Rubber Mats, what do you have?

[Aaron Beaver]

I am wanting to get some rubber mats for areas in my shop to make it more comfortable than the concrete.

What do you guys have that you like that you find gives you the most cushion. Anything would be better than concrete just didn't know if there was some mats that are better than others.

Thanks

[Matt Meiser]

I have some that came from one of the vendors at a woodworking show, one section my dad gave me, and a bunch of the interlocking tiles from Sams Club. The ones from Sams are great, but the do like to slide around a little. The best part is that they are very inexpensive--something like $17 for 6 2x2 tiles. We did part of our basement with them for my daughter's play area and I got the leftovers.

[Glenn Clabo]

Check out the mats they use for horse stalls...they are inexpensive...very heavy...but cushion the old knees well.

[jud dinsmore]

i got two matts for christimas last year and the only markings i can find on the underside is "comfort king" (along with a kangaroo - the underside is blue and the top is black). you can probably google them for ordering info. my mom got me these and she said she was told that these are the same matts that they use on some of g.e.'s assembly lines. i also got some woodcraft specials and they don't even compare. the comfort kings are like walking on padded carpet. the woodcraft are like walking on hard rubber. i highly recommend the comfort king matts. i think they are pricy but your feet and back will thank you. good luck.

jud

[Mark Patoka]

I use a 3'x3' mat I picked up from Home Depot. Since all my tools are mobile, I can easily move it around the garage if I'm going to be working at one tool for an extended period of time, such as the lathe. It's a waffle type design so sawdust falls through the 1" holes so it takes a little while before you find yourself standing on top of the mess.

[Jim DeLaney]

I'm using the interlocking tiles from Sam's Club. I have my entire shop 'carpeted' with them. (26" X 30')

Over the course of a year and a half or so, I bought one or two packages of the tiles every time we were in Sam's. It sorta became a joke with my wife. "Need more tiles, honey?"

BTW, the price on them is going up a bit. I started out paying $16 for eight tiles. The last ones I bought were just over $19.

[John Schreiber]

The ones I have are from Farm and Fleet and were labeled as Stall Mats. They were relatively inexpensive as shop equipment goes. They do the trick quite nicely.

[Jim Becker]

I have mats that I picked up at shows and some of the same material I ordered from ULine (http://www.uline.com/Browse_Listing_1751.asp?desc=Anti%2DFatigue+Mats) (for both the shop and our kitchen...the latter has a full-thickness brick floor and I have a 12' x 3' mat in the "work triangle") in use. I find them comfortable and the price fine. The stall mats are a nice option, although many of them are thicker than I prefer.

One idea may be for a few folks to "get together" and order a full roll from Uline, splitting the cost proportionally. That would be about $5+ a linear foot for the 3' wide material.

[Jeremy Gibson]

I'm another Sam's Club mat user. I have them interlocked in front of my workbench and table on one side of the garage. I'm planning to replace the table (made of 2x4's and not flat) with a miter bench ala NYW. Nice mats for the price IMHO.

[Rennie Heuer]

Another vote for the interlocking 2x2 mats - Have had them for several years - very comfortable and easy on the back. Got mine at HD.

[Dave Sweeney]

I picked up these (http://www.harborfreightusa.com/usa/itemdisplay/displayItem.do?itemid=40187&CategoryName=&SubCategoryName=) at Harbor Freight recently. The set was on sale for $5.00 and I believe the regular price was around $8.00.

[Aaron Beaver]

Thanks for all the help fellas, I am going to take a look at those Comfort King ones which are 3/8" thick, the stall ones might be to thick, at least the ones I looked at. Will also take a look at the Sams ones or the ones I might see at HD.

[John Branam]

I also use the ones from Sams club. Good mats for the price.

[Mike Wilkins]

Got mine from the local Lowes. They sell them in 30" wide and in whatever length you want. Approx. $3.00 per foot and well worth it.
You may also check your local farm supply dealer for horse stall mats.

[Cody Colston]

I had the 2 x 2 interlocking mats but took them up. They are currently stored in my shop's attic. I got tired of trying to clean around them.

One of the mags recently had a tip that I found interesting. Instead of placing mats, they advocated cutting mat material to glue to the bottom of your shop shoes.

There would now be a mat wherever you walked and nothing in the way when sweeping up. :)

[lou sansone]

horse stall mats are great and very reasonable
lou

[Howie French]

another vote for horse stall mats, 4' x 6', 3/4" thick, heavy will not move.
edges either square or bevel, will last forever. about 40-45$


Howie

[Hank Knight]

Aaron,

Look at anti-fatigue mats at MSC Industrial Supply. They have a large selection of different kinds and sizes. (www.mscdirect.com Key word: anti-fatigue mat). I bought one of the Wear Well 15/16" thick mats for my workbench and it's great. Tough and a nice cushioned feel (MSC #: 05346838).

Hank

[Rob Diz]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned them so far, but I picked up mine at Woodcraft, on sale I think for around $15. Works well, and doesn't move. What more can I say. I think Woodcraft has these mats on sale periodically to get folks in the door. With the holidays coming up, I would expect to see them on sale soon.

[Jay Knepper]

What Rob said.

I also have some of the rubber mats from Sam's. They are good from a comfort standpoint, but have large holes in them so you have to pick them up to clean out the sawdust. The Woodcraft maps can be swept easily.

[glenn bradley]

Another vote for Sam's club tiles. They are inexpensive, thick and reasonably heavy duty (for about 70 cents a square foot you're not getting industrial stuff). The only downside is that if you roll a heavy 'thing' onto them and leave it there, the material will compress beyond recovery. For standing on, catching the errant chisel or drill bit that dives to the floor etc. they're great.

[Kent Fitzgerald]

I have some of the 2x2' interlocking mats from Harbor Freight. They're comfortable, the price is right, and while they're not industrial duty, they've held up fine in my shop.

However, I'm not thrilled with having the floor partially matted. It means constantly stepping on and off the mats, which substracts from the comfort value. The edges can be a trip hazard and a nuisance for roll-around equpment. Covering the entire floor, like Jim did, would be ideal, and maybe I'll do that someday if I can ever figure our permanent locations for my machines. Otherwise, I'll probably get fed up with the mats, pull them up, and just wear good work shoes.

[DONALD MORRIS]

I have several of the interlocking mats that Sears carrys. They are very easy on my old bones.

[Roger Bell]

I have had the 2x2 interlocking for five years now. When I got them I was sure they wouldnt last, so I bought double because the price was right (around $6 for four squares). I was wrong. They are fine. They are easy to move and reconfigure and if one gets damaged real bad, you can replace it easily. They can be easily pulled up when moving heavy machines in or out of the shop.

I like these much better than the more expensive mats found in places like Woodcraft (altho I have a few of these too)....just as much cush with far less expense and far more versatility. I had a few stall mats for awhile, but they are rather heavy and awkward to move around....less versatility, more expense.

[Bill Bezilla]

Woodcraft has them on sale through the end of the month.

2'x 5' $14.99 or 11.99 each if you buy 3 or more. I bought 5 last year and they still look like new.:)