Make an Outdoor Faucet Wrench

After a long hard winter you may find you need a faucet wrench to turn on your outdoor faucet. If you don't have one you can create your own to turn on the water. Using a few common items you can make one for yourself.

Safety Considerations

When you are working with power tools, wood or metal it is important to take safety seriously. Wearing gloves will help you from being cut on metal or getting splinters. Goggles will keep metal shards from the drill from flying into your eyes and cutting or scratching the cornea. Anything you can do to reduce injury is important, including finishing touches on your faucet wrench with filing, sanding, varnishing, and rubberizing the handles.

Step 2:  Wooden Slat Construction

Using a wooden slat to create your faucet wrench involves a drill and nuts and bolts. Drill holes in one edge of the wooden slat that will align with three of the holes in the faucet handle. They will be curved in shape to accommodate the shape of the faucet handle. Insert 1 inch bolts through the holes and affix using washers and nuts. The bolts act as grabbers when they are set in the holes in the faucet. Covering the wood with varnish will help keep it from splintering with time, and rubber washers will help to keep the bolts from too much pressure against the wood when turning a difficult faucet handle.

Step 3:  Metal Strap Construction

Use the clamp to hold the metal strap in place and bend a hook in one end of the strap. Use a metal drill bit and drill holes in the strap to measure with the holes in the faucet handle. Use a round metal file to smooth the edges of the drill holes. Affix the bolts, washers and nuts so they point down from the hook. As before, the bolts should stick down far enough to hold well to the faucet handle and leverage will turn the nozzle. Rubberizing the curved end of the metal strap to help reduce hard, sharp edges and give a comfortable and safe slip-free grip.

Step 4: Metal Dowel

A 1/4" metal dowel can be used to create a faucet handle. Using the workbench clamp and vise grips, bend one end of the dowel into an S-shape that will fit in the faucet holes. Bend the other side of the dowel into an L-shape or T-shape for a handle. Make sure that the bends that you make will fit into the holes of the faucet handle. The S-bend should be angled properly for two parts of the S to fit into the faucet holes. You can also create a small bended curve and a W-shaped curved bend to fit into three of the holes in the faucet handle to provide better control. Rubberize the handle for a comfortable and slip-free grip.