Help! My 1y/o kid just shoved a salad tongs into a carboy, backwards.

[Pyg]

See attached pic, illustrating price paid for poor supervision of brew equipment, and kids.

Any suggestions for removing it without destroying the carboy are welcome!


View attachment 287842

Havin kids who like to play with the bottles, carboys, brew equipment I sympathize. However I darn near did a spit take on my monitor and laughed for 10 minutes. I have looked at this photo repeatedly to for a laugh. I just could not tell anyone in the office why.

 

[JonM]

Sub'd. This is awesome.

 

[Singletrack]

Just keep pushing more toys and stuff in there. Something interesting is bound to happen. Lead weights and fishing lures? Sure! Tinker toys? No doubt! Screw drivers? Of course! Old food? Why not?

If that doesn't work for some reason -- pretty sure it will -- top off with coca cola to dissolve it all.

Good luck!

 

[JonM]

When you do get it out, the procedure will be called the "johnodonovan." Oh, you got tongs stuck in your fermenter? Just johnodonovan it. Here's a link to the thread with instructions.

 

[balrog]

Use The Force, Luke.

 

[bacgabe]

Already some great ideas tossed out there. One variation that might work as well is to suspend a piece of twine or fishing line with a sliding loop in the carboy, then use a wire hanger to guide it over one of the "grabber" ends of the tongs. Pull tight, then with the wire hanger, spin the tongs a couple times while looping the tag end of the line over the other grabber end. Then, with the hanger still in the mouth of the carboy (to keep the line secure around the midsection of the tongs), pull up and (hopefully) out.

I almost wish that was my carboy so that I could try all these ingenious solutions.

Edit: Variation on the above would be to bend a little swirl at the end of the coat hanger that would help hold the line while doing the above maneuvers.

 

[BrotherGrim]

1. Get two lengths of butchers twine and a section of pvc pipe 1".
2. Put slip nooses on the end of each one.
3. Slip nooses over silicone pads (one over each)
4. Fish the loose ends of the twine through the pipe.
5. Slide pipe down into carboy while pulling twine tight.
6. Tongs will close up.
7. Lift pipe and tongs out of carboy.
8. Send check for brilliant idea to BrotherGrim.

 

[Staestc]

Muriatic acid. Get it from the pool store. The post the picture and we will figure out how to get the silicone bits out!

 

[Psylocide]

1. Get two lengths of butchers twine and a section of pvc pipe 1".
2. Put slip nooses on the end of each one.
3. Slip nooses over silicone pads (one over each)
4. Fish the loose ends of the twine through the pipe.
5. Slide pipe down into carboy while pulling twine tight.
6. Tongs will close up.
7. Lift pipe and tongs out of carboy.
8. Send check for brilliant idea to BrotherGrim.

This sounds like a winner.

 

[bacgabe]

Actually, just hooking the base with a coat hanger and pulling up might work, as it looks as if the contours of the top of the carboy might cause them to close right up and slide right out.

Edit: reading comprehension is a good skill...just saw that this was the first suggestion from TallDan.

 

[bbohanon]

This is the greatest post I have ever seen here.

+100..One for the senior class yearbook when to remind them of the pain and suffering they have caused you in their youth.

 

[LAHammer]

OK - I forwarded this to some folks at NASA and they have 3 teams that are going to simulate your problem and come up with a solution that will allow the equipment to survive the process. Please don't try anything until we've heard back from them.

Any attempts to remove this without proper safeguards could lead to severe scratching - and we all know that may cause future infections.

DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME!!!

 

[balrog]

NO NO NO NO NO!
Too simple.
We are, in aggregate, an unstoppable force of multi-dimensional, out of the box thinking power, capable of delivering highly sophisticated, over analyzed, scathing solutions to literally ANY possible situation, without much thought to logic, cost, or time commitment. And burp the alphabet. But that's another thread. Or it should be.

I'm thinking a magnetically linked drill, and some sort of ratcheting device, plus a little duct tape and some Gummy Bears, and we'd have a YouTube video of the Tong Extraction Event that would garner more views than any Taylor Swift video.

 

[sakeyfour]

Use two pieces of cloths hanger wire with u bends on the ends bent up 90 deg. put one on each side. as you pullup the tongs you squeeze them together. If the spring in the tongs is stronger than the wire pulling up might use the sloped sides as mentioned earlier.

 

[bacgabe]

I'm thinking a magnetically linked drill, and some sort of ratcheting device, plus a little duct tape and some Gummy Bears, and we'd have a YouTube video of the Tong Extraction Event that would garner more views than any Taylor Swift video.

I am thinking there has to be some solution that involves ping pong balls and liquid nitrogen...

 

[GuitsBoy]

I say two wire hangers, straightened out, but leaving the hook part at the end, like a long candy cane. Try to hook each hanger around the silicone bits and pull them across one another to close the tongs up, as you pull them up towards the opening.

 

[Bobb25]

You can still get wire hangers ?????

 

[TallDan]

OP, please come back and post saying that something worked. Even if you didn't actually try anything yet, just come back and post saying it's done. After 50ish posts with variations on the theme, I think we're running low on ways of using stiff wire to scratch up the carb.. err... get the tongs out.

