How to Fix Stuck Water Shut Off Valve Angle Stop EASY METHOD GUARANTEED! 

Thanks! I can't believe how simple this trick was just to tap it. It worked like a charm, and I'm a girl who doesn't know anything about plumbing.

Thank you for your advice four years later. Your method helped me a lot and it worked. I like that you reminded us to be patient. My hot water valve to the dishwasher was stuck open. I sprayed a little WD40, let it sit, and started tapping the valve with a wrench like you did on your video. It took three sessions of tapping from all around and then it happened. The valve turned freely. You saved me a call to the plumber and saved me some money that I don't have at this time. Thanks again in March 2023.

Thank you. Bf finally fixed something with me instructing him from this video via phone lol. So proud of him.

Dude...you da man. I tried everything. My valve was so severely corroded I thought I'd have to call a plumber...but I got it! I tapped it with a big channel lock, and added WD-40 to it whenever I had a breakthrough. Took like 4 times of tapping, dubbya, tapping, dubbya...but it eventually worked!

Thank You! Thank You! Thank you! My husband was killed in a car accident so I’m on my own. He did all of this stuff. I used your technique and it worked. THANK YOU!

Did everything you said and kept hitting the valve stem with some WD-4D and with some patience I was finally able to turn it all the way! Thank you so much dude! Saved me from calling a plumber with money I don't have.

This video gave me the confidence to take the matter into hand .The taps worked also I wasn't aware it was a quarter turn .

Oh my god that worked. Thanks so much. The hot water was barely dripping in the kitchen. The valve was soldered on and there’s no way my niece could have fixed that herself. Now it’s flowing at full rate. It saved hundreds for a plumber. Just a little suggestion for everyone. Open the faucet to let the chunks out that break loose. Then clean the filter out.

If you are not in a hurry, you can soak the valve in vinegar to dissolve the scale. This might take a full day or several days, but the handle should turn easily by hand without force or risk of catastrophic failure. INSTRUCTIONS: Fill a small plastic bag with vinegar. Hold the bag opening over the valve assembly so that the handle and stem are soaking in the vinegar. The vinegar will be in a corner of the bag, and most of the plastic bag will be bunched up around the valve assembly. Secure the bag to the valve assembly with rubber bands so you do not have to hold it. There will be some leakage, but most vinegar should stay where you want it.

Many thanks, took maybe 90 taps on each of 3 sides, worked it back and forth, and it freed up nicely . Great video, quick and to the point

Hats off to you Sir. This just saved me a huge headache and a plumbers bill. New Dishwasher can be installed. I hate washing dishes and I am forever thankful.

IT WORKED!! I had been spraying on WD40, assuming that the problem was on the OUTSIDE of the pipe. Never dreamed that I could fix it just by banging on the pipes! Thanks for saving me a couple of hundred bucks, Sam!

Genius! I didn't think it was going to work, but tightened it just a LIL bit more each time and kept up the tapping. Next thing you know, it closed all the way! THANK YOU!

Very good advice on how to free up stuck valves. Appreciated the abundance of caution provided to avoid breakage! Many thanks!

Thank you for sharing this. I tried all ideas i could find (hair dryer, wrapping the valve in a sock dipped in boiling water) and your suggestion i's the only thing that worked for me. Thank you!

Bless you! Was replacing my old dishwasher and finally got to where I was going to hook up the new supply line to the shutoff and couldn’t get the old one off for anything. WD40 didn’t help and I was really hating life. Would never have stuck with tapping/banging on it for that long had you not shown us that it does work. Thank you!

Sam you are the man! Only took me 2 minutes and the valve turned with ease. Wife is happy im happy and can probably watch some football today with all the time saved. Thank you thank you!!!

Not gonna lie I had my disbelief, I gave it one big go and it twisted with no issues after, genuine, good, straight to the point video.🙏

I came back to thank you for your video. I tried this with a 1/4 turn valve and to my surprise it worked. I removed screw and the handle and used a small crescent wrench on the brass stem to gently turn back and forth and voila!!!!!

I know this video is from 4 yrs ago...but his method worked like champ!! I didn't believe it until i did it. You must be patient it will work!!

Mine was froze up after 35+? Years, At first i went to a page from roto rooter, and they dont tell you any of this...i dont know WHY i didnt think to DO this, my Dad would have, lol. Thanks a million...this will work.

