My heirloom spherical crystal decanter, with some whiskey in it, has the crystal stopper so firmly jammed that it has been unopened for 20 years. I have tried heat, cold, liquid wrench, etc., to no avail. Even glassware experts decline to try. Can someone advise me of how to remove it safely?
By P.D. Graham from Kamloops, BC, Canada
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Wrap the neck of the decanter in a fairly hot, damp towel and use the handle of a wooden spoon to gently tap opposite sides of the stopper. Then pour two or three drips of cooking oil around the decanter's rim and leave in a warm place.
I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!
This just worked for us too with a bottle that has been locked shut for over 10 years! Thanks so much!
This just worked for me. My decanter has been stopped up for years. I've tried so many things. Thank you for this easy idea. Success!!!
Just removed a decanter stopper that had been stuck for over a year. Used the ice method on the stopper for half an hour and then wrapped the stopper in a very hot cloth.
Just removed a decanter stopper that had been stuck for over a year. Used the ice method on the stopper for half an hour and then wrapped the stopper in a very hot cloth. Tapped neck several times and then the stopper was removed. With thanks.
Stopper lodged in large jar, tried everything to get it out, your method worked like magic...Thanks for the top tip :-)
After 25 years, the perfume bottle with the ground glass stopper is opened! I wrapped it in a washcloth.. just below the stopper and kept it in place with rubber bands. Slowly pour very hot water on the cloth, starting near the top.
Amazing this worked on an old bottle in just a couple of minutes to get a bottle top removed. Our daughter will be so excited to be able to use her bottle again!
Shirley Peters
I just used your method to unstick a fused lid on a vintage glass jar that I purchased to replace another; they are very hard to find. I took a chance on it, hoping for the best.
Just unstopped a ground-glass bottle by putting it in a hot-water (not boiling) bath with an ice cube on top (held in place with an inverted paper cup). After a few minutes, we tapped the top with a wooden spoon and the top soon came off. Thanks for the advice!!!
Just unstopped a ground-glass bottle by putting it in a hot-water (not boiling) bath with an ice cube on top (held in place with an inverted paper cup). After a few minutes, we tapped the top with a wooden spoon and the top soon came off. Thanks for the advice!!!
Genius. It popped out like a charm. I will always remember this. Thank you for saving my decanter!!
OMG I had struggled for an hour and then partner came home and he tried and struggled. 30 secs after reading your solution I got the stopper off. Many thanks .... Success !!
I was amazed at the simplicity of the method.Itook less than 30 seconds for the stopper to come free.
I was very sceptical that anything could work, but this did. I had an old laboratory glass flask that I had tried to get the stopper off of for years, it was wrapped in an old newspaper 1983.
WOW! So excited. Had the stopper stuck in our Waterford decanter (full with cognac) since 2001. Tried this and IT WORKED! Can't wait to try the cognac tonight. THANK YOU!
Unfortunately,the decanter has cracked down one side,and the stopper is still set tight.
I was skeptical, but the stopper came right out in my husband's hand. Thank you!
This worked! Thanks so much:
I wish I had read your suggestion earlier. I pulled the crystal top so hard it broke inside the jar and I could not remove the piece inside the decanter. You suggestions worked and I was able to pull the rest out easily. Thanks!
Wow.. .it worked..tried everything else for ages.. a wonderful solution thanks
Thank you it worked for us too
Steve from Pembroke dock.
had a very expensive whiskey in my decanter, thought i would never get to taste it but hooray, came right off in 1 minute.
Like magic! Thank you so much - was just about to throw away the decanter as couldnt use it with the stopper fused & had tried everything!
THANK YOU! That worked before I drizzled the oil on it!!
yikes it worked
wrapped in pretty hot wet towel
and bowl of water.
set in slightly warm oven with oil
drops for a half hour. actually had
to tap glass stopper, but it popped
right out
I just used your method!!! I'm so excited it was sooo easy!!! I've tried everything! Thank you!!
Thank you. Just used the cold then hot method on a decanter that probably hadn't been opened for 30+ years. Worked like magic. I put the top in a bucket of ice water for 20 min, then wrapped it with a hot washcloth and used a wooden spoon, tapping on each of 4 sides twice and voila... opened. Thank you.
Brilliant / thank you !
Amazing!! Just put cutglass marmalade jar up to neck in hot water, left for less than a minute, tapped side of top twice and - voila - stopper came out without any pressure after being stuck for years. No oil required. Thanks a million
Of everything I tried THIS WORKED in about 3 mins! Hot paper towel in the microwave, wrapped around the neck, a couple of taps on the stopper and TADA!!! Thank you !
Thank you Jackie Blue! I just opened for a neighbor, a $4,000 bottle of Remy Martin Louis XIII cognac that has had a stuck crystal stopper for 10 years. It took me about 10 minutes and they think I am a genius.
Success! Thank you!
I had despaired of getting the stopper out, fearful of breaking my decanter. I tried your method and it worked! Thank you. I will share
your trick with frinds
Try soaking it in a tub or sink filled with very hot boiling water so that the whole bottle is under the water. You may even try to put some dawn dish soap in it too for a few hours, or until the water cools enough to get your hands in. Try to open in under the water, hold the bottle with one hand and use a wash cloth to try and pull it off.
Shirley, golden7673 AT yahoo.com
Do not EVER put fine glass or crystal into water hotter than you would place a baby in. It will cause it to burst or crack.
