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How to remove stubborn sink tap and faucet?

Hi all,

I was wondering if anyone has advice on how I might go about undoing a really stubborn tap and faucet.

The bottom collar on the tap on the left won’t unscrew (I was able to get the cold water off) and the base do the faucet won’t undo either.

I’ve tried spraying them both with WD40 and letting them soak but they wouldn’t budge. I also tried gripping them with a strap wrench but it wasn’t able to get a good enough grip (the one I got from Bunnings also fell apart).

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

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EricL

Hello @warrenk

If you are no longer using the old set and are planning to replace it with a new one, I recommend using a Trojan 250mm Pipe Wrench or a Craftright 250mm Multigrip Plier. These tools will bite into the flange cover and body of the tap allowing you to loosen it up. Please keep in mind that these tools will damage the chrome surface of the tap.

If you have any other questions we can help with, please let us know.

Eric

warrenk

Thanks for the suggestion @EricL. I was intending to use the flange for the tap but the faucet one was going to be replaced. I’ve put some CLR onto the fixtures to see if it might help breakdown some of the build up on them but if that doesn’t work I may need to look into using the pipe wrench and replacing the taps as well.

EricL

Hi @warrenk

Sometimes the calcium build up is so bad that it binds the parts together and you've no choice but to use heavy duty plumbing tools. I suggest looking at the Estilo Chrome Basin Top Assembly as a possible replacement set.

Eric

warrenk

Oh good to know that’s an option. It looks like some CLR and extra elbow grease got them off but one of the taps had bound to the flange so I may need to replace it down the line. Thanks for the tips and suggestions.

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