10 Easy and Budget-friendly Tips for Extending the Life of Existing Office Chair Wheels

One of the best ways to ensure that you have maximum freedom of movement while working is to ensure that your chair has office chair wheels. Throughout the day, you may need to move from your desk to the cabinets, and back again. Having an ergonomic office chair that has wheels will make that easier for you. 

However, as useful as they are, office chair rollers come with a lot of added maintenance requirements. Unlike a regular comfortable desk chair without wheels, you will have to deal with a lot of moving parts, meaning you will not be able to get away with simply wiping down your chair with a moist cloth. 

The thought of all of that added care and maintenance is what causes a lot of people to shy away from buying office chairs with wheels. However, with the right maintenance schedule, and a few handy cleaning tips, you can enjoy your chair for many years. This article will give you a few budget-friendly tips that you can employ to increase the life expectancy of your office chair with wheels. 

The Importance of Office Chair Wheels in the Office or Home Office

Wheels for office chairs are very important when working in an office where you have to reach for many of the items you need regularly. If you are forced to get up each time to need a file from the cabinet, it can get very exhausting by the end of the day. 

Another issue to consider is the need for freedom of movement while you are working. That is why the best ergonomic chair designs are never restrictive, because moving freely is a big part of how comfortable you will feel while working. If your chair has wheels, you can move in any direction that you want, and this makes working for long hours a lot easier and less strenuous on your body. 

If you have a particular type of floor, such as hardwood floors, you may be worried about leaving scratch marks every time you move your chair. This can make your beautiful hardwood floor look old and worn out. Having a chair with wheels eliminates that issue. You will be free to slide around as much as you want without giving a second thought to how your floors will handle it.

When Is It Time to Address Chair Wheel Maintenance?

Not many people know how or when to address the issue of maintaining a computer chair wheel. In most offices, this type of maintenance is regularly overlooked until the problems are so bad that the chair will need to be replaced. 

However, this does not have to be the case. If you can quickly identify some of the indicators that suggest it is time to address chair wheel maintenance, your office chair can last a very long time. Here are six things you can look out for: 

Wheels Are Squeaking

One of the most common issues with wheels for office chairs is that sooner or later, they will start to squeak and rattle. If you work in a quiet office, this is not a good thing to subject your colleagues to daily. This is why you should be ready to deal with a squeak as soon as you notice it developing. 

The many moving parts of an office chair make such sounds inevitable. These are usually the first parts to get worn out before the rest of the chair. If you hear your wheels squeaking, take quick action before the problem gets worse than it is.

Chair Is Unstable

If one or more of the office chair rollers is damaged, your chair will become unstable. You will usually notice this while you are sitting or whenever you roll your chair. Using an unstable chair can be very dangerous because you never know how long you have until the entire chair falls apart. 

Wheels Not Turning

In most cases, if your office chair wheels are not turning the way they are supposed to, this is a sign that your chair is overdue for maintenance. The wheels have a lot of moving parts that need to fit in perfectly with each other. If any of these parts are damaged, the wheels may no longer be able to turn properly, meaning a repair job will be necessary. 

One or More Wheels Fall Off

The wheels for desk-chair use carry all your weight when you sit down or roll around your office. As such, they are prone to getting damaged long before other parts of your chair. If your wheels begin to fall off, your chair will no longer be suitable for use. 

Luckily, even when the wheels fall off, the situation may not be as bad as you think. Sometimes all you need is a screwdriver and some routine maintenance to make sure that your chair gets back to its best.

Chair Goes Beyond Its Warranty

Sometimes, you do not have to wait until an office chair caster falls off before you consider maintenance. If your chair has gone beyond its stated warranty but it is still in good condition, good for you! 

However, that warranty was there for a reason, so it might be time to flip your chair over and take a look at how its various parts have handled the workload. If you catch any issues early, you may be able to extend the lifespan of your chair even further.

According to the Maintenance Schedule

You need to have a regular maintenance schedule for wheels for office chairs, without waiting for any problems to develop. This means that even when everything seems fine, if your schedule says it’s time for maintenance, do it! It does not take long to flip your chair over and take a look at each of the individual wheels. Just a few minutes may add years to your chair's life expectancy. 

10 Budget-friendly Tips for Cleaning and Maintenance Office Chair Wheels

Maintaining office chair wheels is not something that should make a huge dent in your budget. If you have a large business, with many employees who have office chairs with wheels, you have an even bigger reason to want to cut the costs of maintenance as much as possible. 

