Shopping carts are convenient for your customers, allowing them to buy more efficiently, and they’re also good for you because they encourage your customers to purchase more per trip. While shopping carts can be of benefit to everyone, however, they can also be a bane when the wheels are malfunctioning. Broken shopping cart wheels can make loud squeaking noises that grate on everyone’s nerves, but that’s not all. They can also cause scuff marks that are hard for your cleaning crew to remove or even damage the floor’s surface.
One way to prevent these problems is by replacing any broken or malfunctioning wheels. The necessary equipment varies by diameter and material. You can choose the correct material and size by considering the terrain you expect your shopping carts to navigate.
Material
Shopping cart wheels can be made of either soft or hard materials. The type of material you choose depends on the floor coverings. You should choose a softer wheel to roll over hard surfaces and a harder wheel to roll over a soft covering like carpet.
However, bear in mind that not all hard floor surfaces are the same. For example, hardwood floors are more vulnerable to damage than concrete and require a different material for your wheels, like rubber. Polyurethane is a versatile material that works on both hardwood and carpet if you have both coverings in different areas of your floor.
If your shopping carts are exposed to extreme conditions, it is important that the wheels be made from materials formulated to stand up to the challenge. For example, if your wheels are exposed to high levels of moisture, the material must be resistant to rust.
Size
The rougher the terrain that your shopping carts will be traveling over, the larger diameter you need for your wheels. For example, if your floors have cracks or uneven spots, or if you need your shopping carts to be able to go outdoors, you’ll need wheels of a larger diameter than if your shopping carts stay indoors and only roll over perfectly smooth floors.
It may be a good idea to purchase shopping cart wheels in bulk. That way, you have them on hand whenever you need a replacement.