How to remove plastic sleeve from rotary line ground spike

victor2

@Lulu58, if you cannot get the bent coat hanger end underneath the sleeves (it does sound as if they are sleeves rather than spacers, and I have seen such things), can you get a blow torch or camping stove to heat the bent end up so that it will be hot enough to melt its way into the sleeve(s) and allow you to pull them up even if you can't get right underneath them?

If the spike is full of water, you'll have to empty it out first. An old stick that can be pushed into the hole will help with that, but beware of getting splashed with very dirty and smelly old water if you do. Been there, done that!

Cool the wire down with water(!) before attempting to pull it up.

Lulu58

victor2 said:

@Lulu58, if you cannot get the bent coat hanger end underneath the sleeves (it does sound as if they are sleeves rather than spacers, and I have seen such things), can you get a blow torch or camping stove to heat the bent end up so that it will be hot enough to melt its way into the sleeve(s) and allow you to pull them up even if you can't get right underneath them?

If the spike is full of water, you'll have to empty it out first. An old stick that can be pushed into the hole will help with that, but beware of getting splashed with very dirty and smelly old water if you do. Been there, done that!

Cool the wire down with water(!) before attempting to pull it up.

Clever idea, victor2.  Thank you!  Good point about the water too 

twopenny

Tent pegs - poundland
They have them every year. I bought 3 lots because they are useful for securing netting in the garden. A couple also secure a board round the strawberry bed 
Useful for all sorts.

ThisIsWeird

I suspect that a coat hanger, or even a wire tent peg, will not have the heat capacity to allow this melting, good idea tho' it is. Almost certainly it'll have cooled too far before it makes more than a wee mark. A thicker tent peg might work, and certainly worth trying.

If this is a plastic 'sleeve', Lulu, and not a spacer 'ring', and you do manage to bend and buckle over a top edge, then there's a possibility you can drill through the edge now facing you using the coat hanger or tent peg.

I'm anticipating the sleeve being a typical soft thermoplastic, and not that thick - perhaps 2 or 3mm - the sort of thing you could easy 'drill'-force a hole through using a flat-bladed screwdriver or similar. If you straighten your coat hanger, snip the end in a crude 'V' using pliers or snips, that should leave quite a sharp ragged tip. Then shape the rest into a crank like a starting handle. Press tip into plastic, press gently, and crank away. I bet that will drill through pdq.

Lulu58

ThisIsWeird said:

I suspect that a coat hanger, or even a wire tent peg, will not have the heat capacity to allow this melting, good idea tho' it is. Almost certainly it'll have cooled too far before it makes more than a wee mark. A thicker tent peg might work, and certainly worth trying.

If this is a plastic 'sleeve', Lulu, and not a spacer 'ring', and you do manage to bend and buckle over a top edge, then there's a possibility you can drill through the edge now facing you using the coat hanger or tent peg.

I'm anticipating the sleeve being a typical soft thermoplastic, and not that thick - perhaps 2 or 3mm - the sort of thing you could easy 'drill'-force a hole through using a flat-bladed screwdriver or similar. If you straighten your coat hanger, snip the end in a crude 'V' using pliers or snips, that should leave quite a sharp ragged tip. Then shape the rest into a crank like a starting handle. Press tip into plastic, press gently, and crank away. I bet that will drill through pdq.

Well, ThisIsWeird (and others who have so kindly put forward suggestions), there is good news!

I managed to hook out the thicker of the two sleeves with my trusty coat hanger.

There is still a very thin sleeve remaining in the hole. It's only about 1-2mm thick and I cannot shift it. I have tried various things, including boiling water and also trying to get something in between the metal ground post and the plastic sleeve without success.

However, I'm hoping the new rotary washing line will now fit in the ground spike as I've managed to remove the thicker of the sleeves!

victor2

Lulu58 said:

ThisIsWeird said:

I suspect that a coat hanger, or even a wire tent peg, will not have the heat capacity to allow this melting, good idea tho' it is. Almost certainly it'll have cooled too far before it makes more than a wee mark. A thicker tent peg might work, and certainly worth trying.

If this is a plastic 'sleeve', Lulu, and not a spacer 'ring', and you do manage to bend and buckle over a top edge, then there's a possibility you can drill through the edge now facing you using the coat hanger or tent peg.

