ᐅ What should I do about loose Malm screws?

Hello everyone, I currently have a problem with loose screws on an Ikea Malm dresser model. The screws holding the individual panels together are no longer tight, which causes the entire dresser to wobble and eventually become unstable. I have already tried simply tightening the screws again, but this doesn’t hold for long because the material inside seems to have worn out or the thread is damaged. I am interested in methods or techniques that work best to secure the screws permanently without damaging the furniture. Maybe there are special anchors, adhesives, or replacement parts I can use? How do you handle such issues, especially with furniture made from particleboard or MDF panels, as commonly used by Ikea? I appreciate any tips or experiences.

You can try securing the screws with some wood glue or all-purpose adhesive. It also often helps to insert a toothpick or small wooden dowel into the old hole to replace the thread. Then you screw it in again, which provides better grip.

GIULIA5 schrieb:
The screws holding the individual panels together are no longer tight, causing the entire dresser to wobble and eventually become unstable.

This is a common issue with particleboard furniture, especially at heavily stressed joints. In general, there are several approaches to solving this problem permanently:

1. Enlarge the hole and fill it with wooden dowels or toothpicks: You drill out the old screw hole slightly, insert small wooden sticks or toothpicks, and add wood glue. After drying, this provides a new, stable base for screwing.

2. Use special furniture repair kits: There are so-called dowel or thread repair kits for furniture that include metal or plastic sleeves which are fixed inside the old hole to create a new, durable internal thread.

3. Replace screws: Sometimes switching to screws with a larger diameter or longer screws helps, as long as the material allows it.

4. Use adhesive as a secondary measure: Wood glue alone often doesn’t provide enough hold for heavily loaded joints, so it should be used additionally, not as the sole solution.

I recommend as a first step to carefully rework the hole a bit and then fill it with glue and toothpicks. If that doesn’t hold, repair kits are a very good option.

One more question: Are the furniture parts made from MDF, particleboard, or another type of engineered wood panel? That can somewhat influence the repair method.

chenValeri schrieb:
You can try to secure the screws with some wood glue or all-purpose adhesive.

Wood glue can help, but with loose screws in particleboard, it is often not sufficient on its own because the material is not strong enough to provide a lasting hold.

kulau schrieb:
There are so-called dowel or thread repair kits for furniture that include metal or plastic sleeves

Exactly, these repair sleeves are a very clever solution. They are inserted into the drill hole and create a new internal thread for the screw, which holds much more securely than the original material. These kits are usually easy to use and affordable.

What I would also recommend: when tightening, it is important not to be too rough, as over-tightening screws can further damage the surrounding material. I personally make sure to tighten screws just enough to achieve a firm, but not excessive, grip.

In general, it is also important to consider how often the furniture is moved or subjected to stress, because even the best repair kit can eventually give way under heavy use.