you'll damage it. Try boiling water over the outer part and a tight fitting key.

Thank you LP. At the risk of lightening you boys' day more, I'll say that I tried with a hairdryer but it didn't get hot enough so will now have a go with boiling water!

 

[chrisW50450]

If it is the really old model with metal not plastic lugs then a blowlamp will warm it up enough to loosen it.

 

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If it is the really old model with metal not plastic lugs then a blowlamp will warm it up enough to loosen it.

Chris, thank you. Yes it is the old model. You obviously know about them so we'll try your suggestion - it's about the only thing we haven't tried! Wish us luck...