Ways to silence a squeaky hamster wheel.

About a month ago, I realized that one of my silent spinning hamster wheels was not as quiet as before. Screeching came from the steering wheel as my roborovski hamster raced on the steering wheel. I was stumped because I spent a bit more money buying a silent roulette but it ended up making more noise than normal ones. I googled the possible reasons and solutions as to why my silent roulette was making these loud squeaky noises and realized the mistakes I had made and how they can be solved.

Ways to silence a squeaky hamster wheel

1. Use non-toxic lubricant to keep your spinner quiet without noise! Remove your silent roulette and separate the axle from the wheel. Use a cotton pad, moistened with a little lubricant, to thoroughly clean the shaft. Reattach the axle to your wheel and your wheel will be like new! Some lubricants you can use:
   • Vegetable oil
   • Vaseline
   • Butter – wears down after a while and you would have to apply it more often.

   If this method fails and your hamster’s wheel keeps squeaking, you can try the following methods to solve your problem.

2. Instead of using a cotton pad to polish your hamster’s wheel axle, soak the axle in vegetable oil for an hour. Make sure the plastic part does not get into the oil. After that, take out the axle and wipe it clean with a kitchen towel before reattaching it to the other parts of the wheel. This will prevent the vegetable oil from spilling onto the wheel and reaching your hamster.
3. Another method that you can use is to move your hamster cage to a closet at night while it sleeps. It won’t make the wheel mute, but at least the sound will be more muffled compared to leaving it out of the closet. Remember to leave it slightly ajar so that your hamster has some ventilation.
4. Lastly, and this should be your last resort, take the hamster cage out of your room.

This is some of the information gathered when looking for ways to silence a squeaky hamster wheel. In the process of doing so, I also came across 2 factors that could have caused your wheel to squeak and how you can avoid it.

Here are some of the reasons why your hamster’s wheels squeak and how you can prevent it.

1. Shaft rust I’ve read on forums and some ‘online answers’ advising hamster owners to use vinegar to rinse their hamster’s toys to remove the odor. This is an excellent method of removing the odor, but the vinegar will oxidize the metal and cause it to rust. Once it oxidizes, the process will be irreversible. So my advice is to remove the axle from the wheel before rinsing it with vinegar and water. Then make sure it’s dry before putting the axle back into the wheel.
2. Wheels are used for a long time Because hamsters run a lot, the axle can wear out in the long run. This wear is caused by friction and can be prevented by lubricating the wheel frequently with the recommended lubricants mentioned above.

conclusion

In my article, I mentioned 4 ways to silence a squeaky hamster wheel:

1. Lubricate with a cotton pad.
2. Lubricate by soaking
3. Leave your hamster cage in the closet at night
4. Take the hamster cage out of the room

I have also mentioned the 2 causes of getting squeaky hamster wheels and how to prevent them:

1. Shaft oxidation
2. Wheels used for a long time.

I hope you have learned something new from my article and I want to emphasize that the use of lubricant MUST be non-toxic. This is because the lubricant can get onto your hamster’s wheel and the consequences will be fatal if he ingests it. Another thing is that prevention is better than cure. Therefore, before the wheel squeaks and makes noise, clean the axle with a cotton swab soaked in oil. This will allow you to have more durable silent wheels. I wish you and your hamster happiness!