Hello! I was just able to remove a stuck stopper in a very old crystal decanter. A few details: My decanter was filled with water for a very long time and nothing would get it out! So I put olive oil on the area where the stopper was stuck and than placed the decanter on the flat surface of my stove-top while baking chicken at 325 degrees. It did not budge until I raised the temperature to 400 for the last 15 minutes to brown the meat. Be careful! I think what helped in my case was that the decanter was full of water. Hope this helps. I was so pleased with the results, I had been trying just about everything.
This is to thank everyone who responded to the request for help to remove a glass stopper from a glass decanter. Well guys, it worked last evening. We did not expect to ever again to pour wine from this very old bottle. Gratefully, thanks, thanks, thanks!
The instructions I followed are from P.D. Graham. The decanter had just been filled with wine, up to the base of the neck. The decanter was placed in a container of hot water to heat the neck. It had snowed earlier so we had an ample supply of something cold. I took a medium sized plastic margarine container and cut a star in the bottom to allow it to be pushed over the stopper and rest on the lip of the decanter. When we were satisfied that the decanter was warm enough, we packed the marg pot with snow. I then started to gently tap the under side of the stopper. After less than a minute, the stopper popped out of the decanter neck, with no damage to either piece.
A word of warning - the stopper literally popped out of the decanter neck, so be ready and patient!
Thank you so much for this solution, it worked perfectly!
This also worked for me! The stopper was truly stuck and nothing worked. I heated a wet towel in the microwave for 2 minutes and wrapped it around the stopper. I had put 2 drops of kitchen oil around the stopper, tapped it a few times within the wooden spoon, only on one side, took off the towel and the stopper came out like it had never been stuck! Thanks for the tip!!
Worked great on my 50 year old decanter(a wedding present) will now fill with wine and drink your health.
How long did you leave the heated towel around the stopper? Thanks.
Worked like a charm. Be careful with HOT cloth...use tongs or oven mitts to remove.
Thank you!
You could also try using WD40 and spray around the stopper and lip of decanter, leaving it set a few minutes if you're not concerned the whiskey is affected.
The combination of WD40 (tried alone, unsuccessful) AND a quite hot, wet dishcloth wrapped around the neck, with previous dipping of the stopper in crushed ice, allowed the tapping with a wooden spoon to free the twenty-year-stuck stopper. Granny's heir-loom decanter lives again. Thank you!
WOW!!! ... THRIFTY FUN RULES AGAIN!
We had a crystal with stopper stuck for 60+ years. We followed the instructions and placed it in very hot water up to neck. Filled a plastic container with chipped ice and after a few minutes took it out, wrapped a towel around the stopper and tapped very gently with a wooden spoon. After 4 or 5 taps ...POP...the stopper jumped out and I was lucky to have a good hold of it with the towel. Many thanks.
Olive Oil
Yesssss it really works, a stubborn stopped free at last
I used Jackie Blue's suggestion (wrap the neck in hot towel; tap with wooden spoon, drip cooking oil). Worked within minutes. Great tip.
Took a bit of advice from everything I read. No one thing seemed to loosen it. So put a few drops of oil around the stopper, put very hot water in a pan and placed the decanter in it for a few minutes then tapped the stuck part of the stopper with knife quite hard, hitting it upwards and the stopper popped off. So happy, the decanter is a very heavy antique so was very apprehensive about hitting the stopper but it only took about four or five taps.
hello love all ur solutions, however I have a Baccarat Perfume bottle which has no fragrance in it but does have all its labels intact.
to submerse is not an option for me-i cannot destroy the labels-what can u reccomend?
why cant WD 40 work? isnt that what it is for? unsticking things?
Try an ultrasonic cleaner. Ii was successful in 2 out of 2 tries. Using a warm water bath, it took less than 10 minutes for the stopper to fall out in the first case, and in the second case it fell out in under 30 seconds.
I had a vintage bottle of parfum which had never been opened. After cutting the cord which was wrapped around the neck, I then used a sharp knife & tweezers to loosen & remove the plastic. After reading all of these answers I heated up a washcloth in the microwave & secured it around the bottle with a rubber band. I placed another washcloth with several ice cubes on top of the stopper. I wrapped all of this in a hand towel to keep heat in. After a few minutes I unwrapped it all & scored the stopper base with manicure sizzors & tapped gently with a citrus reamer. It worked beautifully. Many thanks to all!
Worked for me too. Stopper had been impossible to remove. I did warm the oil and that seemed to do the trick
I had a stopper stuck tight for about a week in a ship's decanter full of old sweet sherry. I held the neck under a very slow flow from the 'hot' tap of a wash hand basin and held it there as the flowing water heated up while holding the stopper. After less than a couple of minutes the stopper came free. The slow flow meant reduced possibility of the decanter cracking. A small sherry to celebrate tasted even sweeter!
Thanks for the tip. I just removed the stopper on a crystal perfume bottle (no perfume in it). I put a small amount of cooking oil around the top of bottle where the stopper enters the neck of the bottle. I then filled my wash basin with hot tap water up to the lip of the bottle. Left for a few minutes and gently tapped the stopper. Out came the stopper. Fantastic!
Thank you. The hot water and wooden spoon worked in seconds.
I just used the hot water, wood force system and it worked perfectly. Mine was a vinegar cruet. I took a small wash cloth and wet it with very hot water, wrung it out and wrapped it around the neck of the stopper, held it a few minutes, then did the water treatment again. i dried it and tapped it lightly on the edge of my chopping block and "voila" the stopper came out!!
Thank you sooo much! I only had to apply the damp hot towel and, voila! Truly appreciated!
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