This is why the following budget-friendly cleaning and maintenance tips are essential for every office worker to remember: 

1. Regular Cleaning

You will be surprised at how effective regular cleaning can be for maintaining your office chair caster in good working condition. Dust, grease, and grime affect even the best office chair casters, and if left unchecked, the dirt buildup could seriously damage any moving parts on your chair. 

However, the cleaning process is neither difficult nor expensive. In most cases, a moist cloth is all you need to remove any dust and grime that may be stuck on your chair. You can use a toothpick or similar object to clean any hard-to-reach nooks and crannies.

2. Lubrication

Every computer chair wheel consists of various moving parts, such as axles and gears. These parts regularly rub against each other as you roll your chair around the office, which can generate a lot of friction. If left unchecked, too much friction can cause a lot of damage to your chair. 

This is why you need to regularly lubricate all the moving parts of your chair, especially after using a wet cloth to clean them. Your chair wheel is so small that even a small bottle of lubricant should last you a long time.

3. Tighten Bolts and Screws

If your office chair wheels are making any rattling sounds whenever you roll across the office, this might be due to some loose nuts, bolts, and screws. The problem with this, besides the irritating noise, is that loose bolts and screws cause an increase in the rate of wear and tear on the affected parts. 

If you are handy with a spanner and screwdriver, tightening your bolts and screws should be an easy fix. You can do a quick research on how to remove office chair wheels before getting started. This way, you will avoid causing more damage while trying to fix the chair. 

4. Consider the Weight Capacity

All office chair rollers are designed to hold a specific amount of weight. Going about this weight capacity will put your chair under a lot more pressure than it was designed for, increasing the chance of damaging the chair. 

An example is an office chair for women who weigh less than 200 pounds. If this chair is used by a large man weighing 275 pounds, it will not be long before it breaks down. This is why making sure you watch the weight capacity is a big part of maintaining your chair in good working condition.

5. Do Not Abuse the Wheel Features

The temptation to roll around the office and engage in some horseplay with your colleagues may be high, but remember that this is not what the wheels for office chairs were created for. As part of your maintenance plan, you should take care not to abuse the wheels of your chair by using it for anything other than work-related activities. 

6. Non-abrasive Cleaners

When cleaning the wheels for desk chair casters, be very careful when choosing the type of cleaner you are going to use. Sometimes, the amount of dirt and grime on the wheels might tempt you into considering some abrasive cleaners, but this is not a good idea. 

In most cases, a wet cloth and perhaps a bit of liquid soap should do the trick. Abrasive cleaners are not recommended for cleaning any moving parts of your chair because these have to remain as smooth as possible. 

7. Examine the Cylinder

Most office chairs with wheels also come with a gas cylinder. This is used to adjust the height of the chair and is usually one of the most vulnerable of all the moving parts of your chair. If you need to take a look at the cylinder, all you have to do is flip the chair over. 

Cylinders are not easy to fix once they are damaged, which is another reason why you should never exceed the chair’s weight capacity. Once damaged, the best option may be to replace the entire cylinder with a new one.

8. Consider the Floor Type

The type of floors on which your computer chair wheel will be rolling has a huge impact on its lifespan. Smooth hardwood floors or soft carpets are usually great for keeping your chair wheels in good working order. 

However, in some cases, you may have to work in an office with a bumpy concrete floor, or uneven times. This will put a lot of strain on your chair wheels every time you hit a bump. As such, if you are working in such conditions, you will need to inspect and maintain your chair a lot more often.

9. Safe Storage

The lifespan of your office chair caster and wheels may be severely affected by the conditions of the environment in which the chair is stored. Storing your chairs in damp conditions, for example, can cause rust to build up on the metal parts of your chair wheels. Also, a very dusty storage area will fill the wheels and casters with dirt, which is also bad for your chair. 

10.  Buy Good-quality Chairs

Finally, if you want to avoid having to pay a lot of money to replace your office chair rollers many times, simply buy a good-quality chair the first time. It might cost a bit extra compared to cheaper options, but consider how much you will save by not having to replace any parts before the warranty has even passed.

Final Word

Having office chair rollers on your cross-legged office chair can give you a lot more freedom of movement than other types of chairs. However, it comes at a cost, you will have to dedicate a lot more time to routine maintenance. Autonomous has some great-quality office chairs with wheels that you can consider.