Comparing Rubber Gym Flooring - Rolls, Mats, Interlocking Tiles

Rubber has been chosen as the preferred flooring material for commercial gym and home weight room flooring for decades. Because it's such a popular flooring option, there are a wide range of sizes, thickness, designs, and densities. Read on below to learn about the differences between the rubber flooring option.

rubber floor mat roll

Gym Traffic

The first consideration to make when choosing gym flooring is to think about the amount of traffic and abuse the floor will need to withstand. If you have a weight training facility used for competitive college or pro athletic teams, bodybuilding and powerlifting, it will need to be thicker and much more durable that those used in most home gyms or senior centers.

Rubber has built a reputation for protecting the subfloor through impact absorption, reducing vibration and cutting noise from machines and free weights. It is capable handling heavy exercise equipment and foot traffic. Rubber flooring is a popular choice because its very durable, simple to clean, and is often times made from recycled rubber. It can also be recycled at the end of its life.

gym floor mat

Rolled Rubber

The thickness of rubber flooring is going to have the most noticeable impact on the overall durability of the flooring installation. A 1/4- to 3/8-inch rubber floor will suffice for light to moderate use while heavily-used areas will require a thicker rubber surface match that lifespan. In areas where weights will be dropped, 1/2- to 1 1/2-inch rubber flooring is better equipped to handle the impact without damaging the subfloor. While most thick rubber flooring will outlast a 15-year warranty under standard use, regularly dropping kettlebells, dumbbells, and barbells will decrease the lifespan of even the best flooring.

rubber rolls, mats & tiles

Rolled rubber is the most economical flooring option for weight rooms (per square foot) for larger installations, and it also leaves the fewest seams. However, due to the nature of its size and weight (often coming in 25-50 foot long rolls), installation can be difficult without help. Thickness options are also limited - generally to 1/2 inch or thinner.

rubber gym floors

Rubber Floor Mats

Rubber floor mats, often sold in 4x6 foot sizes, offer another economical option with the capability of a thicker surface than rolled rubber flooring. Rubber floor mats, also often used as horse stall mats, range from 3/8 to 3/4 inch thicknesses. While the mats are very heavy and don’t move very easily, these straight edge mats will slowly started to inch apart from each other over time. They are often used as supplemental padding in areas where heavy weights will be dropped during olympic lifts.

Interlocking Puzzle Mats

Interlocking, puzzle-style tiles offer convenient installation and a tight, durable fit without shifting. These tiles are commonly only used in smaller rooms because their higher cost per square foot and the fact that they are easy to custom fit to an irregularly shaped space. The smaller 2- to 4-foot tiles (1/4 to 3/4 inch thick) are easier to manage, especially if installed by a single person.

For cardio areas, where shock absorption is less of an issue, thinner rubber flooring will suffice just fine.

gym floor rubber mats

Alternatives to Rubber

Some customers report enjoying the comfort and warmth or carpeting for cardio workout areas, but we warn against it as stains and bacteria can be hard to remove from carpet areas.

Foam and plastic materials can also be used for weight room flooring. Like carpeting, however, great care should be taken when or if you decide to use these materials. Foam mats will become indented from heavy objects, so it’s important to make sure there is proper weight distribution.

PVC Plastic flooring, such as StayLock tiles, is rugged enough to handle heavy weight equipment and offers cushioning similar to foam, but typically carries shorter-term warranties than rubber weight room flooring.

We offer a perfect flooring solution for every use space, whether it be a commercial gym or a home user in their basement. There is a weight room flooring option out there to fit anyone's needs.

Which Sports Use Rubber Flooring and Why?

Like all equipment in an athletic facility, it's essential sports flooring promotes health and safety.

As many sports include high impact activity, the flooring for the facility must be able to protect athletes from injury. Sports floors must also be resilient. Without a tough floor, wear and tear will yield any protective features ineffective.

Rubber flooring sports

Rubber is the standard flooring material for athletic facilities all over the globe. Customers lover for its durability and superior shock absorption. It can lessen the severity of accidents and safeguard against injuries. Rubber flooring can be used for multi-function flooring as it is very versatile. That being said, different thicknesses and styles of rubber work for different sports. Read below for an overview of the most common utilizations of rubber flooring, and what kind of rubber flooring works best for each area.

