How to independently eliminate the creaking slats of a wooden bed

Even those who have spared no expense in purchasing a bed are not immune to the appearance of squeaks - over time, the structure wears out naturally. However, if in most cases unpleasant sounds appear several years later, then why does a new bed purchased at a high price squeak and how to deal with it? Eliminating extraneous sounds in this case can only be effective if you find out the reason for their occurrence or take maximum precautions.

Beds 200×200

Why do beds squeak?

There may be several reasons why bedroom furniture creaks. The most common ones include:

• Wear of the structure. During operation, the connections and fastenings gradually become loose - and the question of how to eliminate the creaking of the bed, and how much it will cost, becomes more and more relevant.
• Problems with the bed base. A base made of wooden slats may creak due to contact between elements, broken fasteners, or a manufacturing defect if the base is new.
• Spring mattress. With use, the elements in the spring unit may become deformed and begin to rub against each other. This happens especially often with Bonnell spring mattresses. In this case, the question of how to get rid of a squeaking bed cannot be resolved without replacing the mattress.
• Legs. If the furniture is not level, a squeaking sound may occur due to the friction of the legs on the floor. Creaking is also possible due to contact between the frame and the upper part of the leg when the bed dries out.

Beds 180×200

Causes

Before you start to deal with the problem, study the possible causes of its occurrence. Many of them are associated with a long period of use of the bed. Over time, the wood from which the frame and base are made begins to dry out. The mattress also becomes faulty and loses its former quality.

However, even a new bed can cause grinding noise. This indicates its improper assembly or poor quality materials. To more accurately determine the source of the annoying sound, you should take a closer look at the following things:

• Mattress. In most cases, springs creak when they are not isolated from each other. But not only spring mattresses can become a source of unpleasant sound. Poor quality polymer in an all-polymer model leads to grinding noise.
• Lifting mechanism. The reason may be weak fasteners (heaviness and sudden movements of people on the bed are the reasons for weakening of fastenings), or a malfunction of the spring unit.
• High legs. Occurs at the junction of the bed frame and legs. And the higher the legs, the greater the risk of squeaking.
• Support strips. They are lamellas that make up the base of the frame. They contain an orthopedic base and a mattress. One of the possible causes of grinding is touching parts.
• Slatted base. Wooden slats that are attached to the frame. Most often, an unpleasant sound comes from the place where the support bars are attached. In addition, wooden parts tend to dry out.

What if the new bed squeaked?

When the furniture has just been purchased, and the question has already arisen of how to remove the creaking of the bed, the situation requires immediate action. In this case, you shouldn’t look for the source of the squeak yourself: such phenomena are most often associated with poor-quality assembly or factory defects.

The best solution is to contact the place where the bed was purchased. Store employees either correct defects in the assembly, or, if the defect is beyond doubt, replace it with other furniture.

Legs

It happens that the reason for the creaking lies in the legs of the furniture. This defect is the most difficult task for home repairs. The legs, of course, can be replaced with others, but installing them can be quite difficult even for professionals. But you can simply remove the legs, for example by cutting them down, without special skills and tools. In addition, instead of a boring classic bed, the result can be a new fashionable and original element of the interior - a platform for sleeping and relaxing, standing directly on the floor.

How to determine the source of a squeak?

It is not necessary to completely disassemble the furniture to determine why it creaks. In such cases, experts recommend performing several simple operations:

• Remove the mattress, lay it on the floor and remove the slatted base.
• Check the mattress. To do this, you can sit on it, lie down or stand on all fours, pressing on different areas. If there is a squeak, the springs are already worn out, it’s time to change the bedding. If the mattress does not squeak, you need to put it in the bed and rock it slightly - sometimes the sound appears due to friction against the frame.
• Check the base. By pressing on it and pumping it a little, you can determine whether you can hear the creaking of the bed slats. The sound can be caused by incorrect or loose fastenings, or cracks and chips that have appeared.
• Check the frame. When checking, it is necessary to shake the bed itself - perhaps one of the fastening units or support strips has become loose.
• Determine the creaking of the bed lift mechanism. To do this, just raise and lower the structure. If an extraneous sound appears, the lifting mechanism must be replaced, since the gas lift cannot be repaired.
• Inspect the legs. Perhaps they are not firmly on the floor due to unevenness or are poorly secured to the frame. Also, the wooden floor under the bed may squeak when the boards become loose.

