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Valve maintenance is one of the most critical and most physically demanding tasks in municipal water operations. When valves go unexercised, they seize. When valve box covers are pried up with makeshift tools, fingers and toes pay the price. For decades, crews have managed both steps with brute force and improvised methods. The Bo Bop Magnetic Valve Box Lifter and the VEX-400 Battery Powered Valve Exerciser change that equation entirely.
Together, these two tools address every phase of the valve maintenance workflow from safely accessing the valve box to fully exercising the valve with purpose-built engineering that reduces fatigue, minimizes injury risk, and keeps operations running on schedule.
Step One: Access — The Bo Bop Magnetic Valve Box Lifter
Before any valve can be exercised, the cover has to come off. That task sounds simple, but it accounts for a disproportionate share of field injuries. Prying lids with hooks or screwdrivers while crouched in a roadway is a recipe for smashed fingers, pinched toes, and strained backs.
The U.S.SAWS Bo Bop eliminates those risks by replacing the pry bar entirely. The tool features a 34-inch aluminum chassis in high-visibility safety yellow, with a powerful magnet housed in a 4″ x 2″ stainless steel base. The magnetic field is strong enough to penetrate textured lid surfaces and lifts covers up to 25 lbs cleanly from a standing position.
How It Works
Operation is straightforward and can be completed without bending or kneeling:
- Strike — If the lid is stuck or seized in its frame, use the solid metal end of the Bo Bop to strike the center of the cover and break it free.
- Place — Set the magnet on the center of the valve box lid. The magnetic field adheres through surface texture and minor debris.
- Lift — Pull straight up. The cover comes with it.
- Set Aside — Move the lid clear of the work area.
- Release — Twist and push the handle forward to break the magnetic bond and release the lid.
At only 8 lbs, the Bo Bop is light enough for a single operator to carry and use throughout a full maintenance route without fatigue. The ergonomic benefit compounds over the course of a work season eliminating repetitive bending across dozens or hundreds of valve box accesses adds up to a measurable reduction in strain.
The Bo Bop is designed for small water valve covers and metal electrical box covers the precise applications where crews are most likely to default to dangerous improvised methods.
“Every time a crew member bends down and pries off a lid with a screwdriver, that’s an injury waiting to happen. The Bo Bop is the kind of tool that makes you wonder why we ever did it any other way — it’s fast, it’s safe, and it pays for itself the moment it keeps someone off workers’ comp.”— Bill Glynn, President of Water & Sewer Sales, U.S. Saws
Step Two: Exercise — The VEX-400 Battery Powered Valve Exerciser
With the cover removed and access established, the Valve Exerciser takes over.
The U.S.SAWS Valve Exerciser is a portable, battery-powered valve turning machine built specifically for municipal water departments, water and wastewater treatment facilities, and industrial facilities where regular valve cycling is a maintenance requirement. Its core function is opening, closing, and exercising valves, it is engineered to be performed with minimal manual labor and maximum operator protection.
Power and Torque
The Valve Exerciser produces up to 400 ft-lbs of peak torque through a torque-multiplying gearbox a critical design feature that allows the unit to achieve high output from an 18V Metabo battery platform. That gearbox is what separates the VEX-400 from battery-powered drills or impact drivers pressed into service as makeshift valve turners. It is purpose-matched to the Metabo motor; no aftermarket drill substitutions are supported.
For valves in good condition, a single battery can cycle approximately 30 twelve-inch valves on a full charge.
The package includes three 18V 5.2Ah lithium-ion batteries, providing enough capacity for a full day of field operations.
Reach and Adaptability
Valve depths vary significantly across aging infrastructure. The VEX-400 addresses this with an extension system:
- Without extensions: Reaches depths from 8″ to 36″
- With all included extensions (1 ft, 2 ft, 3 ft): Reaches depths from 8″ to 108″
- Custom sizes: Available upon request for non-standard installations
The unit breaks down for transport and ships with a hard storage case, making it practical for service vehicles with limited bed space.
Safety Systems
The VEX-400 incorporates multiple operator protection features, particularly important when encountering frozen or severely corroded valves:
- Trigger hand guard — Protects the operator’s hand during operation
- Stable foot base — Provides a secure platform that resists torque reaction
- Overload protection — Prevents motor damage under extreme load conditions
- Shear key — A sacrificial mechanical fuse that breaks before the gearbox sustains damage, protecting the highest-cost component in the drivetrain
Turn Counter
The built-in rotation counter tracks turns in both the open and close directions. This feature is essential for compliance with valve maintenance programs that require verified full-cycle operation, and for identifying valves that may be partially obstructed or mechanically degraded.
The Complete Workflow: Why Both Tools Matter
The Bo Bop and the Valve Exerciser are complementary in function and philosophy. Both tools are engineered around the same core principle: the work crews perform every day should not injure them.
| Bo Bop (US30398) | VEX-400 (US75005) | |
|---|---|---|
| Function | Magnetic valve box lid lifter | Battery-powered valve exerciser |
| Weight | 8 lbs | 45 lbs |
| Key Spec | 25 lb lifting capacity | 400 ft-lbs peak torque |
| Power Source | No power required | 18V Metabo Li-Ion (3 batteries included) |
| Reach / Depth | 34″ handle | 8″ – 108″ (with extensions) |
| Price | $324.50 | $6,739.40 (Deluxe Package) |
Manual valve box access exposes workers to crush injuries and repetitive strain. Manual valve turning, especially on neglected valves exposes workers to sudden torque release, exhaustion, and back injury.
Addressing only one of these hazards leaves the other unresolved.
A crew equipped with both tools can execute a complete valve maintenance visit, remove the cover safely, exercise the valve fully, document turn counts, replace the cover without improvising any step of the process.
That standardization matters for safety compliance, for maintenance record accuracy, and for the longevity of both the infrastructure and the workforce.
“Water departments aren’t just buying two tools; they’re buying a complete valve maintenance program they can actually standardize. When your crew can handle every step from cover removal to turn count documentation without improvising anything, that’s not just safer, that’s justifiable.”— Bill Glynn, President of Water & Sewer Sales, U.S. Saws
For water departments building or upgrading their valve maintenance programs, the Bo Bop and VEX-400 together represent a complete solution to a workflow that has historically relied on physical strength and luck.
