How to Fix a Clicking Cabinet Hinge without Replacing it or Using Oil

So I had this cabinet that was driving me nuts because every time I would open and close it, it would make this loud click. This was a cabinet I used often so it became very annoying. I did a bunch of research online trying to figure out how to fix it, but there really was not a lot of information out there.

First I tried the obvious solution, which was oiling it. I had some WD-40 type spray so I tried that first. It worked for about a minute, and then it made it worse! Apparently, these hinges need some kind of special lubricant that is thick and will not dry out. Well, I didn't want to have to go to the store and buy a new cabinet oil. Next I tried putting some lotion on it. This worked, but only for a few days. Then it dried up and started making the clicking noise again.

I didn't want to go to the hardware store and try to find a new matching hinge, so I got creative and found a solution. Chances are if you have one hinge that is making noise, you have other cabinets that use the same type of hinge. Often some of these other cabinets are not used very often and that is why they do not make the noise while the one that is used most often does make the noise.

Since I had a few cabinet doors that I rarely use, I just picked one of them and swapped out the bad hinge. This was very easy and only took about 10 minutes. You just need a screwdriver. After switching them out, the hinge was good as new! No more noise. I even tested out the other cabinet and it didn't even make the noise, probably because it was a smaller door with less weight.

I realize this is not the perfect solution, but if you want to fix a clicking hinge without buying oil or getting a new hinge altogether, this is a quick and easy way to do it.

Update:
After time, the new hinge may eventually start making the clicking noise again. Recently I tried applying some olive oil to the hinges and so far it seems to be working pretty well to reduce the clicking noise. I took the cabinet doors off the cabinets to apply the oil so I could get a good angle and coverage on the hinges. It is pretty easy and seems to be a good solution to solve the clicking noise. The clicking noise does tend to come back over time but applying more oil to it seems to fix it.