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I am taking the time to update all of my outlets and switches in my home since they are 14+ years old or older and most of them are the METALLIC and NOT NYLON and have the vanity/cover plate entirely painted over and its taking me about 20 minutes of futile finagling of unscrewing the slotted screws (slots caked to the brim with paint) on EACH OUTLET/SWITCH, my issue and question to you awesome Goobers is,

Is there a safe, fast and efficient method to remove these paint filled vanity/cover plate slotted screws from the outlets and switches ?

Thank you in Advanced !!

Alyosha_Karamazov
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  • I find that angling the screwdriver with a corner of the tip at one end of the slot and giving it a _light_ tap with a small hammer usually clears the slot quickly. It may need a second pass from the opposite end to clear sufficiently. – HABO Feb 02 '21 at 03:49
  • Be sure to read [our "what to watch out for" article](https://diy.stackexchange.com/questions/168564/first-time-changing-switches-and-outlets-receptacles-anything-special-i-shoul) so you avoid *those* known problems... – Harper - Reinstate Monica Feb 02 '21 at 19:58

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t's the slot in the head of the plate screw that makes unscrewing the screws a hassle! I always curse slot headed screws when I encounter them!

The trick to use that makes the screws unscrew with no problems is to clean out the slot of the screw head. Using a utility knife slice through the dried paint that is clogging the slot. It may take a couple of passes with the knife blade, but it will clear the paint quickly.

Pay attention to your digits (fingers) location when slicing.

The screwdriver tip now has a deeper straighter slot to turn against. No more slipping.

ojait
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  • what do you mean by "digits location" – Alyosha_Karamazov Feb 02 '21 at 02:33
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    @Alyosha_Karamazov digits = fingers in this case – ThreePhaseEel Feb 02 '21 at 02:42
  • @Alyosha_Karamazov- yes, what 3PhaseEel said. (I updated my answer to be more clear.) – ojait Feb 02 '21 at 03:03
  • Note, @Alyosha_Karamazov, that this technique (or simply scraping with a screwdriver, as suggested in a comment on your question) will work on _any_ type of screw head that's been filled with paint, dirt or other gloop making it difficult to unscrew. Slotted screws are _easier_ to clean out, but that's about the only advantage to them. – FreeMan Feb 02 '21 at 13:27
  • Dig paint out of a Philips or Torx screw sometime, and you'll be singing the praises of slotted... – Harper - Reinstate Monica Feb 02 '21 at 19:58