Weight Training

Rubber is a go-to flooring solution for weight rooms. There are many different kinds of rubber flooring, and it’s important to use the correct kinds of each kind of weight-training area. Heavy equipment requires a rubber floor that is dense and sturdy enough to hold tons of weight without bending or breaking. Free weight areas require a thicker rubber flooring that protects the flooring underneath from the dropper weights. For olympic lifts, it is essential that the rubber floor is firm enough to allow for maximum output as well as protecting the floor below.

rubber sports flooring

Running

Track and field also often uses rubber flooring in some capacity. This is especially true for indoor tracks. Obviously, rubber used for tracks need to be durable enough to withstand heavy foot traffic. Not only that, but the material has to be dense and resilient enough that it's not punctured or torn by running spikes. The rubber flooring used at tracks should be flexible enough that it can curve with the bends of the track.

Aerobics and Plyometrics

Plyometric drills are all about fast, powerful and explosive movements, which creates a harder impact upon landing. It’s typical or aerobic exercises to include jarring movements such as jumping, lunging, and running. Because of this, rubber flooring designed for plyometrics and aerobics should be more porous to allow for greater shock-absorption and cushioning. In order to help maintain a safe workout environment, this flooring has excellent grip that makes direction changes seamless.

Ice Rinks

You might be thinking to yourself, why would an ice rink use rubber? At first glance the use case is not very obvious. Common areas around the ice require protective surfaces where people can safely walk with skates on. Rubber is the most common material for ice rinks in areas surrounding the actual ice, including the bench. The rubber flooring used around the ice rinks will undoubtedly take a lot of use and abuse from skates, so choosing a durable, sturdy rubber flooring is imperative.

rubber athletic flooring

Multi-Functional Rubber Floors

While many sports don’t use rubber as their ideal flooring, it can still be used as a general sports flooring materials and work great. Basketball, soccer, and volleyball, for example, can all be played on rubber floors. That's why rubber flooring makes a good all-around flooring solution for rooms that will be put to many different athletic uses. If the flooring is going to be used for general use, choose rubber that is has a middle-density. That way, rubber will remain absorptive while balls can bounce on it.

When Not to Use Rubber

Rubber is a grippy material and yields too much friction for some sports. Dance is an activity that requires a surface which allows for feet to turn on without grip. Rubber isn't recommended for martial arts either. Again, the surface is too grippy and too hard for spins or learning throws and falls.

Rubber is a popular material for sport subfloor or underlayments if athletes need impact absorption and a flooring material with less grip.

sports rubber flooring

Types of Rubber Flooring

Now that you have an idea of the sports that use rubber flooring, you can start looking closer at specifics. Greatmats offer rubber flooring in three main forms: rolls, tiles, and mats. Rubber mats are a great and easy way to bring the benefits of rubber flooring into any room. Mats can be a great choice if extra cushion or thickness is needed over smaller areas.

Rubber tiles and rubber rolls are also extremely easy installations. Interlocking rubber tiles are one of the more popular options for spaces that need a sturdier and denser rubber flooring option.Tiles can be installed by your own hand just by laying down and connecting pieces.

Rubber rolls are just as easy to lay out, provided you have enough help to carry the heavy rolls, and can be adhered to the floor with double-sided floor tape or floor glue. Of the three options, rubber rolls are typically the most economical option and the final product will have the fewest seams after installation.

athletic rubber flooring

Keep It Clean

No matter what type of rubber you go for, it's important to keep athletic flooring well maintained.

Athletic facilities can be perfect places for bacteria and fungus growth if not properly cleaned on a regular basis. Rubber flooring should be cleaned with a pH neutral cleaner, as other cleaners can erode the material.

Ultimately, it's key to know your environment before installing a rubber sports floor. Every activity has different needs. Weight training will undoubtedly require a thicker mat that an indoor track. Not only that, but you must factor usage into the equation. The same athletic flooring for a small community center may not work in a busy college training facility, even if the activity is the same.

Greatmats is here to be a helping hand in sorting through all the flooring options that we offer. Customer service representatives can help you choose a thickness and style that will meet your athletic flooring needs.

Rubber, Plastic and Foam Flooring Myths

There are many common misconceptions regarding rubber, plastic and foam flooring. Below are the nine most common specialty flooring myths, debunked:

Myth #1: Rubber flooring will add cushion and spring to your floor.

