Previously…
A couple posts back, I discussed some great hand tools to have in the library. In the middle of writing that post, I added another tool to my library tool kit, so I figured I’d mention it. But when I started to discuss it, that one tool type ended up taking more space than all the rest. So I figured I’d split it off into its own piece.
So: Let’s get our wrenches on!
With the post-holiday season here, maybe it’s a great chance to find some discounted gifts for ourselves that can make our day-to-day library lives a little bit easier!
So Many Wrenches, So Little Time
If space isn’t a concern and you want to be REALLY prepared for whatever may come your way in the library, you might consider picking up a couple wrenches.
Like hammers, there are a bunch of different types of wrenches. For the library, you probably want to stick to either an adjustable wrench, a set of ratchet, open, box, or combination wrenches, or a dog bone wrench. You might also want to have a set of Allen wrenches.
The main parts of a wrench are the handle – the part you hold – and the jaw. The jaw of a wrench, like the jaw of pliers, is what you’re putting on or around a nut or bolt head. Then you “wrench” the handle to turn the nut. Simple! But there are a lot of versions of wrenches, each of which is useful in a different way. There are also some very specialized wrenches.
Adjustable Wrench
An adjustable wrench has a small screw at the base of the jaw to change the size of the jaw. This makes it a versatile tool – one wrench can be adjusted to fit multiple sizes of nuts and bolts.
But there’s a drawback. Adjustable wrenches have a little bit of wiggle in the jaw, which makes them a little more likely to slip off the nut and strip off the nut’s corners. When a nut gets stripped or rounded off, it is infinitely harder to remove the nut. Still, adjustable wrenches are pretty cheap, readily available, and easy to use. Having one on hand in the library can save a lot of time and effort – and save you a call to the custodians if all you need is a nut or bolt tightened!
Non-Adjustable Wrenches
Wrenches that do not allow you to adjust the jaw size come in two “flavors” – Metric and SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers). SAE wrench jaws are measured in fractions of an inch. Metric wrench jaws are measured in millimeters (mm).
It’s a toss-up whether the nut or bolt you want to tighten or loosen is metric or SAE – you can measure with calipers or some other device, but it’s usually faster to just eyeball it and try a few wrenches that look around the right size.
Because non-adjustable wrenches are sized to fit a specific nut, you generally need more than one. It’s easy to pick up a set of wrenches that covers a decent variety of common sizes.
But if you know there’s a specific size of nut you’ll often encounter – maybe as part of the table and chair sets in your space – you can buy just an individual wrench in the specific size needed for that specific task.
Socket Wrench
A socket wrench (sometimes called a ratchet) usually comes as a kit with a handle and a variety of snap-on heads, usually referred to as sockets. The sockets fit over the head of the nut or bolt. The handle includes a mechanism that ratchets, which means you can turn the handle a few clicks, then pull it back to starting position without having to remove the wrench from what you’re turning. This can significantly speed up the tightening or removal process.
Socket sets come in three main sizes based on the “nub” on the handle head where the sockets attach. Sets come in ¼”, ⅜”, and ½”. The larger sizes generally have longer handles. For most library tasks, ¼” or ⅜” should be more than enough. You can purchase a handle and individual sockets – just make sure you get sockets that fit the handle.
It’s also possible to get hex key wrenches (see below) in socket form. This offers faster, easier turning and better torque. An additional selling point for socket wrenches: You can buy an adapter that allows the sockets to attach to a power drill or driver, which can save a lot of wrenching!
Open Ended, Box End, and Combination Wrenches
An open ended wrench has a gap that fits around a nut. A closed ended wrench (box end and ratcheting) is fully enclosed, and has to be placed over the nut. A combination wrench is open on one end and closed on the other.
After each turn of one of these wrenches, you have to remove the wrench from the nut and reposition it before you can make another turn. (Although there are some clever variations on both open and box end wrenches that can make it easier to reposition wrenches for another twist.)
Open ended wrenches usually have a different sized jaw at either end. Benefit of an open-ended wrench: You can slide it onto a nut from the side. It’s also less likely to slip and round off a nut than an adjustable wrench. Drawback: It’s a little more likely to slipping and rounding off the nut than a box end. But slipping is pretty rare, and is usually only an issue for nuts that are already partially rounded off.
