Stopcock not working

Jeepers_Creepers

goodValue said:

I found out which was my meter, and got a key to switch it off.

So now I could try greater force on the stopcock without fear of a flood.

But it still wouldn't move.

I'd also been trying to loosen the gland nut, and eventually got this to move.

However, the spindle and tap move with it - I wasn't expecting that.

I'm thinking of getting a similar size stopcock ( assuming the internal components will be the same as original stopcock).

Then I can unscrew the gland nut completely, and replace what comes out with it, from the new stopcock.

Is this a good idea?

The insides of the two would need to be identical, and I suspect the chances of that is remote.

Well done for getting the key for your meter - I would turn the supply off before tackling the SC rather than waiting for a disaster first... Also run the cold tap until nothing comes out - that depressurises the pipes.

I think that's good that the gland nut is bonded to the spindle - good chance that's all you need to free up now! The gland nut is arrowed RED and the mains valve is disassembled via the ORANGE nut:

Ok, have you wire-brushed away as much of that deposit as possible? Cool. Do you have WD40 or similar? Great! Give the spindle there a spray.

Now undo the gland nut again a whole turn or more. Grab the handle in a wrench and use your spanner to turn the gland nut back and forth until it's free of the spindle.

The internal valve mech will not come out from behind the gland nut - you'd need to undo the main nut for that (and you might not even have to).

Once you've freed the gland nut, keep the handle still and undo the nut fully, and push it up towards the handle. Clean away any deposit on the lower end of the spindle.

Question - can you now turn the handle? If so, you are pretty much good to go. Use a thin screwdriver or similar with a bit of cloth wrapped around it to clean inside the threaded part of the tap where the gland nut goes. Use plenty of WD40 on this too. Take care, tho', not to damage the washer that's at the bottom in there - most likely rubber, but could be a 'rope' type - perhaps clean the very bottom using a cotton bud and WD40. Turn the handle in and out a few times too to make sure it's loosened.

Finally, shove a blob of silicone grease in there and on the nut's thread, and redo the gland nut. Screw it up by hand, and then give it a gentle half-turn more - feel what's happening; there should be gentle resistance, which increases as you turn it. You don't want this nut tightened up fully - it's not meant to be. It's just meant to 'seat' on top of the washer, and is used to gently squish the washer a bit more so's it spreads out sideways against the spindle so forming a watertight seal. Also, as you turn the gland nut, the handle will become more stiff to turn - you don't want it 'stiff', just 'snug'.

Shut off the SC, close the cold tap, go outside and reopen the meter s/!!!!!!. Come back in and reopen the SC fully, and then close it a full turn = less likely to seize. Open a cold tap slowly as it'll cough and splutter - as will we if you fail in this task :-)

Keep a dish under the SC for a week and monitor it for drips. If it does, then nip up the gland nut a 16th-turn further - try and feel what it's doing.

Jeepers_Creepers

Oh, and if the spindle still won't turn even when the gland nut has been fully released, then you will need to either replace the SC or take it apart further. The worst part of dismantling it in situ is that the main nut will most likely be pretty stiff, so you'd need to be able to hold the valve body rock-solid when undoing that large nut. Best done with SC removed - in which case best to just replace it.

GDB2222

Once you have the water turned off, it's a pretty easy job to replace the stop !!!!!!. That's provided you can find one the same length.

Ganga

And if it,s directional make sure the arrow is pointing the right way.

Jeepers_Creepers

GDB2222 said:

Once you have the water turned off, it's a pretty easy job to replace the stop !!!!!!. That's provided you can find one the same length.

I bet sod's law will make it a 'mare for this newbie DIYer - the two pipes going to the SC could well be pretty fixed in place and not have much give. Both pipes disappear through the back panel at some point, and could be quite rigid.

Won't know until he tries

goodValue

Once you've freed the gland nut, keep the handle still and undo the nut fully, and push it up towards the handle. Clean away any deposit on the lower end of the spindle.

Question - can you now turn the handle? If so, you are pretty much good to go. Use a thin screwdriver or similar with a bit of cloth wrapped around it to clean inside the threaded part of the tap where the gland nut goes. Use plenty of WD40 on this too. Take care, tho', not to damage the washer that's at the bottom in there - most likely rubber, but could be a 'rope' type - perhaps clean the very bottom using a cotton bud and WD40. Turn the handle in and out a few times too to make sure it's loosened.

I think it's almost there.

Following the instructions I got the gland nut and spindle loose.

I couldn't clean the inside because of the angle of the spindle, but managed to get some soft black deposit from just inside the rim.

There was hard grey deposit on the gland nut thread, and I got the majority of this off by scraping and with a wire brush.

However, the gland nut is still stiff; it will not tighten by hand, though I can tighten it with a spanner.

Possibly this is because there is some hard deposit on the thread that the gland nut screws into.

I'm going to squirt some penetrating fluid in there last thing tonight, and try again tomorrow.

GDB2222

You don’t need the gland nut to be loose. You want it to stay tightened, even though you turn the tap handle.

goodValue

GDB2222 said:

You don’t need the gland nut to be loose. You want it to stay tightened, even though you turn the tap handle.

But doesn't it need to be backed off a bit?

Also, if there is still some deposit on the thread it may seize up again.

GDB2222

It seized to the handle. The handle is meant to be a loose fit inside the gland
nut, but it got corroded and the two more or less fused together. Now just tighten the gland nut and make sure the tap turns whilst the gland nut stays still.

GDB2222

You maybe ought to look at some videos about how this all works. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUrc0Mwm4Xk