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That one stubborn flange on the old steam boiler in the hospital retrofit
Got called in for a boiler swap at St. Mary's downtown, a job we figured for three days. Everything was going smooth until we hit the main steam outlet flange on the old unit. It was a monster, maybe 10 inches, and it was absolutely frozen to the mating surface. We tried heat, penetrating oil, and even a 3-foot cheater bar on the impact wrench. Nothing. My partner and I spent a whole eight-hour shift just on that one connection, taking turns with a torch and a sledge on the wrench. We finally had to cut the bolts with a grinder, which added another two hours of careful work so we didn't nick the good pipe. What should have been a simple unbolt turned into a day and a half of pure frustration. What's your go-to method for a flange that just will not let go?
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pipera5014d agoMost Upvoted
Sounds like that flange was part of the original building contract. My go-to is a bigger hammer and a lot of bad words. Sometimes the old ways are the only ways.
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rowan66614d ago
Bigger hammer and bad words" is the official motto of my home repairs. I once fought a stripped bolt for three hours with that exact method.
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