Box end wrenches also usually have a different sized “jaw” at either end. Benefit of a box end wrench: A correctly-sized box end fits exactly around the nut, so it’s the least-likely to slip and cause the nut to round off. Drawback: You have to have access to the top of the nut, and you have to be able to lift the wrench off the nut when you’re done tightening or loosening. In a library, this is probably not an issue. But as an example that never happened to me, using a box end wrench to tighten a hexagonal adapter between two cables will leave you with a wrench in the middle of your cable. (Which I definitely didn’t do. And I definitely didn’t need to undo this type of problem more than once.)
Combination wrenches usually have two same-sized ends, one open and one closed.
Thin Wrench
The tool that led me to sharing about wrenches in the first place is basically just an open-ended wrench, but squashed flatter than normal.
There was a loose nut on my mobile podium that sat between the caster wheels and the metal frame. The space between the wheel and the metal frame was too narrow for a regular wrench. Because the nut was loose, I couldn’t get the wheel to stay in place – moving the podium caused the wheel wobble. It’s been making me nuts for years, but none of my wrenches fit in the space between the top of the wheel and the bottom of the metal frame the wheel attaches to. I finally broke down and bought a “thin” open-ended wrench set that let me fix this one, very specific issue.
But I now have a set of library wrenches should I encounter other nuts in need of tightening or loosening. They’re not the quality I would buy for professional construction work, but they’ll get the job done in the library.
Ratcheting Box-Ended Wrench
These combine excellent elements of a socket wrench and a box end wrench into a single tool. Box-end wrenches and ratcheting wrenches usually offer a better grip on the nut, but they can only work on nuts that are accessible from above. They are great to have, but they tend to be very expensive – fitting a ratcheting mechanism robust enough to handle wrenching into the thin neck and handle of a box end wrench is no simple feat. But if you’re looking for the best of both worlds, these wrenches are where it’s at!
I have a set of these, and they’re usually what I reach for first when I have box end wrench needs – which is not terribly frequently in the library, so these live at home. But if you have the budget for library tools, you might consider a set.
Dogbone Wrenches
A dogbone wrench is a weird, kind of clever tool. On either end of a central handle are several box end wrench heads. A pivot lets you rotate between one of four wrench sizes. A dog bone wrench partially solves the issue of needing to buy multiple sizes of wrench box end or socket wrenches.
The good thing about a dog bone is that it gives you several wrenches in a single tool. A dog bone tends to be a little bulky, but it’s a lot smaller than having an entire set of individual wrenches. The down side: the hinged box end sockets can be a little tricky to keep in place when you’re trying to wrench a nut – the pivot can shift while you work. A dog bone takes some getting used to. It’s not my favorite wrench, but it’s come in handy a few times, particularly when I didn’t want to haul out an entire wrench set.
Allen Wrenches
Allen wrenches, also called Allen keys, hex keys, and hex wrenches, are basically hexagonal metal rods. They’re usually short and often have a 90 degree turn in them, with a longer and a shorter “leg”.
Each hex wrench is sized to fit a very specific hex head screw. You can buy individual hex keys, sets of individual hex keys, or connected sets of hex keys. Most of the hex bolts you’ll encounter in a library are small, so a kit of various sizes is correspondingly small and easy to store. Also, a kit is not much more expensive than buying a couple individual keys, so you might as well get a set.
Personally, I like the folding hex key sets – they are harder to lose than individual keys, and they give you a solid handle to grip when twisting the wrench. They are also often sold in a pair or trio, providing both SAE and metric hex keys (a trio might also include Torx, or star-shaped, keys), and the sets are usually color-coded for easier visual identification.
This is one type of wrench set I think most libraries should keep on hand. They’re compact, they’re pretty cheap, and there are a surprising number of hex head bolts in modern furniture.
Doing It Yourself
As with most tasks, figuring out the best type of wrench for a job often comes down to comfort and experience. But having some wrench options for the library can solve some of the simpler headaches that crop up.
After a few decades of doing DIY projects, it’s never been more clear to me that having the right tool for the job can save so much time, so much effort, and so many headaches!
Using just hand tools, I’ve found plenty of things to repair and rebuild for my school library. I hope that I’ve been able to share something in these hand tool posts that can help you solve some of your issues. But I also know some of you are much better at DIY than I am – so what have you given a second life to in your library space?
My specific tool knowledge begins and ends with the difference between Phillips and regular screwdrivers, so I pored over this quite carefully. Thank you!