Anyone who has ever had a grocery cart with a wobbly wheel has wondered why they do that. The truth is, if your cart is pulling to one side or making that unmistakable “chattering,” you shouldn’t blame the wheel hardware. Far more often than not, it usually means the frame is damaged. Interestingly, the material of the wheels matters. Most are made from polyurethane, but some are rubber, which performs better in high-traffic or heavy-load environments like Costco. Plastic wheels are cheaper but can generate static electricity, which is how you end up shocking yourself in the cereal aisle. Those carts have to be grounded. Who knew shopping required electrical engineering? All this can be more high-stakes than you think. Not only are the carts expensive for the store, but they’re also walking advertisements. A bad cart can ruin the shopping experience and make customers not want to return to the store, so stores put a lot of effort into buying and maintaining their shopping carts.
