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difficult screw
Posted: Wed 05 Jul 2017 4:05 pm
by 13roman58
Stop sniggering .
We have just bought a new ceiling fan and ten screws have to be taken out to fasten the blades to the motor body but two refuse to budge any ideas will be gratefully received thanks.
Re: difficult screw
Posted: Wed 05 Jul 2017 4:34 pm
by archie
place screw driver in screw, tap handle with hammer and turn at the same time.
best of luck.
Re: difficult screw
Posted: Wed 05 Jul 2017 7:08 pm
by Ragged Robin
WD40?
Re: difficult screw
Posted: Wed 05 Jul 2017 10:45 pm
by kerry 6138
Try to tighten them first
Re: difficult screw
Posted: Thu 06 Jul 2017 5:28 am
by alphamike
Place something to give added grip, such as a rubber band or piece of duct tape, over the screw head, and then try again.
Re: difficult screw
Posted: Thu 06 Jul 2017 7:40 am
by frontalman
Take it back to the shop and get them to do it, or replace.
Re: difficult screw
Posted: Thu 06 Jul 2017 7:49 am
by Keithcaley
Sometimes heating the area up (with a hair dryer, for instance) so that the space between the screw and 'whatever it's screwed into' expands, will loosen the screw off. If you want to get really technical, heat the area and then apply an ice cube to the screw head only - that way you will achieve differential expansion and contraction
Make sure that you are using the right type and size of screwdriver bit - e.g. 'Philips' (mainly used on threaded screws) as opposed to 'Posidrive'(often used on wood screws).
If the screw has an additional 'slot' straight across - e.g. to take a conventional flat-bladed screwdriver, make sure that there isn't any varnish or similar in the slot (clean it out with a pin if necessary) and use the largest screwdriver which will fit snugly in the slot. Make sure that there is no varnish or similar protective coating around the head of the screw, as this will prevent the screw from turning. Such coatings are often applied after manufacture to prevent corrosion - after successful reassembly you can always use clear nail varnish to protect the screw and to stop it turning.
I wouldn't really recommend the use of a hammer in this particular case, because if you distort the assembly, even slightly, the fan may wobble and dislodge itself from the ceiling, and you certainly don't want that!
I just saw Mark's post : -
Take it back to the shop and get them to do it, or replace.
- and there's nothing wrong with that!
Re: difficult screw
Posted: Thu 06 Jul 2017 8:30 am
by Bloss
WD40 Works Leave it to penetrate though
Re: difficult screw
Posted: Thu 06 Jul 2017 9:39 am
by frontalman
Bloss wrote:WD40 Works Leave it to penetrate though
Ooh, you are awful!
Re: difficult screw
Posted: Thu 06 Jul 2017 10:18 am
by Keithcaley
He's right though, it's often worked for me, and I've done a lot of screwing in my time...
Re: difficult screw
Posted: Thu 06 Jul 2017 11:15 am
by 13roman58
Thank you one and all for your helpful suggestions I resorted to taking it back where they could not shift them so exchanged for another one but made them loosen all the screws .
Re: difficult screw
Posted: Thu 06 Jul 2017 11:51 am
by silverfir
Thoroughly enjoyed this post. An eyecatching title for advice on a serious problem. Lots of good advice followed by good banter towards the end, which was almost inevitable when discussing screwing and penetration. Thank you all for your contributions. Incidentally, I think the poster chose the best option from the choices offered. Still smiling though
Re: difficult screw
Posted: Thu 06 Jul 2017 6:27 pm
by frontalman
Anything you're not sure about...........