Zipper not zipping

March 1, 2018 6:13 AM

Yesterday I got something caught in the zipper of my jeans. The zipper is immobilized. I've tried pulling on it forward and back, even with a pair of pliers. No go.

I was unzipping my jeans and got the corner of a paper towel caught in the zipper in the slider just as it was reaching the bottom end so that if I try to close the zipper, it just pulls the paper towel deeper and prevents the teeth from interlocking, but there is no room to go in the opposite direction to work the paper towel out.

I am at a loss as to how to go about getting the zipper functional again. I tried soaking it in water, but that didn't do any good. I am looking for ideas if you have any. Thanks!

posted by Fukiyama to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (13 answers total)

Do you have tweezers you can use to try to pull out the paper towel?
posted by FencingGal at 6:28 AM on March 1, 2018

A machine wash should break up paper towel.
posted by flabdablet at 6:32 AM on March 1, 2018 [5 favorites]

Pick out as much of the paper towel as you possibly can and then scribble over the zipper with pencil lead. This will be messy. Really work the pencil into the zipper teeth as much as possible, and then try to gently pull the zip up over it, at little at a time, re-scribbling regularly. The graphite will help lube the zipper pull, and hopefully with enough of the paper towel out of the way you'll eventually be able to slip right over it.

Then make sure you rub the pencil off because it'll get everywhere if you don't.
posted by phunniemee at 7:25 AM on March 1, 2018 [7 favorites]

Perhaps passing the zipper over a flame to burn up the paper towel bits, letting the zipper cool to room temperature, then applying a bit of WD40 to the teeth and zipping upward with a quick, forceful tug.

Hard to say without being able to visualize the conundrum, though. Could you post a picture somewhere so we can see it?
posted by lieber hair at 8:50 AM on March 1, 2018 [1 favorite]

Paper can be dissolved by strong acids and bases. You might even try letting the zipper part sit in a basin of vinegar, if you don't have access/training for stronger stuff.

I also like lieber hair's burning suggestion - that seems like the simplest thing that is likely to work, if you're careful!
posted by Salvor Hardin at 8:53 AM on March 1, 2018

Windex did the trick when I had an immovable zipper like you describe.
posted by Ginesthoi at 9:10 AM on March 1, 2018

Response by poster: I did machine wash it last night after letting it soak. That did not work.

I do not have access to a camera, sorry. But I have picked way most of the paper towel bit. There is still some white visible. I think the problem mostly is that the paper towel got pulled not INTO the zipper, but BETWEEN the sider and the top of one row of teeth. When I have access to a camera later, I'll get a picture.

I will try vinegar and then Windex before I start playing with graphite. That sounds messy.

Thanks so far for the suggestions.
posted by Fukiyama at 10:39 AM on March 1, 2018

Worst case scenario: a tailor can rip out and replace a zipper.
posted by blnkfrnk at 11:47 AM on March 1, 2018

beeswax also works as a zipper lubricant, and is less messy than graphite. (At least, it wipes off without staining.) In a pinch, Burt's Bees lip balm works fine, since it's mostly beeswax ... get the plain, not one with dyes or scents! I've used Burt's Bees on tetchy purse zippers rather than locating my sewing beeswax, it did the trick.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 12:06 PM on March 1, 2018

The various ways my son has come up with for jamming stuff into his zipper never fails to astound me, so I have definitely had to deal with something like this before.

I would try something super small, like a needle or maybe even a straightened out paper clip, and try to poke it through and/or scrape it apart. Something like a needle could potentially poke holes enough to sort of scrape and chunk it apart. This is the sort of thing I like to do while sitting in a comfy chair while watching tv. If you're making zero progress you could try seeing if it is easier after it soaks a while.
posted by PuppetMcSockerson at 12:13 PM on March 1, 2018

I'd try some percussive maintenance. Hold the jeans so the zipper is dangling freely and give it some hard quick taps with the handle of a table knife. In the hopes that there's something wedged somewhere that frustrates your attempts to pull the zipper with increasing force, maybe a quick sharp impulse from a quick whack will knock loose whatever is jamming things up.
posted by zengargoyle at 2:35 PM on March 1, 2018

I had a favorite hoodie with a zipper that stopped joining properly. I took it to a tailor and he squeezed the trailing edge of the slider together with a pair of pliers ever so slightly (perpendicular to the direction of travel) and it worked perfectly again. This was a new and exciting information to me, which is why I relate it here!

My thinking is that if you can pry the slider open, so that it's no longer trying to mesh the teeth together you might be able to zip past the paper towel and then squeeze the slider back into shape when you're clear.

This assumes, of course, that you're dealing with a metal zipper rather than a plastic one.
posted by clockwork at 7:41 PM on March 1, 2018

Response by poster: I worked on the zipper, moving it back and forth as much as I could and the paper eventually worked itself out to where I could get at it and pull the remnants out. I tried the flame too. :)

Thanks everyone for suggestions.
posted by Fukiyama at 1:17 PM on March 2, 2018 [2 favorites]