Beds 140×190

Prevention

If you are lucky enough not to encounter such a situation, this does not mean that you do not need to do anything. It is always easier to prevent a problem than to eliminate it.

1. Of course, the quality of the bed and mattress itself directly affects the occurrence of squeaking. Therefore, when purchasing, you should pay attention to the quality certificate. An unsuitable mattress or broken bed not only leads to annoying rattling noises, but also to health problems. It should be noted that polymer mattresses have a lower risk of malfunctions. When choosing, you should pay attention to ventilation, because it can become moldy.
2. It is better to choose wood or metal as the frame material. They last longer and cost less. The density of a chipboard frame is lower, therefore, there is a greater likelihood of deformation under high gravity. If the bed is wooden, then varnish its frame to prevent the wood from drying out. Regarding the type of wood: it is worth taking a closer look at durable species such as oak, mahogany or rosewood.
3. Pay attention to each lamella, it should not wobble or dangle, all screws and screws must be in place.
4. When installing the bed yourself, pay attention to the evenness of the surface. If the distortions are strong, then it will become unusable ahead of time. Uneven pressure on the frame leads to misalignment of parts.

How to remove squeaks without disassembling the bed?

You can eliminate bed squeaks without dismantling the entire structure. In this case, it all depends on the reason for the appearance of extraneous sounds.

• Mattress. As mentioned above, the cause may be wear of the springs - in this case, the sleeping accessory can no longer be used. If the new mattress begins to creak, the design of the unit may be slightly damaged. It’s worth trying to turn it over; if the problem persists, contact the store for a replacement.
• Strengthening the structure. If the fasteners are loose, they need to be tightened, often this is enough to eliminate the squeak. In furniture made from chipboard, it sometimes makes sense to reinforce the most vulnerable joints of parts with metal corners.
• Legs. If the creaking appears because of them, you can try moving the bed to a more level area of ​​the floor or placing leveling supports-clamps under the legs. It is also worth checking and tightening their fastenings to the bed itself.
• Base. If the lamellas or lamella holders are damaged, they are easy to replace. This is a cheap consumable item that is easy to find on the Internet.
• Frame. The easiest way to eliminate squeaking is to tighten all fasteners. However, this may also only help for a short period of time and will require more thorough repairs over time.

Beds 120×200

Advantages of using lamellas

So, the existing spaces between the slats provide excellent ventilation for the mattress. Thanks to this, the likelihood of moisture accumulation, the appearance of an unpleasant odor, the proliferation of microorganisms, the formation of mold and mildew is completely eliminated.

High-quality slats, due to their curved shape, have a positive effect on the performance characteristics of the mattress, increasing its service life. Therefore, if you notice that one of the lamellas has broken or they have begun to creak, there is no need to put it off. Contact our store, we will help you choose the slat options of maximum quality that you need in terms of size at an affordable price.

Thorough elimination of squeaks

If you are not planning to replace the bed, you should try to strengthen its elements as securely as possible. Usually the frame is strengthened with glue in several stages:

• disassembling the frame;
• wiping parts, removing dust and dirt;
• degreasing the surface;
• applying glue to holes and joints;
• connecting parts, assembling the frame;
• leaving the bed until completely dry.

It is also possible to strengthen the structure of the bed with furniture corners - they are attached to the weakest joints and firmly fixed.

