Partially rewritten in 2022 with clearer steerage on subfloor issues.
The 2 good choices for safeguarding your gymnasium ground are an array of rubber mats or bigger rolls of rubber flooring. Let’s take a look at how to decide on your flooring and what else you may want.
Dealing With Your Subfloor Kind
Relying on what you might have beneath, you may want further supplies in addition to simply the rubber flooring.
For all strategies beneath with plywood, get prime quality plywood sheets you might have sighted as flat, not curled in any respect.
Concrete Flooring
A naked concrete ground is a perfect place to begin. With a layer of rubber it may take a beating, has no give, and must be fairly flat. You possibly can lay rubber immediately on the concrete, no fuss, straightforward peasy.
In a storage you might also wish to take some steps to deal with the sloped garage floor.
Hardwood Flooring
Hardwood, which is nearly at all times laid over a plywood or OSB subfloor, can take some power from weights set down arduous and fairly managed.
Put a plastic dropcloth over the hardwood earlier than laying down the rubber, to cease the rubber from making black marks on the hardwood.
Individuals typically ask about foam underlayment. Keep away from foam. It provides cushion that you just don’t need.
If you need additional safety, after the dropcloth put down a layer of three/4″ plywood, then rubber.
Tile Flooring
A tile ground is in peril of cracking out of your weights should you don’t use the appropriate supplies to guard it.
A cork underlayment to guard the tile is a good suggestion. Then a layer of three/4″ plywood to unfold out the load and supply stability. Then rubber on prime.
Carpeted Flooring
If it’s a extremely thick, luxurious carpet, that’s not going to work to construct a gymnasium on. Both the carpet goes or your gymnasium does.
A median thickness carpet nonetheless has an excessive amount of cushion, however you may take care of it should you don’t wish to rip it out. Lay down a layer of three/4″ plywood. You’ll want to attach the plywood sheets collectively to make them a steady strong layer to forestall the perimeters from transferring up and down. A couple of linked plywood sheets can really feel surprisingly strong over carpet.
Screw in mending plates to attach them. The difficulty there’s it’s good to recess the mending plates into the plywood so your rubber has a flat floor to put on.
What I did was lower out slots just a few layers deep into the plywood with a hammer and chisel that I may lay the mending plates in. It was a messy hack job however labored.
Skinny carpet – the sort utilized in business workplaces – you may lay mats immediately on and also you’ll be high-quality. You possibly can lay down plastic drop cloths first if you wish to hold the carpet in fine condition.
4ft x 6ft Rubber Mats / Horse Stall Mats
4′ x 6′ occurs to be a typical dimension that these “horse stall mats” are available. There are bigger and smaller ones. Bigger than 4′ x 6′ are nearly not possible for one individual to deal with (this dimension is already ~96 lbs and all floppy and awkward).
Fundamental rubber mats like this are all slip resistant, waterproof, and soak up influence.
These mats can work in a 3/8″, 1/2″, or 3/4″ thickness. Get the three/4″ should you can. That’s the usual stall mat thickness. It protects your ground beneath one of the best in opposition to dropped weights. Something thinner than 3/8″ is extra like a cardio tools mat that’s simply meant to guard the ground in opposition to a treadmill or bike sitting on it and never a lot else.
“Stall mats”, or any mats made with recycled rubber, will stink. When you’ve got time, and also you’re simply putting in just a few, drape each on one thing exterior to air them out for some time. Presumably as much as a month. In any other case simply hold the room ventilated they usually’ll ultimately cease off-gassing.
These rubber mats will be lower to dimension with just a few passes of a utility knife or good serrated knife. I’ve lower 3/4″ stall mats high-quality with a utility knife and straight edge. When doable, lower the sting that can go in opposition to the wall in order that the edges in opposition to different mats are manufacturing facility straight.
Drill some wooden screws by the rubber and plywood to maintain all the pieces properly in place. You may be drilling the screw head down into the rubber a bit so that you don’t journey on the screw head or break it with dropped weights. For 3/4″ rubber and three/4″ plywood, a screw size of three/4″ works good.
