It has happened a few times in my life where I install a new shower curtain and hooks, and then constantly struggle trying to pull it open, because the metal hooks get kind of stuck on the metal bar.
When I moved into my new place, it occurred to me that metal on metal usually needs to be lubricated in some way. So I sprayed a paper towel with some WD-40 and wiped it along the top of the shower bar.
My shower curtain now zips along the bar like the Eurostar!
I rocketh.
Should have used a real lube. WD-40 is just going to leave a gunky residue that will make things worse in the not-so-long term. Note you will have to clean it off the rod and the hooks. Nasty.
Clean it off before it gets bad and try a moly-style clear lube.
You could always post this on Life Hacking.
WD-40 isn’t so bad for this application.
I’d never recommend any type of grease for this, but Silicone spraywould work pretty well.
They make shower curtain rings with little ball bearings on them. Those things just FLY across the bar.
Yep. AND the last time I needed to buy curtain rings I found hooks with a hook on each side - like these - that are the best ones I’ve ever had. I can take down the curtain and wash it without needing to take off the liner.
It’s the small things that make me happy.
That looks awesome - but it also looks like it’s $8.50 for ONE ring. At the very least, the item description gives no indication of how many come. 8 oz package could be just about anything.
I got mine at Target (I think - it’s been a couple of years) and it was something like 8 for the package of however many grommets there are in a curtain - more than the plastic rings, yes, but since I use a liner and curtain, worth it for me.
Bought ours at Home Depot for like $10. They are awesome.
Next time it happens give the metal bar a swipe with some wax paper. Anyone whose ever sold clothing in a retail store knows this trick to make the hangers glide on the racks! Works like a charm.
That’s why I switched to rings, and not hooks. No need for lubrication.
The best solution I found to this problem is to slide a length of close-fitting PVC tubing over the metal shower rail. Go to your gardening store and look for the PVC tubing used in lawn irrigation systems. Not only will you have a friction free shower curtain but you will stop any rust forming on the metal shower rail.
But then you have a shower rod made of PVC…