 

[DNKDUKE]

Go ruin one of his toys.

You don't have to actually ruin one......all you've got to do is NOT FIX one he has ruined.....:rockin:

 

[JonM]

View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1435851107.268239.jpg

 

[normonster]

Just brew around it.

 

[WPStrassburg]

I am thinking there has to be some solution that involves ping pong balls and liquid nitrogen...

freeze the tongs with said liquid nitrogen, whip the carboy on the ground, tongs xplode into little frozen stainless and silicone bits, and then just pour out the carnage.

 

[Konadog]

Looks like a job for Bill Nye the science guy .... David Copperfield.... Harry Potter..... the Avengers......

Good lord, the suspense is killing me!

 

[balrog]

Well, now at least we know exactly how to whip up forum enthusiasm.

 

[Konadog]

Well, now at least we know exactly how to whip up forum enthusiasm.

Could be worse, it could be a goat stuck in the carboy

 

[madscientist451]

Like someone already said,
I'd try reaching a thick bent wire in to reach the hole at the hinge, and pull upwards. If the wire isn't sturdy enough, and bends, get a piece of wood or any metal bar stock and put a bolt through the end to go through that hole. You may need a second piece of wood or metal to compress the tongs as you bring them upwards. Having someone hold it upside down or sideways may help.

 

[ChemEng]

Subscribed. i can't believe this hasn't happened to me yet....

 

[drainbamage]

I feel bad for laughing at your misfortune, but this thread is awesome.

 

[BreezyBrew]

Could be worse, it could be a goat stuck in the carboy

Yeah, or beer in there! 😆

 

[sablesurfer]

Mentos and coke? Shoot it right out of there?

 

[sablesurfer]

Skin his pet, cure the leather, cut into strip, wet and stretch the leather, put strip into carboy, roll around to get strip wrapped around tongs.

Set out in hot sun in a desert to heat shrink the leather. Get the closed tongs out.

Hand him back the leather thong and say, "Here's puppy."

 

[TallDan]

This wouldn't have happened if you used a glass carboy (smaller opening, tongs wouldn't fit). Thus proving, once and for all, that glass is better than plastic.

 

[johnodonovan]

Don't try this at home kids. It will drive you nuts!

Thank you all for the input!! I'm sure that some of the suggestions here would have worked, but alas, the order in which I tried them was a critical factor. I first tried to hook the loop at the bottom and use the wall contour to close the arms. Unfortunately, this method bent the tips of the tongs inward. Definitely not the winning suggestion, or implementation of it, at least The 2-noose idea would likely have worked if I had tried it first, but since the tips were bent, it just pulled off one of the silicone ends.

At this point of extreme frustration, it would normally be off to the recycler. It is just a cheap polycarbonate bottle. But since the post got so much interest, I am going to keep it around as a challenge for visitors and give updates. I'm also going to try a large wire noose around the bottom when I have some more time. Maybe that can bend the tips back to the right angle.

It's last beer was an American IPA dry hopped with Citra, obviously now called "Salad Tongs IPA". It is cold conditioning now and will probably taste like salad, garnished with tears of frustration.

 

[johnodonovan]

 

[Silentdrinker]

NO NO NO NO NO!
Too simple.
We are, in aggregate, an unstoppable force of multi-dimensional, out of the box thinking power, capable of delivering highly sophisticated, over analyzed, scathing solutions to literally ANY possible situation, without much thought to logic, cost, or time commitment. And burp the alphabet. But that's another thread. Or it should be.

I'm thinking a magnetically linked drill, and some sort of ratcheting device, plus a little duct tape and some Gummy Bears, and we'd have a YouTube video of the Tong Extraction Event that would garner more views than any Taylor Swift video.

That beats my gum on a stick idea.

 

[iijakii]

I vote for using it as a sour fermenter. You know how people put in oak to give the bugs a place to nest? Maybe silicone salad tongs are the new secret weapon.

 

[Silentdrinker]

Don't try this at home kids. It will drive you nuts!

Thank you all for the input!! I'm sure that some of the suggestions here would have worked, but alas, the order in which I tried them was a critical factor. I first tried to hook the loop at the bottom and use the wall contour to close the arms. Unfortunately, this method bent the tips of the tongs inward. Definitely not the winning suggestion, or implementation of it, at least The 2-noose idea would likely have worked if I had tried it first, but since the tips were bent, it just pulled off one of the silicone ends.

At this point of extreme frustration, it would normally be off to the recycler. It is just a cheap polycarbonate bottle. But since the post got so much interest, I am going to keep it around as a challenge for visitors and give updates. I'm also going to try a large wire noose around the bottom when I have some more time. Maybe that can bend the tips back to the right angle.

It's last beer was an American IPA dry hopped with Citra, obviously now called "Salad Tongs IPA". It is cold conditioning now and will probably taste like salad, garnished with tears of frustration.

Damn those cheap ass ikea tongs.

 

[Rhaop]

I vote for sour carboy

 

[balrog]

+1 on leaving it around. Better than any of those great blacksmith puzzles. "To drinketh from mine home brew altar, thou must pass the severe logic test of the Carboy Prison!"

 

[Peruvian802]

Hang on, don't do anything. I have to get another beer first.