Learning what to do when chair wheels keep falling off will not only save you from accidentally hurting yourself. It will also save the floor from scratches caused by the falling chair wheels, especially wooden floors.
Chairs with wheels tend to get weak, and the sockets are likely to expand due to prolonged use or removing and inserting the caster or pin regularly. If the socket of your chair is hit hard by a heavier object, it can lead to a crack on the wheels, thereby causing it to keep falling off.
To fix the chair wheels, remove them, confirm the type and size of the caster, and get a new caster wheel to replace the old ones. Also, tighten the socket, then glue the wheels on. Having a loose wheel is not a good thing as you can fall and hurt yourself badly. This article gives you a step-by-step procedure for fixing chair wheels that keeps falling off.
Key Points:
- Many causes of chair wheels falling off without notice exist, such as damaged sockets, unfastened screws, and rusted pins.
- To fix the issue, fasten loosed pins and screws to the chair wheel socket tightly – this should be properly done to avoid accidentally falling off the chair.
- Replace rusted and corroded pins and screws because this can make the socket wobble and weak, which can result in chair wheels falling off
- Purchase quality chairs with a longtime guarantee save you the stress of fixing your chair wheel regularly and also helps you save some cash on maintenance.
- Use the right size and type of caster stems for your chair wheels. Though 95% of caster stems are grip ring stems, other types are also available. So ensure you are getting the right one for your chair wheel.
What Are The Possible Causes Of Chair Wheels Keep Falling Off?
The possible causes of chair wheels keep falling off is as a result of a loose, damaged, or weak socket. If the socket expands in size, it can cause the wheels of the chairs to go off. Furthermore, if the pins fastened to the wheels through the socket are rusted or eroded, they will lose their ability to hold the wheels in place because the pins are out of the original shapes.
Below are elaborate causes:
Damaged Socket
Using an inferior quality chair can result in a damaged socket over a very short period. The socket can also be damaged due to too much friction on the chair. An object can even strike it and damage the socket completely. These problems may even cause the pins to come off or get stuck in the socket.
Unfastened Screw
If the screws are not properly fastened on the sides of the casters, they are likely to fall off. Always check to make sure they are not loose. But if they are, it can be easily knotted back using a plier to tighten the screws.
Rusted Pins
If these pins get corrosive, they may no longer have any capacity to hold the wheels in the socket, thereby causing chair wheels to fall. Over time, pins that fasten wheels can get out of shape because of rust. The only answerable solution to this is to replace them with new ones.
How To Fix Chair Wheels That Keep Falling Off?
Fixing chair wheels is necessary as you may not want to sit on a wrongly positioned chair all day long. This situation can cause back pain, waist pain, and even leg pain. For instance, patients using a chair after spinal surgery should be more careful. The chair must be properly fixed to aid comfort to the user and prevent issues of falling off wheels.
So, you must know what to do when chair wheels keep falling off yourself? It is quite easy and can be done anywhere. But you need a few tools to facilitate this DIY method.
Some tools required in fixing your chair wheels are-
- Rubber mallet or soft hammer
- Pliers
- Flathead screwdriver
- Pry-bar
- Phillips-head screwdriver
- Caster
- Pins
- Mounting hardware
- Dust tape
- Lubricant
Using these tools, you’ll be able to fix your chair wheels on your own in no time; follow this step-by-step method below;
Step 1 – Remove The Wheels
This is the easiest part of fixing a chair wheel that keeps falling off because you don’t need a tool for this method. However, there are different stem types of chair wheel stems.
But many chair wheels have the grip ring stem with the shape of a C. other stem types are: welded or fixed and threaded stems.
Once you have figured out the type of stem your chair wheel has, and it’s the very common grip ring stem, just pull it firmly. Afterward, methodically follow these guidelines:
- Set down the chair on its side: by setting the chair to its side, you have full access to the wheels
- Remove the chair wheels using your hand, towel, or gloves: using your hand, towel, or gloves, grip a side of the chair wheel and drag it from the chair’s base. If the caster isn’t pulling out from the socket, your stem is either a welded, fixed, or threaded stem. So, seek help from professionals. While doing this, make sure to grip the chair wheel for ease.
- Use a screwdriver: you can try using a flat blade screwdriver to remove the pry caster from the socket if it is stuck. But you have to be sure that your stem is a grip ring stem. As a result of rust or corrosion, it might be quite difficult to pull the caster. So, apply a lubricant and allow it to stay for some time before trying again.
Step 2 – Know Your Chair Wheel Caster Size And Type
Remember, there are different types of stems and casters. The most common types of casters are:
- Locking casters
- Plate casters
- Stem casters
- Hollow kingpin casters and
- Rigid casters.
Also, there are different varieties of stem casters as well. But the 3 common ones are:
- Threaded stem
- Grip ring stem
- Grip neck stem.
Threaded stems are made of threads that are screwed into a receptacle that has already been threaded.
Grip ring stem– An already drilled hole is made in the product, inserted with casters, and held together with a tensioned steel ring on the stem.
Grip neck stem – This stem has wood furniture sockets that are tension-held in a predrilled hole.
Once you have been able to identify the stem type of your chair wheel, measure the stem size using a meter rule, tape, or a caliper. The range of diameter will like to be 7/16 and 7/8 by length.
Step 3 – Get New Chair Wheels
When choosing new chair wheels, consider the ones with very high-quality material, one that will be safe for the floors, ensures easy installation, and longtime guarantee. Also, consider noiseless rolling movements and a steel frame for heavyweight capacity. If there are ball bearings in the wheel and if it swivels, you’re sure of easy movement.
Step 4 – Remove The Old Wheels
Use the screwdrivers and pry bar to remove the old wheels carefully. Compare this new chair wheel you bought to see if they indeed match the size and type of your former chair wheels.
Step 5 – Replace the old ones with the new wheel
Now you have gotten the new chair wheels, simply drive the caster stem into the chair base socket if it is the common grip ring stem type. If still difficult getting the caster stem into the socket, you can apply some lubricant to the grip ring for swift movement or use a plier to compress the grip ring into the socket.
Perhaps, you can glue the pins permanently to the sockets. But, taking them out again can damage the wheels because it was completely stuck to the socket.
The gluing method is not too convenient, but you can opt for this method instead if you are out of options. However, use glues that bond, grab fast, probably in seconds, and glues that are 100% waterproof.
Conclusion
This article has explained why your chair wheels keep falling off, and it shows some steps to fix the chair wheel, like removing it from the chair and identifying the size. Besides, it shows what you must do to get a new one matching the damaged wheel and how to replace it.
However, if you still can’t fix your chair wheels because they don’t have the common grip ring stem wheel, get a professional to help out. But don’t use the gluing method unless there’s no other option; you can damage the wheels.
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