Richard Skeen wrote:

The element has failed in one of the two immersion heaters on my hot
water cylinder. The problem is, I'm having real difficulty removing it
so I can fit a replacement.

I bought this spanner, but can't unscrew the immersion by hand:
http://www.screwfix.com/prods/29549/...ersion-Spanner


So far I've tried: standing on one end of the tommy bar, levering up the
other end against the floor with a car jack, and hitting it with a 4lb
club hammer, although admittedly not all at the same time. All I've
achieved is bending the cylinder at the immersion heater boss, even
though I kept it full of water for strength.

Does anyone have any tips? The cylinder is probably about 12 years old
and this is a hard water area, so I imagine it's scaled up on the
inside. Any point in trying to soak penetrating oil into it overnight?
As it's a combination (fortic) type cylinder, it wouldn't be cheap to
replace.

Thanks for any suggestions,
Rich.



Hi, I have come across "stuck" immersion heaters many times - I
generally use 36" stilsons on a box spanner for the awkward ones, though
that is not always successful, as my courage usually fails as the tank
begins to bend. **

What I generally do then, though it takes a little time and is not
particularly easy, is to use a hacksaw blade to cut out the fibre
washer, after which the heater usually comes out easily. It is I believe
usually where "boss white" or similar has been applied to the heater -
against the advice of the manufacturers - that a lot of the problems occur.

**I have on a couple of occasions repaired resultant weeps by the
application of solder, saving clients a considerable sum of money...

--

Will.