So I got a new fridge coming I couldn't shut the water to tha old fridge I I treid it on the angle stop and... IT WORKED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! awsome ! Thank you !

I put CLR in a syringe with a needle (insulin) and forced it in the shaft. Has freed up 8 valves so far.

You are the man! Saved my project and a lot of money. Worked like a charm! Can’t thank you enough for sharing your knowledge.

Fantastic🎉 After 5 years posted, your video is still helping people. Thank you!! Never thought I would be able to shut the valves and after only a few minutes tapping, presto.

Much thanks. This method worked as you described. It took probably a half hour overall and the patience recommended in doing this is spot on. Don't rush it. Thanks again!!!

I'm am a computer guy; had a drip and your TRICK worked. Saved me lots of money. Took 3 minutes. tks

This worked for me. What a relief! To be totally honest I sprayed liquid wrench on the valves first, which stunk up the bathroom and did not appear to help. But after a few taps they both came loose.

Thanks a lot for the video. And it is clear that this is often effective given the comments. But just so viewers know, it does not always work as it didn't work for me. My valve is completely stuck-no movement at all. Same after as before. It is a bathroom sink so rather than replace the valve I will just turn off the main when there is a leak or a need for a new faucet. Again thanks anyway. It was worth a try.

It worked beautifully. Your instructions were clear, orderly, and to the point. I did three iterations of your hot sock, wait 5, WD40, wait 15, and rock valve back and forth. I did also loosen up the lock nut to relieve water pressure on the valve. On every iteration it moved more and more until it shut off completely. Thank you so much for your excellent How To Video.

Worked great! Thanks. Saved me from paying plumber $200 for what I thought would be a valve replacement.

Took 3 days but the hot water finally loosened up. Cold got fixed in about 15 minutes. Great tip. Thank you for your help.

I had two that were stuck. I’m a shade tree gunsmith, so I sprayed some gun cleaner into the valves…the kind that will clean off a rifle bolt with a spray. That, some WD 40, some patience and some elbow grease (way more than 90 whacks per) and I got both opened up. I used a big channel lock to gain some leverage on the knobs, and that seemed to help, too. They’ll need to be replaced (and for whatever reason, they’ve been soldered to the pipe), but they’ll work for me while I replace my sink and fixtures…I’ll then call a plumber in to bat cleanup. Thanks for a great video.

You are a genius. Got my valve to turn after using this method. Thank you so much!!

Excellent! Great help! I also used a very hot wet sock to sit on it for 5 min, then sprayed WD40 and let it sit for a while. Tapped on 3 sides for a bit. Then I just needed a gentle but firm nudge with a wrench and we were good to go. :)

I was skeptical about his methods but I tried it and it worked! I also boiled a hot sock and placed it on the valve for few minutes and sprayed WD40. It fucking works !

3 taps was all it took, thank you for pointing out such a logical solution to a corroded valve!

Worked like a charm on a valve that wouldn’t move at all when I started. Thanks for the tip.

This worked beautifully on my stuck water valves! Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

Thanks for this video. I woke up this morning to a birthday gift of my sink leaking warm water. And when I tried to shut off the warm side the valve was stuck. I sprayed it with CLP with no luck then wrapped a bag of CLR around it. No luck. But some gentle tapping with a small ball peen and it freed right up. I was not wanting to do that because I live in a condo and do not have a water shut off for the unit. It was nice to see you wang on it. Less fragile than I thought.

This is awesome..I had an problem with my tap and it was not stopping. The valve atbthe bottom was jammed.I saw this video and tapped it for a while and there you go..it worked very well.. thanks a ton..

I am no handyman but this worked for me. Thank you so much for the information! Now I can keep working on the project.

The guy is a metronome with those pliers, impressive!

It worked. You saved me. We couldn't call a plumber because my 87 year old grandmother needs to be isolated right now because of the coronavirus....thank you thank you THANK YOU.

😊 it worked. Before tapping, I heated up the valve by running hot water on hot side and by wrapping a rag with boiling water on the cold side. This was a tip by another guy. Then, I was able to turn easily with channel lock. No leaks.

Thanks a million!!! Saw no corrosion,but this worked!!! Was so close to calling a plumber!! You have saved me so much money!

