How To Keep Dresser Drawers From Sliding Out With An Easy Fix

Your dresser drawers are an essential storage space in your bedroom that you're probably using on a daily basis. But if they're sliding out of place every time you go to pick out a pair of socks, their poor functionality can quickly get annoying. Worse yet, you might have to spend time reorganizing them every time they slip. A drawer falling from its original position or pulling the rest of the dresser down with it is also a serious safety concern that's worth addressing as soon as possible.

Newer furniture often includes railings and runners that stop drawers from slipping out of place. However, that's not always the case, especially with more antique furnishings and decor pieces. Thankfully, there's a much easier way to fix a falling drawer than building in a brand-new railing system. DIY drawer stops are a simple and effective way to prevent your drawers from falling out of place. They only take a few minutes to put up, and you might already have everything you need to install them lying around the house.

A drawer stop is a small wood piece that you attach to the inside of your dresser's frame above the drawer. When you open the drawer all the way, its back panel will meet the stop, which hangs down enough to prevent it from sliding out. For each stop you want to add to your dresser, all you'll need is a screw and a cut scrap of wood. The screw should be small enough that it won't poke through the frame, but large enough to hold the fixture firmly in place. If you prefer to use a different material, you might also want to consider products like Ferraycle's non-slip plastic drawer stops.

To get started, take out the drawers from the dresser. Then, use a drill to put in pilot holes on the top of each wood piece and on the inside of the dresser's frame above the drawer. Each pilot hole should be slightly smaller than the diameter of the screw and will help prevent the stop or the furnishing itself from splitting. Don't drill in so far that you're puncturing a hole in the dresser's frame. 

Next, line up the wood stopper and attach it to the frame using a screwdriver. Hand-tighten the fixture so that it's just loose enough for the stopper to move. If you tighten it too far, the fixed position of the stopper will make it tricky to take the drawer out for cleaning.