Rubber used for flooring is generally a very dense material. It provides thermal insulation and protection for the base floor, as well as absorb sound in the room. While it does those, it’s generally provides much less cushion than plastic or foam flooring. Keep in mind that most of these floors are made from recycled truck tires. Truck tires must be fairly rigid to withstand the rigors of tens of thousands of miles of travel. Any material that was soft enough to provide cushion to athletes wouldn’t be able to stand up to the demands of automotive use.

Flooring myths

Myth #2: Plastic flooring is hard.

It’s commonly thought that for a flooring material to be soft and flexible, it has to be made of rubber, but that just isn’t the case. Part of the beauty of plastic is that it comes in a wide range of hardnesses options. Most plastics used for flooring provide significantly more cushion than rubber floors and are commonly confused with rubber, due to their pliability.

Myth #3: All foams make good anti fatigue flooring

While foam does provide excellent cushioning and adds comfort to your flooring surface, not all foams are created with the same density, which is key for anti-fatigue benefits. Standing for long periods of time on hard surfaces can be taxing on the body, but so can extended periods of standing on surfaces that are too soft. Some foams are so soft that they provide very little resistance between you and the hard floor below. Others will keep you off the hard floor, but provide very little stability, increasing the risk of you losing your balance when standing on it. It’s important to ensure that any anti-fatigue flooring solution provides enough cushion to encourage shifting of position. This is important because it increases blood flow will still making standing on the flooring comfortable.

rubber flooring bounce

Myth #4: Rubber flooring is great for all athletic purposes.

It is true the rubber flooring is commonly used in athletic flooring applications. Rubber flooring is a great choice for use in gyms where the floor needs to be able to support the weight of exercise equipment and dropped weights. It isn't a great plan to use rubber flooring for areas where people will be running, changing direction and spinning however. One of rubbers best features is that it is slip resistant, but with activities such as basketball or dance, a certain level of slipping is necessary for safety, and rubber floors are usually too grippy to allow much slippage. If rubber is used for these types of activities, it can lead to an increased risk of athletes injuring their knees or ankles.

Myth #5: Foam floors contain rubber.

The majority of all foam flooring is made of of EVA or Polyethylene foam. Even though both of these material are very pliable, much like rubber, they do not contain any rubber. Foam rubber is a spongy material in which rubber has been manufactured with a foam agent to add air to the material and lesson its density. Commonly referred to as a “foam rubber”, it is commonly found in mattresses and furniture cushions but is not durable enough to be used in flooring.

Myth #6: Plastic floors are slippery.

The surface texture makes a world of difference in how slippery a floor can become when wet or dusty. Smoother surfaces will carry an increased risk of being slippery. Plastic floors often feature leather or orange peel type textures to provide traction as well as diamond and raised bump, non-skid patterns.

soft rubber flooring

Myth #7: Rubber floors are waterproof.

While rubber is very moisture resistant, most rubber flooring is made of ground automotive tires and can be slightly porous. This allows for water to ever-so-slowly permeate through the rubber. If power washed, the water is blasted into these tiny pores and forces them open, allowing the water in. If repeatedly power washed, water can become trapped within the rubber flooring and possibly even damage the flooring.

Myth #8: PVC and Vinyl flooring are completely different.

Vinyl is often the shorthand way of referring to Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC). The term ''vinyl'' actually includes a broad range of thermoplastic chemical compounds that includes EVA, PEVA, PVA and PVB as well as PVC. PVC is unique from other vinyls because of the addition of the chlorine molecule to the chemical structure, which makes it highly fire retardant.

rubber flooring fatigue relief

Myth #9: Rubber flooring is just as good as plastic for garages

Rubber flooring is commonly used as an inexpensive alternative to PVC or Polypropylene garage flooring. If the garage isn’t being used for automobiles, then this is fine. There are some downsides to using rubber flooring when, cars, trucks and even trailers are involved, however. While rubber is strong enough to handle the weight of vehicles, some rubber floors can sometimes experience chemical reactions to some automobile tires, oils and other chemicals associated with internal combustion engines. These interactions can lead to the rubber breaking down and in turn shorten the lifespan of the flooring.

Rubber plastic, and foam are all great flooring materials, but they each have their ideal use cases and proper research should be conducted to make sure the best flooring is chosen for an area.