Silent Runner not spinning...tips?

[worsethanastickycat]

Hello everyone!

I got my Syrian, Lady Bird Johnson, about one month ago. I started with a Comfort Wheel (the largest they had at the store) and have since ordered and received a Silent Runner. I'm using the cage attachment, because Lady Bird Johnson likes to sleep under her wheel instead of in any of her hides. I'm finding the wheel doesn't seem to spin very well though, she can run on it but seems like it's more effort. It doesn't spin nearly as quickly as the Comfort Wheel did. Does anyone have any tips on making it spin better? Have I possibly not installed it correctly?

Should I put it back on the stand it came with, and force her to move her nest somewhere else?

[toffeeham]

My girl uses a silent runner as the primary wheel and it spins easily, which is comparable to another Kaytee comfort she has. I would recommend that you reassemble the wheel referencing the instructions/videos just to make sure every part is in the right place and then spin the wheel with your hand to see if it runs smoothly.

One issue I have had with the cage attachment setting is my hamster's cage gets slightly narrower at the bottom and the part that goes behind the wheel is a bit too short. It worked very well when my girl was little. But once she becomes fully grown, her running motion shakes the wheel a bit, making it sometimes touch the side surface of the cage and creating some noise. So I have to switch back to the standalone setting. If you feel the stand is too tall and do not want your hamster to stay underneath it, you could try adding more bedding under the wheel and pressing firmly and maybe piling even more bedding around her hides.

If the problem could still not be solved, you may want to just contact exotic nutrition to ask for their support.

[LunaTheHamster1]

Hi, my silent runner wheels glide very smoothly.
If you look at the 2 min mark of my video you can see what one of mine is like
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QudWsqJiPU&t=10s

If yours is not like that, you could follow toffeehams advice as you may have a defective one?

Also, if you want to check if you have installed it correctly, you may want to watch the beginning part of my video. Hope it helps.

[Pebbles82]

Is it definitely the silent runner (not silent spinner?). If so it sounds like you need to adjust the tightness of the nut for the cage attachment plates. I’ve had to fiddle about with that before. If it’s too tight it restricts the wheel spinning. Loosen it a bit and it should spin fine. But not too loose. It’s still perfectly safe.

[worsethanastickycat]

Thank you all so much! My husband is the fixer in the family, and he was able to take a look at it while Lady Bird was up. I'm still not sure what he did, but the Silent Runner is running again!

[LunaTheHamster1]

That's great, glad you could sort it out.