Removing damaged screws and nuts

Kido250

I’ve got an old metal/wood garden bench which needs several struts replacing. The metal frame is still good as far as I can see, but a lot of the timber struts need replacing. Unfortunately Dad painted over the screws and they’ve rusted so I can’t get them out using a screwdriver. They do have hex nuts underneath. I’ve tried to remove them with my standard small wrench, but even after coating them with WD40 and leaving them overnight they’re still not budging. If I get an adapter would my impact driver be any better, and if so can I still use my standard wrench sockets or would I have to get a different socket set?

kaMelo

If you're replacing the timber then cutting the heads off the screws with an angle grinder would be the easiest method. If you want to save the timber cut the nuts off underneath carefully to avoid damaging the frame. Once you've cut the head/nuts off punch the remainder through and remove the timber. Then just replace the screws with new ones.

Norman_Castle

A hacksaw would cut the bolts. If the wood is being replaced cutting or breaking it from around the bolt would give better access to the bolts.

GDB2222

An angle grinder is far more fun than a hacksaw. 

Mistral001

Penetration oil seldom works on heavily rusted nuts.  An angle grinder is the answer as has been said.  A small (4.5 inch) electric grinder can be bought from Screwfix for about £25.  

I assume that there is a dome headed bolt with the dome head at the wood side and a nut at the steel frame side.  Use the angle grinder at an angle of about 45 degrees to cut through the timber and dome head of the bolt..  

FreeBear

Mistral001 said: Penetration oil seldom works on heavily rusted nuts.  An angle grinder is the answer as has been said.  A small (4.5 inch) electric grinder can be bought from Screwfix for about £25.

And don't forget to get a couple or three pairs of goggles. Having hot sparks going in to your eye is not fun, and having the bits gouged out at the hospital will take all day. Always wear PPE. Oh, and don't wear nylon/polyester clothing - The sparks will burn through to the skin underneath. Cotton or leather is best.

Alanp

A multi tool with a metal blade might be better suited for this job, 

Kido250

GDB2222 said:

An angle grinder is far more fun than a hacksaw. 

Couldn’t agree more. Love power tools.

Bendy_House

What size are these 'screws'? And what type of driver bit fits them?

Many screws can be tackled by drilling straight down on to the head, using a drill bit slightly larger than the screw's shaft. Once the drill goes through the head, it just pops off.

twopenny

I saw a useful idea on a builders blog.

Use a wide rubber band, cut for flat bit of rubber, place over screw head and dig drill bit in before trying to unscrew. Useful where the head has been damaged.

Frankly yours sound to far gone for that but who knows? Cutting them seems the most logical. You are going to need new screws anyway.

Mutton_Geoff

Kido250 said:

even after coating them with WD40 and leaving them overnight they’re still not budging

Mistral001 said:

Penetration oil seldom works on heavily rusted nuts

A very common misconception. WD40 is not penetrating oil, the WD stands for "water displacement".