ᐅ The Malm bed squeaks at the foot end – how can I fix this?

Hello everyone,

I have a Malm bed from IKEA, and for the past few days it has been squeaking at the foot end whenever I move or turn over. The noise clearly comes from the lower part where the legs are attached. I have already tried tightening all the screws, but it hasn’t really helped. Does anyone have experience with how to fix this squeaking specifically at the foot end of this bed? I don’t want to take the whole bed apart right away, but would like to know what might be causing it and the best way to fix it. Thanks in advance for any tips!

I can definitely understand how annoying such squeaking can be, especially with furniture you use daily. It’s often caused by slight movement between the wooden parts or the screws.

I had a similar issue with my Malm bed – for me, tightening all the screws firmly and applying a bit of wax or furniture oil to the joints helped. This reduces the friction that causes the squeaking.

Sometimes, gently inserting a small wooden wedge behind the baseboard can add stability and quiet things down. Could you let us know if the noise is constant or more irregular?

Check screws and tighten if necessary.

Then spray furniture wax or a small amount of WD-40 on the joints.

If needed, check whether wooden strips are in contact with each other and rub slightly.

The plastic feet at the bottom may also be worn or loose. Just check and, if necessary, stabilize them with felt pads or thin washers.

Loose bed slats can also cause noise due to vibrations.

DUUS32 schrieb:
Sometimes even a small wooden wedge carefully placed behind the baseboard can add stability and thus reduce noise.

Thanks for the tip, I hadn’t even considered that the bed might have some play at the foot end connection. The squeaking usually happens when turning over or getting up, so when weight is quickly shifted to the foot of the bed.

Isabel schrieb:
Maybe the plastic feet underneath are worn or loose.

The feet still look quite good on mine, but I’ll check them carefully this evening.

In general, I wonder whether it’s the metal frame (if there is one) or just the wood that is squeaking. What’s the best way to tell? Is there a trick to distinguish the noise by sound?

To check whether metal or wood is squeaking, you can gently wipe the metal and wood areas with a thin cloth and then press or move them slightly.

Metal often squeaks with a sharp sound, while wood tends to produce a dull noise. A drop of silicone spray on metal joints often effectively prevents squeaking.