How To Stop A Bed From Squeaking

Updated

November 7, 2022

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After a stressful day of daily activities, at home or at the office, the last thing you'd want to hear is squeaking coming from your bed. It's loud! Irritating, and awful to hear, especially at night. Whether you sleep alone or with a partner, the creaks that your bed makes can be embarrassing for yourself and for others who live near to you. Every toss and turn in your bed is a walking nightmare. This post will fix that.

There are several reasons why your bed may be squeaking. You will need to identify the root cause of your bed making such noises and take measures according to it. 

Pinpoint the source

The first thing anyone needs to do is locate where the creaks are coming out from your bed. It can either be your bed frame, bedpost, mattress, or the box spring. Usually, a memory foam mattress may not squeak, so you don’t have to check that. But the bad news for you if you own either an innerspring bed because these beds tend to creak after a half a dozen years.

Pinpoint the source of the creaking by first lying down on the bed and starting to move around. As you move around, you can identify the source. Also, ask your partner to locate the creak as you move around so that it will be easy for you to find the creak. 

If you’re having trouble finding the source, try removing the mattress from the bed frame, and try again. This will help determine if it's an old mattress or the frame itself.

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Squeaking can be from uneven floors

In the event that you are unable to locate the source of the creak, look below your bed. Uneven floors can sometimes cause creaking instead of the bed. 

Verify whether your bed is balanced and aligned correctly. Put a few pieces of folded paper or cloth below the legs if it’s uneven. You can also move your bed to another part of the room to see if that fixes the issue.

Tighten your joints

Usually, all beds fasten with nuts and bolt in at joints. Over time, these nuts can become loose and cause a lot of noise and squeaks. Fasten your joints properly with a screwdriver or spanner to stop squeaking. 

In cases of too much rust on the joints or nuts, you can remove them and brush and clean them and reattach everything. If this is the case, it would be quicker to get a new frame. We put together our list of the best bed frames in Australia that you might find helpful. 

Lubricate the joints.

Brust off the dust around the nuts and bolts and grease them with lubricant. A simple lubricant like WD-40 will protect your nuts and balls from further rust and corrosion. Try to tighten them again after this.

Wooden bed frame creaking

If you're thinking "how can I stop a wooden bed from squeaking" here's the how to prevent and stop it. When wooden beds start to dry out, their contact points make creaking noises. A wooden bed will wear off faster if you live in a humid or damp area. Investigate your bed and find the source of the creak when you move around. After you determine where the noise comes from, rub a candle along the contact point until the wax moisturises and greases it.

You may still hear creaking after applying wax. Give it some time. It will take time for the wax from your candle to settle inside the contact point. In the event it still creaks, you may need to moisturise the contact point more.

Fill up the gaps

Wooden beds also have the issue of hardening wood, which leaves gaps between or at contact points. Due to the fact that most wooden beds do not have nuts for tightening, the connection points between your bed are usually the contact points. Wax alone cannot fill up these spaces. For these areas, corks offer the best solution. Shape them to size and place them wherever the spacing is.

Conclusion

Locate the source of the squeaking. Reposition your bed a little further away from the wall. If your bed has wheels, you can simply remove them or apply some WD-40 onto the wheels. Plus, tighten and/or lubricate the joints.

Aside from these factors, it can be your old spring mattress that needs replacement, or you need a new bed frame. If that is the problem, you may have to shed a few dollars more for buying a new mattress.