Unfreezing seacock handles

I'm in the water having launched when everone is doing the opposite, trying slowly to get it all together.
The sea cocks are made of brass. They have a long handle with red plastic covering and a quarter turn to open/close. The boat is a Jeanneau Sun Odyssey. I'm not currently near the boat so can't send picture.
 
I wouldn't try anything too drastic whilst the boat is afloat in case you break it off.

WD40 is not much use as a penetrant, Plusgas is much better. I would apply that, let it soak in and then gently tap the handle to and fro with a mallet. If it starts to move then keep doing that until it's free.

If that doesn't work you could dry out against a wall or piles, drive in a tapered softwood bung from outside and try more force or else remove the seacock and see what can be done with it in a workshop, or fit a new one.
 
It is not the handle that is seized, but the ball that it is trying to turn. Deposits build up around the edge of the ball on the outlet side and it is unlikely that anything poured down the bore, particularly if the valve is open, will have much effect. Be wary of applying too much force as the valve bodies may have dezincified and could fracture.

If the valves are a few years old, and have been neglected the only safe strategy is to replace them with either DZR, both valves and fittings, of non metallic valves such as TruDesign.
 
It’s worth replacing them anyway.
Jeanneau skin fitting aren’t DZR from the factory. ( As I discovered ) I found they get worryingly stiff even in regular service.
 
Achosenman said:
It’s worth replacing them anyway.
Jeanneau skin fitting aren’t DZR from the factory. ( As I discovered ) I found they get worryingly stiff even in regular service.
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My experience on these steel handles is the hole in the handle can round off if too much force is applied. This happened to me on a larger size seacock. I would not use a hammer while afloat.

Suggest just move the handle with hand pressure a mm or so with a wiggle back and forth every few days, I had a small one that did loosen up like that. But have replaced it since.

My original fit Jeanneau I reckon were plated brass seacock/ball valve, more worrying was the hose connectors which looked to be plain un plated brass. I had a hose connector snap off when repositioning a hose from it. So... if original fit and old then take care, then best to haul out to replace the jammed ones and throughly check the condition of the others.
 
I think the safest thing would be to leave them alone until your next haul out, then replace with new DZR ones. Have some wooden or plastic plugs near each one in case the worst happens.
 
Not much to add to previous posts but if the other suggestions fail and I was happy to go in the water where you are, I would maybe consider tapping a wooden bung in the skin fitting from outside, remove the sea cock and immediately replace with a new one. Have a spare bung with you on the inside as well just in case. Then obviously another swim to remove the bung. There are rubber umbrella type devices that are available to do this that are inserted from inside the boat down the bore after the hose is removed but don't know where you get one from or how secure they are when fitted.
 
I agree with other posters. Jeanneau do not fit DZR valves and the likely cause of the seizure of yours is that the brass ball has corroded beneath the plating. There are photos and a case history of this at http://coxeng.co.uk/metallurgy/brasses-and-bronzes/

If you can prevent the skin fitting from rotating it is possible for the brave to replace the valve with the boat afloat. The water ingress will normally be less than is experienced with removing a log transducer. I have removed the tapered plug from a 1.5 inch Blakes seacock when afloat and probably took on well under a litre of water. But if the skin fitting rotates you risk losing the seal between it and the hull.
 
srah1953 said:
Sorry to come back on this. Do I need to change the through hull fitting or just the seacock? How would I know if the through hull needs to be replaced?
Thanks again
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good point because if there are DZR then no point in changing the skinfitting. A previous owner may have changed them or maybe the original fit skin fitting was DZR. When the yacht is out of the water, clean off the antifouling and primer from surface of the skin fitting, polish it up a little, then look for pink stains in the yellow metal (see vivcox’s web page for images that explain) as these indicate dezinctification. Similarly you can on the inside of the yacht file the top edge of the skin fitting (the threaded part) enough that you can look for dezinctication there as well (see viv’s web page link for examples).

Don’t go mad with the cleaning filing of the threaded part top because the seacock could end up screwed down tight with the handle pointing somewhere inconvienent. Which is something else to look out for when you bed down and tighten up a replacement skin fitting.

The test I do on my seacocks when out of the water is,with the old seacock fitted, tap gently with with a small hammer on the old seacock body from a few direction to see if the skin fitting snaps off, then grab the seacock and hose connector with your hand and give it a good wrench about to see if it snaps or moves. Repeat every year when out of the water for the winter.
 
srah1953 said:
Sorry to come back on this. Do I need to change the through hull fitting or just the seacock? How would I know if the through hull needs to be replaced?
Thanks again
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If they are original they will be brass. The easiest way of removing the fittings is to grind the outer flange off and remove the whole assembly from the inside. You will likely find access is poor inside to remove the seacocks and nuts anyway - plus you will almost certainly break the seal to the hull. Through hulls are cheap compared with the rest so not worth taking a chance.
 
Tranona said:
If they are original they will be brass. The easiest way of removing the fittings is to grind the outer flange off and remove the whole assembly from the inside. You will likely find access is poor inside to remove the seacocks and nuts anyway - plus you will almost certainly break the seal to the hull. Through hulls are cheap compared with the rest so not worth taking a chance.
Click to expand...

Yes. Buy a Dremel tool if you haven’t got one.
 
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