Thank you so much! My sink was dripping water and this helped me get rid of the leaks until I replace it.

I always suggest ball valves, the valves shown in this video should be discontinued, as far as I’m concerned, nothing but problems.

Thank you SO MUCH. The fix was 40 min and $36.00 to fix my leaky faucet. Great & perfect instructions.

I just tried your method and it worked perfectly. Thanks for the video, it saved me a lot of needless work 😁

Thanks for this! I was worried because they wouldn't budge, even after spraying around with wd40 to try to loosen them. I searched RU-vid before running to Home Depot for parts. I was patient with it and eventually got them both to turn.

THANK YOU. Saved my sink and my sanity.

Thank you for the video/ help. I combined different methods for a successful shut-off of my 30yr-old 'football' valve: tightening the handle set screw first and foremost to ensure all torque from hand-turning the valve was fully transferred to the valve. I rocked the football handle back and forth, gradually increasing movement towards the off (righthand/ clockwise) position, stopping when I encountered substantial resistance. Then (adhering to advice from a fellow YT video) I set a soaked [in scalding hot water] old sock atop the valve, using needlenose pliers to wrap it around the valve body numerous times as the length of the sock allowed, this way I was ensured multiple passes and insulation of heat/ slower cool-down of the sock. Upon removal of the now-only-warm sock about 10 minutes later, I fully opened the valve (turned left/ counterclockwise - you can tell you're opening, as the white stem behind the football, directly in-line with the set screw, slowly lengthens towards you) so as to spray WD-40 directly at the top 12o'clock position of the stem nearer the base, let it penetrate for about 5 minutes and then resumed gently rocking the valve back and forth with incremental progress towards the off position. Meanwhile, I held a cheap [Harbor Freight] heatgun in my left hand, forearm braced across the top corner edge of the neighboring vanity, using the lower of the 2 heat settings, with the nozzle of the gun shooting down onto the valve from a distance of about 12 inches. In my right hand, I would alternate between rocking the valve back & forth and using a pair of small channellocks to rhythmically knock on both sides of the valve body. Patient implementation of these various elements within about a half-hour of total elapsed time and, ~presto!~, valve was able to be turned completely off so that I could properly remove my toilet for reset of a fresh wax ring (it had been slow-leaking around the base for months since the waxring was several decades old). Here's to wishing selfsame success to all others who attempt this hold-your-breath-and-hope-you-don't-wind-up-having-to-emergency-call-a-plumber-when-you've-begun-flooding-your-house-if-you-break-something task, haha. God bless.

This was a good video and worked well for my cold side. After a few hours I decided the hot side was not fixable, and sure enough when I took the stop off the threads were blocked and even scraping with a metal tool couldn’t fix. If you’re still struggling after 30 min, just replace the angle stop! Learn from my mistake.

It worked!! BUT, I MUST emphasize PATIENCE! Like you said, take your time and do a little at a time. Also, you gotta give it some firm whacks, not just gentle tapping. Finally, BE PATIENT!! It takes a little while. My husband handed me the channel locks & told me to do it cuz he just does not have the patience required. P.s. - I did also say a prayer….just sayin’. :)

Thank you for this video! I used REM Oil, lubed it and it took about 5 times of banging got it to turn! Like somebody else commented, take your time it will open.

It worked!!! With soooooo much patience!!! Thank you!

This is a phenomenal trick and it definitely works. Thank you for posting.

Nice .Go ahead and break the solder joint inside the wall . This is brilliant

Thank you for this video!! I would never have thought banging on the valve would do anything positive. Worked great!!!

THANK YOU!!! A combination of liquid wrench and banging 30 times off and on loosens my stuck hot water valve allowing me to replace a leaking faucet.

Wd40 and tapping worked. Thank you. Saved my Saturday.

Thank you so much for posting this. I was able to turn the valve off to fix the leaky flapper, and turned it back on partially that same day (no problem). We left it in that state for about a week to ensure the problem was completely fixed. Once satisfied, I went to turn the water on fully so the tank would re-fill faster and it was totally stuck!! Couldn't move it at all and was afraid of breaking it. After applying your tip, it turned with ease and all is working well now. Thank you again.

