Quiet a squeaky shoe

February 8, 2006 9:12 AM

Is there any way to stop a shoe from squeaking on linoleum?

The shoe is quiet on carpet, tile, concrete, et cetera, but positively maddening on linoleum. I'm hoping there's something I can apply to the shoe (but not the linoleum). I don't know what the bottom of the shoe is made of, but it looks and feels like cheap rubber.

posted by deadfather to clothing, beauty, & fashion (3 comments total)

Maybe try covering the sole in masking tape? That's what models do so that they don't slip on the runway.
posted by Radio7 at 9:47 AM on February 8, 2006

The squeaking is caused by very important friction. Anything you do to get rid of the squeaking will also get rid of that friction, and make walking on the linoleum .. well .. challenging.

You could see if someone else's shoes are not squeaky, and purchase such a pair, or have your pair resoled with a similar type of rubber to someone's non squeaky shoe, but otherwise, the cons will outweigh the pros if you're just doing something to the shoe to get rid of the squeaking. You won't have the same traction anymore on any surface, and especially not on the linoleum.

Your best options are probably:
a) Trying a different pair of shoes
b) Trying to walk more carefully if you're on the linoleum (this may not be an option if we're talking about a vast expanse of it you've got to walk across) or...
c) Resoling the shoes with a different kind of rubber that doesn't cause so much squeakiness.
posted by twiggy at 11:38 AM on February 8, 2006

This is just off the top of my head, but perhaps abrading the soles of your shoes will help. My guess is that if the surface is more like the bottom of a crepe sole, it will squeak less (or not at all) than if the soles were like that of a pair of tennis shoes.

Perhaps if you sand down the smooth rubber it will create enough of a lack of surface cohesion that the sounds will abate. Of course, this will make the bottom of your shoe look like crap, but there you have it.
posted by qwip at 5:06 PM on February 8, 2006