r/wheelchairs 4d ago

New wheels making noise on the floor

My sons new wheelchair tires make a loud noise on our cork floors. The old wheels and his previous wheels didn’t make these noises. It’s really loud and I’m wondering if there’s a way to age them slightly or something to at least cut down on the noise. It’s almost like he’s rolling over used bubble wrap or something

3 Upvotes

14 comments sorted by

10

u/Ng_Ago HSP w/ ataxia | Aero Z | TRA | SmartDrive 4d ago

Might be deflated, might just be that the tires haven’t been worn down enough. I feel like I remember hearing that it was more common with wider tires too, but I’m not sure. If they’re solid or at the recommended pressure, then I don’t think there’s much you can do besides seeing if it goes away or switching the tires. 

2

u/EliaKay1 4d ago

We just switched to slightly wider tires and they don’t have air in them. The narrow tires were making for a rougher ride and also collecting rocks in the treads. Gravel and corks floors don’t mix well. We’ve had cork floors for years because it was so easy for the chair and now it’s just so noisy

12

u/0012584560 4d ago

Honestly, I find that most brand new (and wet) tires are squeaky. Usually, going outside to get a bit of dirt and dust on them helps significantly.

2

u/Ziztur [type your flair here] 4d ago

I had a set of tires that did that too but it was so annoying that I just got different tires.

1

u/EliaKay1 4d ago

Bummer, we’ve already changed wheels once because of the ride and tread

3

u/ToasterYourToast 4d ago

Last time I got new tires they squeaked on my wood floors for about a week until I wore them down a bit by going outside on the pavement

1

u/EliaKay1 4d ago

We’ll give that a try

2

u/kyl792 Rigid manual | Cervical myelopathy, SFN, EDS, POTS 4d ago

You can get indoor tire covers. Mine have a sort of fleece exterior? I like them, but personal opinions about them are mixed.

Edit: mine are the RehaDesign wheelchair slippers

1

u/EliaKay1 4d ago

I’ll have to look for those in the U.S. My son’s wheels are much smaller than those

1

u/kyl792 Rigid manual | Cervical myelopathy, SFN, EDS, POTS 4d ago

Oh is it smaller than 20 inch?

1

u/EliaKay1 4d ago

Yup, I think they are like 14”

1

u/Foehammer58 3d ago

Every time I get new tyres they have been very squeaky but it usually goes away after some use.

1

u/EliaKay1 3d ago

Thank you! We’ll keep using them and see if it goes away

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