The dining room chairs were scratching and wearing the finish off the hardwood floors. The plastic leg chair pads were replaced with felt nail-on pads to protect the floor. This project explains how to replace the chair pads in only a few minutes.
Heavy Duty Felt Chair Leg Pads
The chair legs had hard plastic pads that were wearing the finish off the hardwood floor and made a dry scraping sound everytime the chair moved. Felt chair pads are soft and solved the problem. Now the chairs quietly glide on the floor, without being so slick as to kick-out and create a falling hazard.
Felt Pads versus Other Products
There are number of after-market chair leg pads available – felt, teflon, plastic that can be nailed, screwed or stuck-on. Teflon and plastic products are unsuitable because sand and grit will catch under the pad and scratch the wood floor. Felt pads are soft and won’t scratch. The disadvantage of felt is it tends to pick up dog and cat hair, but this easily vacuumed off.
1-Inch Nail-On Felt Chair Pads
I bought several 8-packs of Shepherd Hardware Felt Gard Plus 1-inch heavy duty nail-on felt pads at Home Depot for about $5/pack. The 1-inch pads are slightly larger than the original plastic pads but small enough to be concealed from view. These particular pads appeared to be a popular choice as I bought the last packs on the shelf. I liked the way these were made with the sharp metal ring. This pad wasn’t going to fall off. Pads are available in variety of styles and colors.
Compare the factory stapled-on plastic pads (left) with the new felt pads (right):
Old Plastic Chair Pads (left) and New Felt Chair Pads (right)
Remove the Old Plastic Pads
The original plastic pads were stapled on to the chair leg and had to be pried off. A tap with a hammer got a screw driver started under the edge of the pad. This method works if the original pads were nailed or stapled on. If yours is screwed on, just unscrew it to remove.
The chair is set upside down on the table. The chair cushion protects the table from scratches and dents. If your chair has arm rests, place a thick towel on the table.
Wedge a Screw Driver under the Old Plastic Chair Pad
The pad is pried off with a screw driver, taking care not to mar the corner of the chair leg. If your chair leg is very slender, try twisting the screw driver instead of levering it.
Pry the Old Pad Off the Chair Leg
More often than not, the plastic pad pulled off the staple. Not a problem.
Staple in the Chair Leg
Needle-nose pliers make quick work of extracting the staple from the chair leg.
Remove the Staple with Needle-Nose Pliers
The new 1-inch felt pads have a sharp circular base that is hammered into the chair leg.
Nail-On Heavy Duty Felt Chair Leg Pad
Center the felt pad on the chair leg.
Center the Pad on Chair Leg
The leg pad attaches easily with two or three moderate smacks with the hammer.
Hammer the Felt Chair Leg Pad to Attach
Felt chair pad attached to leg.
Felt Pad Nailed to Chair Leg
The felt pads work well and glide quietly on the wood floor. Now it’s time to apply new lacquer to restore the wood floor finish.
New Felt Leg Pads on the Chairs
Take care,
Bob Jackson
Maintenace