Have a leaky faucet that I am going to have to replace the seats and have run into a problem. The water shutoffs under the sink are frozen in the open position. I live in an area with hard Limey water and am sure this contributes to this problem. My question is: does anyone know of a plumber's trick to unstick these ? I am reluctant to crank on them with a vise grip in fear of breaking them. Sink is in pretty tight space. Any help or advise would be appreciated. Thanks.

Ted

If you do not want to replace them, turn off the water to the house.

You can loosen the bonnets on the stops. Not too much or you will have water spray, all over the place. As suggested, turn the water off at the main and change your stops while you fix the seats on your faucet. What brand of faucet are you trying to fix?

Best Wishes

5 stars for our friend from AZ. ***** If I find the stops or house shut off valve is in wanky condition, I shut it off at the meter unless the homeowner wants to pay for an afternoon of replacing various and sundry valves in addition to the original service issue.

Old stops can be coersed to close with pliers, BUT if the rubber seals are old and cracked, by the time you get it to shut off completely, the seals will fall apart when opened again, causing other problems downstream, and they will never shut off properly after that unless they are replaced.

AND the packings may start leaking or stem break off or the handle strip.