How to make a chest of drawers with your own hands at home

To process the structure, it is better to disassemble the creaky elements and degrease the joints with alcohol. Then let the structure dry completely, and only then apply lubricant. Wait until the junction of the wooden elements of the bed with the lifting mechanism is completely dry. Only after this can you begin reassembly. By performing these steps, the surface will become smooth and better protected from friction. Since there will be no friction, the creaking will accordingly disappear.

Alas, this is not always what causes the squeak. Read more about the renovation here.

We need to consider other possible options.

How to treat rubbing parts?

If the furniture is in good working order, it is enough to treat the rubbing parts with lubricant to permanently eliminate extraneous sounds. It remains to find out how to lubricate the bed from squeaking - for this you can use:

• paraffin - in the form of a special bar or an ordinary candle;
• laundry soap - for rubbing until completely smooth;
• silicone lubricants - special compositions for treating parts subject to friction;
• WD-40 is an aerosol for short-term lubrication of beds with a metal frame.

If the bed squeaks, you don’t have to immediately think about replacing it. In most cases, the causes of unnecessary sounds can be combated - just carefully examine the entire structure, find the sources of creaking and put a little effort into eliminating them.

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Sealing joints

A very good proven method for eliminating bed squeaks is to use rubber cement to seal the holes that are causing the bed to squeak. The glue remains quite flexible and at the same time reliably holds the filled space. You need to use this method according to the following instructions:

1. Disassemble the bed into the smallest possible parts to assess the degree of wear.
2. Degrease all joints with any alcohol and let it evaporate.
3. Carefully apply rubber adhesive to each of the prepared parts.
4. Immediately after application, we put it back together and make a wooden bed and, placing it in its usual place, wait for the glue to dry completely, in accordance with the recommendations on the packaging.

After this, the squeak should not remain. The only disadvantage of the described method is that the glue between the elements will not allow you to easily disassemble the bed again in the future.

Preparation

If the above methods do not give a positive result, then you will have to move on to more serious work - dismantling the creaking bed. To do this, we may need a tool and auxiliary material to lubricate the rubbing particles:

A set of screwdrivers or wrenches, it depends on the fastener itself;

• Metal corners and screws (wooden reinforcing elements can also be used);
• Paraffin or candle;
• Ski lubricant;
• Graphite grease;
• Litol;
• Laundry soap;
• WD-40;
• Silicone spray;
• Rubber based adhesive.

We prepare all the tools and auxiliary equipment so as not to be distracted in the future.

Slats and lifting mechanism

On some beds, due to initially poor quality, or due to prolonged use of the furniture, the slats themselves begin to creak.

Fixing this problem is not at all difficult.

If it is the lamellas that are the source of the squeak, first try to check how well and firmly the lat holders are fastened. Loose slats can move when a person turns over on the bed, which causes corresponding noises. If a more secure fixation does not help, you can also try swapping a few slats. Listen to which ones creak. When this measure does not help, the best solution is to replace the problematic slats along with the lath holders. Choose exactly by size and configuration.

Alternatively, you can also wrap the ends of the slats in fabric, as described in the method above. This method will eliminate squeaking almost 100%.

Since we are talking about the fact that a bed with a lifting mechanism creaks, it would be wrong not to touch on this issue.

The source of the noise may be the lifting mechanism itself.

Lifting mechanisms with gas lifts

Lifting mechanisms used on beds come in several types.

These are conventional mechanical, spring and gas shock absorbers (gas lifts).

The lifting structures are based on metal components. The gas lift itself can creak if it wears out or breaks, or the springs. Lubricating springs does not always have an effect. Many gas lifts are unsuitable for repair. Therefore, only replacement will help here.

Also pay attention to the design of the lifting mechanism. Since these are moving parts, they may creak when moved. Add some lubricant there and check if the problem goes away. You can use regular WD40.

In extreme cases, you will have to completely change the entire structure of the bed base lifting mechanism.

Bed design with lifting mechanism