For an influence rack setup, 2 mats will properly cowl the ground underneath your rack and sufficient in entrance in your bench, a 6′ x 8′ space. Most individuals find yourself ultimately shopping for sufficient mats to cowl your entire room.
In case you’re laying mats immediately on concrete, Alan Thrall shared an concept to maintain your mats from drifting aside:
These are solely like a buck a piece at Home Depot.
My solely objection is these tooth stab up round 3/8″ into the rubber. I’m wondering how a lot the rubber compresses if you drop a weight on it? 1/4″ tooth can be perfect for this goal, however I’ve not discovered one which dimension after trying round.
For small portions, Rubber Flooring Inc’s Extreme Mats have been one of the best deal on-line for years working, with affordable delivery. I ordered one mat from them to develop my space. It’s a very good flat texture on prime, and a tough backside, which I believe is finished to assist with air cushioning or to assist in giving moisture a approach to escape. Throughout glorious high quality.
If you’re filling an enormous space, the 25-piece skid from Fitness Factory is without doubt one of the finest offers in the intervening time and is cheaper than Rubber Flooring Inc per piece. In case you don’t want all 25, checklist your extras on OfferUp or Craigslist for $60 a pop, and also you’ll be rid of them in someday and make a pal.
In individual, you possibly can go to a Tractor Provide retailer in case you have one near you. They are going to have them for cheaper than you should purchase in small portions on-line. Transport on 100lb mats is dear. The issue with Tractor Provide is I’ve heard tales that they may supply any stall mats they’ll get, with no regard to matching floor texture. Who is aware of what you’ll discover, and good luck if you must return later to attempt to get extra for an identical set. They initially meant them for animal stalls solely, and animals don’t give a rat’s ass about matching decor.
The closest Tractor Provide was 45 minutes away once I wanted one other mat, and the gasoline + journey time wasn’t well worth the financial savings to me, main me to only order the mat on-line from Rubber Flooring Inc. It arrived safely by Fedex Floor, rolled up fairly tightly (I don’t know the way they managed that – this stuff are thick, and a traditional human can’t roll it up), wrapped in plastic pallet wrap.
Rubber Rolls
For any wants bigger than round 6 mats, and should you received’t be dropping weights to the purpose the place you want 3/4″ mats, take into consideration the nicer rolled rubber flooring that is available in 3/8″ thick.
Stall mats have some disadvantages:
- They’ll stink for a month or so. Stacked up on a pallet of 25 stall mats on the retailer doesn’t enable them to off-gas.
- The thickness of some manufacturers can range barely, even from one fringe of the mat to a different.
- The floor texture can range from season to season. Shops deal with these like a commodity and don’t care about constant trying texture. These had been made for horses, therefore the time period horse stall mats.
- They’ll shift round over time, creating gaps.
- Sweat or spilled liquids can get into the cracks between mats
Good rubber rolls don’t have these points.
It was once that you just had to purchase whole 25ft rolls that weigh tons of of kilos and have knowledgeable set up them. In case you suppose a 100lb floppy stall mat is tough to maneuver, take into consideration what a large roll is like.
Right this moment all people will get Regupol rolls customized lower to their specs. It’s a must to fill out a kind on-line to get a quote in your dimension room. One individual mentioned his value with delivery labored out to $2.36/sqft, which is within the ballpark of the worth for 4’x6′ mats and of higher high quality.
They’ll customized lower the Regupol rolls in your space. It’s possible to chop 3/8″ rubber your self in a single cross with a utility knife and straight edge. I’ve carried out that with 3/4″ stall mats in 2 passes. However getting a partial roll (the roll sizes are 50′ lengthy uncut) ought to avoid wasting each time and cash.
These rolls are solely 3/8″ thick. That’s concerning the max thickness you’ll see in rolls from any model.
3/8″ thick will be high-quality for many of your gymnasium space or for basic train room flooring. It can shield a concrete ground and provides good footing.
For Crossfit / olympic lifting you’ll finest double-up the rubber to soak up dropped barbells. Or add a layer of three/4″ plywood as the underside layer, which can be cheaper than doubling up the rubber.