I'm anticipating the sleeve being a typical soft thermoplastic, and not that thick - perhaps 2 or 3mm - the sort of thing you could easy 'drill'-force a hole through using a flat-bladed screwdriver or similar. If you straighten your coat hanger, snip the end in a crude 'V' using pliers or snips, that should leave quite a sharp ragged tip. Then shape the rest into a crank like a starting handle. Press tip into plastic, press gently, and crank away. I bet that will drill through pdq.

Well, ThisIsWeird (and others who have so kindly put forward suggestions), there is good news!

I managed to hook out the thicker of the two sleeves with my trusty coat hanger.

There is still a very thin sleeve remaining in the hole. It's only about 1-2mm thick and I cannot shift it. I have tried various things, including boiling water and also trying to get something in between the metal ground post and the plastic sleeve without success.

However, I'm hoping the new rotary washing line will now fit in the ground spike as I've managed to remove the thicker of the sleeves!

Well done!
You should be able to destroy the remaining sleeve somehow. 
If you haven't already bought the new dryer, then measure the existing hole and look at the specs for the new one. If the pole diameter is less than the hole, it may well come with sleeves, and/or you may be able to make use of the remaining one.

ThisIsWeird

Lulu58 said:

ThisIsWeird said:

I suspect that a coat hanger, or even a wire tent peg, will not have the heat capacity to allow this melting, good idea tho' it is. Almost certainly it'll have cooled too far before it makes more than a wee mark. A thicker tent peg might work, and certainly worth trying.

If this is a plastic 'sleeve', Lulu, and not a spacer 'ring', and you do manage to bend and buckle over a top edge, then there's a possibility you can drill through the edge now facing you using the coat hanger or tent peg.

I'm anticipating the sleeve being a typical soft thermoplastic, and not that thick - perhaps 2 or 3mm - the sort of thing you could easy 'drill'-force a hole through using a flat-bladed screwdriver or similar. If you straighten your coat hanger, snip the end in a crude 'V' using pliers or snips, that should leave quite a sharp ragged tip. Then shape the rest into a crank like a starting handle. Press tip into plastic, press gently, and crank away. I bet that will drill through pdq.

Well, ThisIsWeird (and others who have so kindly put forward suggestions), there is good news!

I managed to hook out the thicker of the two sleeves with my trusty coat hanger.

There is still a very thin sleeve remaining in the hole. It's only about 1-2mm thick and I cannot shift it. I have tried various things, including boiling water and also trying to get something in between the metal ground post and the plastic sleeve without success.

However, I'm hoping the new rotary washing line will now fit in the ground spike as I've managed to remove the thicker of the sleeves!

Well done :-)

See how it goes, and you can always come back if there are still problems.

What material is the ring made of that you took out? A softish flexible plastic, or very hard and brittle? Any chance of a photo?

What did you use to try and wedge between the remaining ring and the surrounding metal sleeve?

Anyhoo, sounds good, and fingers crossed :-)

GrubbyGirl_2

If it's loose but you just can't reach it try using a hot glue gun and put a blob on a screwdriver then stick it to the inside of the tube.  Once fully set pull it out  

Lulu58

victor2 said:

You should be able to destroy the remaining sleeve somehow. 
If you haven't already bought the new dryer, then measure the existing hole and look at the specs for the new one. If the pole diameter is less than the hole, it may well come with sleeves, and/or you may be able to make use of the remaining one.

Thanks, victor2. The rotary dryer I've just order is (hopefully!) the right size to fit in the ground spike with the remaining plastic sleeve in place, but it remains to be seen!

Lulu58

ThisIsWeird said:

What material is the ring made of that you took out? A softish flexible plastic, or very hard and brittle? Any chance of a photo?

What did you use to try and wedge between the remaining ring and the surrounding metal sleeve?

Anyhoo, sounds good, and fingers crossed :-)

Thanks, ThisIsWeird.

The remaining sleeve is made from hard plastic.  I've tried taking a photo without much success but I'll give it another go and post if I'm successful.

There is no gap between the metal ground spike and the sleeve so I can't wedge anything between the two.  I've tried a couple skewers and screwdrivers.

I'm hoping the new rotary will fit the space so I can leave it in place!