Screws do not loosen - with this trick it works

Some screws simply cannot be loosened. We show you how you can loosen stuck or turned screws in just a few steps.

Screw rotated round: Loosen with a rubber

If you have tried to loosen a screw too often, you can turn the screw head round and you can no longer loosen the screw. There are various ways to unscrew the screw without further damage. The easiest way, however, is with a simple preserving rubber and a screwdriver.

• Place the rubber on the damaged screw head and push in the screwdriver.
• The canning rubber expands and gives you more grip with the tool.
• Apply as much pressure as possible when unscrewing the screw. This maximizes the friction between the rubber and the screw and thus the adhesion.

The screw is tight and does not loosen: you can do that

If the screw head is OK, but the screw is spinning or is rusty, you can do the following:

• Screw spins: If the screw spins empty, either its thread or the threaded hole is broken. In both cases, you need to apply pressure.
• To do this, take a small slotted screwdriver and drive it under the screw head. Insert a second screwdriver into the screw head. While turning the screw to the left, you now have to pry it up from below.
• The screw is stuck or is rusty: in both cases, treat the screw with rust remover or penetrating oil beforehand. Try to get as much as possible between the thread and the threaded hole.
• With one or two powerful hammer blows on the screw head, the screw should loosen a little and you can unscrew it with a screwdriver.
• Another very effective option is to heat the screw. Afterwards, however, you should not reuse the screw, the heat makes the metal porous and brittle.