Interlocking Rubber Tiles
These was once extra widespread. They’re nonetheless round. I believe there are such a lot of of the cheapo EVA tiles (see the part beneath) that received combined up with these actual rubber tiles that they’ve undeservedly developed a nasty identify. There’s nothing improper with them.
The benefit of interlocking tiles is that they received’t shift round. Stall mats are recognized to slip round over time except you screw them down or enclose the realm with one thing tightly.
The drawback is you’ve received extra seams so extra prospects for edges to stay up. That being mentioned, well-made tiles ought to have uniform thickness and never stick up at any level.
I counsel you to get 3/8″ (or 10mm) thick tiles. That’s concerning the thickest you’ll discover. Double them up if you must, as mentioned within the last part of this information.
They’re a little bit powerful to seek out now. These tiles on Amazon look fairly good for the worth.
Warning: EVA Interlocking Foam Tiles
I’ve to say these as a result of they’re throughout Amazon. Dozens of them fill the highest search outcomes for rubber mats or rubber flooring. They name them “foam rubber” or “mushy rubber” tiles. Don’t be fooled. They aren’t rubber. They’re excessive density foam mats, that means they aren’t insanely squishy however are nonetheless an open-cell kind of froth which can be considerably extra squishy than rubber. You received’t be pleased.
They’re truly EVA mats. EVA is ethylene vinyl acetate, a fabric that’s glorious when utilized in numerous varieties of sports activities padding like boxing gloves, hockey pads, padded shorts, a lot of stuff.
They’re extraordinarily light-weight and simple to put in. Every tile weighs mere ounces. Dust low cost too. That’s the attraction.
They’ve a number of main points:
- Your footing received’t be agency for any standing heavy lifts.
- The ground safety isn’t that nice should you drop weights, as a result of it’s too mushy to disperse the load like rubber does
- Items can stretch from a little bit lateral power and transfer completely out of alignment
- Edges can stick up for no purpose in any respect
- In case you don’t make an effort to bend each flat earlier than putting in, they are often bowed up a little bit and make slapping noises in opposition to the subfloor as you step on them.
- The floor texture wears away rapidly
- Gear like a rack or weights will depart everlasting indentations after some time
Lifting Platforms
For final safety in dropping barbells when doing the olympic lifts, you need to use a platform. You continue to want to make use of bumper plates for important drops, however should you’re cautious and never lifting a ton of weight you are able to do deadlifts with iron plates on a platform.
It’s two layers of plywood beneath, and on prime is a one other layer of hardwood within the middle strip, and a layer of thick rubber on the edges. The entire thing is enclosed by a metal body to maintain it collectively. It’s superior.
The width is at all times 8ft, to accommodate a fully-loaded 7ft barbell with room for slop. So far as the size entrance to again, get 8ft should you’re going to be doing olympic lifts. That will provide you with room to drop the barbell in entrance of or behind you. 6ft depth can work. For deadlifts you solely want 4ft.
Placing it immediately on a concrete subfloor is okay. Mostly a lifting platform is on prime of the rubber flooring that’s in all places else within the gymnasium.
The hardwood has simply the correct quantity of traction should you’re utilizing olympic lifting sneakers.
When you’ve got something however a concrete subfloor, don’t strive a platform. This received’t go effectively. Gentle to reasonably heavy deadlifts are okay, however a wooden ground beneath isn’t going to love it if you drop olympic lifts, even with the platform.
Get Rogue’s modular “build-your-own” platform kit in the 8’x6′ size or 8’x8′ size. I really like issues which you could take aside and truly transfer, and good luck ever transferring a daily platform by yourself. Principally with Rogue’s resolution you purchase the body and a set of 1.5″ thick rubber tiles to stay in it. Accomplished!
One other benefit of Rogue’s is you don’t need to ever fear about wooden curling over time or all the pieces staying glued collectively. The body retains all of it collectively, and that’s that. There’s not a lot to it.
Basement Brandon did a pleasant video on Rogue’s platform body:
What did you do for flooring in your gymnasium? Submit a pic!