I've been trying for hours to turn off the water for my washer and the valve would not move, who would have tought that just by taping the valve it would get unstock, thank you very much

I didn’t even have to tap it that many times.. a few hits and it jarred loose.. unfortunately, my one valve doesn’t shut off all the way and has a slow drip so I need to REALLY hurry up redoing my counter top! Thanks for the tip!

Sam, thanks for the trick. I like your preparedness and how you go about fixing a stuck angle stop. Nice video.

So in watching this, I wonder that if, after banging the pipe and being able to turn the handle even a little bit, if at that point, it would be wise to open the water tap to allow the broken off sediment to flow out of the faucet? Or course, before doing that, on the faucet, remove the screw on screen that the water flows through. ???

THANK YOU. I thought my faucet was going to drip all night... this buys me some time until I can RU-vid how to fix it... 🤣

I Just tried this and the valve now works like butter. My valve was in better shape and it just needed little tapping to get it to clear some of the residue. I came here because last week I replaced the valve on the toilet and it was not fun. (There was a compression fitting that did not want to come out even with a puller so I had to use a cutting tool to remove the thick nut and the compression ring.) This saved me lots of time and muscle aches (tight spot to replace valve).

If you are a handy person just do the trick until you have time to install a new angle stop . If you are a plumber just replace the angle stops

when banging on those stoppers like that, i'd open the facet so any loose dirt would flow away. even loose dirt could potentially be preventing the stopper from moving freely. also, unless you are going to replace stoppers, i would not touch them. i'd just shut off water supply for entire house and replace the faucet. because "playing" with the stoppers like that can create a lot of issues and a small job can turn out to be a big one if for instance the solder joint breaks.

Omg! This worked the first time. So easy!!! Thank you!

Thanks. I appreciate your help 🙏. I was nervous it was going to break

thank you!!! such a simple fix. 3 taps and valve fully shut off!!!

Anyone try soaking it with white vinegar? A lot of that sediment is calcium and lime and vinegar seems to melt that stuff off.

I got rid of all the "twist handle" shut off valves and replaced them with quarter turn shut off valves. Quarter turn does not get stuck, or freeze up. A short turn and you turn it off, a reverse turn and it's on again. No hassles. I would add: put the shut off valve as high as possible for your comfort. Your knees, an back will thank you when you get older.

It works!!!! Only take me 15 minutes Thank you for much

Worked for me. Saves us tons of money as we were going to call a plumber.

Thanks Working Just tapping for a few minutes

VINEGAR! My girlfriend mentioned spraying vinegar to break up the Calcium and it really worked.

I like shallow pan with a cloth in it to catch my drips. Also, I like to remove the aerator and run the water a few times to flush out any sediments I managed to break loose before attempting any repairs. Nice video though.

Thank you so much for your advice, helped immensely!

I have a very leaky faucet and will need to replace the washer on the handle. I tried turning off the water valve but it wouldn’t budge, so I will give this a try. Thanks!

He said “slowly tap on the base of the channel lock” 3 sec later : BANG 💥BANG 💥 BANG

Couple taps, bada bing bada boom!

Scrolled down looking for someone to suggest to loosen the 'Packing Nut 1/4 to 1/2 turn, then close 1/4 open back and forth to loosen hard calcium scale. Banging could break your valve and make a mess to say the least. Just a suggestion. Happy New Year 2023

Thank you very well explained.

OMG!!! It worked!!! Amazing!!! Thank you Sam!!!

Wow Thanks worked perfectly and angle stop valve intact with no damage !

This worked perfectly thank you!

Not all heros wear capes, peace my friend.

This technique totally worked, thanks!

Fantastic! This worked like a charm. Thank you.

just a small correction: This isnt corrosion, this is scale.

Great advice! It became unstuck thanks!

Thank you for your help !!! I am so glad that I saw your video ...

I’m a plumber. If your valve is locked up this bad, it should be replaced. Water has gotten past the internal washer and has calcified the handle. You SHOULD NEVER DO THIS WITH YOUR MAIN WATER ON. Go ahead, watch this video, try it and then call the plumber as your house starts to flood.

It worked 55 year old handle awesome

Spray With 'CLR' from Spray Bottle... it dissolves calcium, lime, rust...

At first it didn’t seem to be working but this trick worked great! Thank you for sharing!