Lock it down!

May 5, 2014 1:00 PM

Maintenance workers used my outside water spigot to fill up the gargantuan tanks on their trucks. No surprise, my water bill sky rocketed. I bought and installed a spigot lock which worked like a charm for about a year. Now, with warm weather and the need to water fast approaching, I can't get the damn thing off!

The lock works by screwing on the spigot itself, sealing off the flow of water. To remove it you insert a magnetic key and screw it off. Now it just spins and spins and won't come off ... please help!

posted by Allee Katze to Home & Garden (5 answers total)

The first thing I'd check is the manufacturer, and if you have a model number, look that up too. Chances are you aren't the first person to have the problem. I'd call them and ask what they recommend.

(and I hope you got reimbursed for the stolen water, that's crazy).
posted by emjaybee at 1:26 PM on May 5, 2014 [2 favorites]

Googling around trying to get an idea of what this thing was, I found this one on Amazon. Not sure if this is same/similar to your lock. There is at least one review that claims the same thing happened to them, and did not have a satisfactory result. However, there is a comment claiming that contacting the manufacturer is helpful. I think the best thing you can do at this point is try calling them. Good luck!
posted by mean square error at 1:34 PM on May 5, 2014

Response by poster: yes, that's exactly the one. Very well, I'll contact the manufacturer and hope for the best. No, I did not get reimbursed, they denied, denied, denied and finally I let it go. Thank you guys for your help.
posted by Allee Katze at 2:09 PM on May 5, 2014

If it's just plastic you could get a screwdriver and a hammer and pry / break it off. That could potentially damage the spigot. So the best bet (if the manf. doesn't help) would be to call a plumber. Replacing the spigot head is not a huge undertaking.
posted by Benway at 2:29 PM on May 5, 2014

Best answer: If it's plastic then some time with a dremel tool should get it off. If it's metal then an angle grinder (can probably rent one somewhere pretty cheap). I'd probably look for a handyman rather than a plumber; this doesn't really have much to do with the pipes or spigot itself.
posted by sbutler at 12:00 AM on May 6, 2014