Workshop flooring - rubber tile sources

[Randall J Cox]

I used what I think were called "cow mats". They are 3/4 inch thick rubber that has ribs. Installed after shop was in use for awhile so just put down over all bare floor. I am happy with them and would use again. One small issue is that the ribs will fill and compact in ribs, which I can tolerate. Perhaps if vacuuming after use it would be a problem. Purchase at a tractor supply or other type farm store. It might have been in hind sight that they should have been installed with the ribs down and "bubble" side up??
Bob

I have used pieces of that stuff for under some of my non movable machines like my 8" jointer, etc. Really tough stuff. And I put the ribs down. Don't even know where I got it but I think a whole floor of it would be awesome. I have concrete and makes my legs ache after all day in the shop. Randy

[Jim Becker]

My shop floor is concrete as the building was originally a 3.5 car "garage". I make use of anti-fatigue matts from ULine throughout. Some were purchased directly for the shop and a couple are long strips that were originally in our kitchen (brick floor) galley area but got too worn looking for that purpose. The ULine stuff is nice quality and available in a variety of sizes including long rolls if one wants to do a large area. The only area I keep them out of is where I spray. You can see examples in this pano photo from the northeast end of my shop. (more have been added since) The piece at the J/P was cut out to fit around the machine. I did similar at my lathe (not in this picture) and there's a 14' long x 3' wide strip along the whole length of my miter saw station down in front of that big window in the background. The reason for the uncovered area between the J/P and the slider is because I cut down the right side table of the saw a year and a half ago to move it back for better material handing and that meant the matt moved, too. I'll fill that in next time I have an appropriate scrap available.

[Michael Stein]

I, too, have the harbor freight ones and I agree, they are OK. They were very cheap for my one-car garage shop. The one (and really only) complaint I have about them so far, is I have tools on wheels, and when I have to move a tool (specifically my flip-top cart that houses my planer) the tiles sort of "bubble" or "bunch up" due to their lightness. Other than that, they are great for the cost. I think I did my whole garage, after coupons, for under $50.

The other thing I noticed... The first couple packs I purchased all fit together great. I then wen't back later, and got two more packs, and they didn't seems to fit as well with the existing ones (still fit, just not perfect). Guessing they came off a different line, or different day, or different plant altogether. I would recommend, if you go this route, buy all you will need up front, and they are cheap enough so get a few extras, to minimize the chances of this.

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[dan nelson]

2nd on cow mats mine are 20 plus years old no signs of wear. great for the occasional drop of tooling. but used at auction or CL

[dan nelson]

Just checked CL 4x6x.75 $30 each

[Phil Stone]

I'm using, and liking the Harbor Freight interlocking pads. They reduce fatigue and joint pounding nicely, and as someone else said, you can build up a grid of them as you go.

Unfortunately, they aren't thick enough to keep a 604 from committing suicide. Mine fell off the bench onto HF-pad-over-tile and broke its frog.

[Chris Damm]

When I bought my 1/2" 2x2 rubber tiles ar Sam's Club they cost about $.50 @sq.ft. They have held up real well in the 10 plus years I have used them. Items at Sam's seem to be hit or miss as I haven't seen them there for a long time.

[Joe Jensen]

My shop floor is concrete as the building was originally a 3.5 car "garage". I make use of anti-fatigue matts from ULine throughout. Some were purchased directly for the shop and a couple are long strips that were originally in our kitchen (brick floor) galley area but got too worn looking for that purpose. The ULine stuff is nice quality and available in a variety of sizes including long rolls if one wants to do a large area. The only area I keep them out of is where I spray. You can see examples in this pano photo from the northeast end of my shop. (more have been added since) The piece at the J/P was cut out to fit around the machine. I did similar at my lathe (not in this picture) and there's a 14' long x 3' wide strip along the whole length of my miter saw station down in front of that big window in the background. The reason for the uncovered area between the J/P and the slider is because I cut down the right side table of the saw a year and a half ago to move it back for better material handing and that meant the matt moved, too. I'll fill that in next time I have an appropriate scrap available.

I too use the Uline mats. Maybe 1/2" thick and nice soft foam. Very comfortable to stand on. I use them in front of the benches and the places I stand a lot. They are available in ton of sizes.

If you want full coverage commercial vinyl flooring is available pretty thick and looks nice when laid.

[Patrick Walsh]

I am using rolled heavy duty comercial gym flooring. It is great, my guess is its on par with the U-Line stuff.

I have put the OSB tiles down on clients homes. Im not a fan at all......

[Chris Fairbanks]

Check out racedeck. They have an option to add and extra rubber bumpers in the bottom of the tiles that can help with the wear and tear on your body. I think they still offer a discount to garage journal members. Check out the flooring forum there for 10k other ideas and info on the racedeck discount. Good luck.

[William C Rogers]

I saw this by Ron Hazelton http://www.ronhazelton.com/m/project...a_garage_floor

i sure it is pricey and could only make my dream list.

[Dan Hintz]

Watch for Thanksgiving/Christmas sales... I think I picked up 16-sq.ft. packs from Sams or Costco (online, free shipping, too) for around $8 as part of their Black Friday deal a few years back. As long as you don't mind kid colors rather than gray/black...

[Robby Tacheny]

I have Harbor freight mats also. I just hosed them off and reconfigured them the other day. They make a huge difference on your feet and are easy enough to vacuum. I don't find saw dust to get into the grooves where they interlock either. For the price it would be worth checking out.

This site below has a lot of different rubber products in rolls and tiles and they will ship you free samples. Price wise it looks like many of them would suite your needs.

http://www.rubberflooringinc.com/

Robby

[Wade Lippman]

I have Harbor Freight foam tiles down on my floor - they're just "OK" but it was very cost effective for my small shop.

A while back I read that someone used thick rubber stall mats intended for horse stalls. Tractor Supply has a 3/4" thick 4'x6' mats for $40 each, but you might be able to find it even cheaper at a local co-op or farm supply in Texas.

I tried stall mats and the are terrible; no cushioning at all, and I was always tripping over them. What horses need and what woodworkers need are completely different.
I went to rubber mats I got at Lowes. They are okay.
Then added some HF tiles. They are great. If you use them a great deal you will probably wear them out, but they are cheap enough.

[Yonak Hawkins]

I noticed at Ollie's today that they have "deck tiles" for $6.99 / 18" X 18" tile. These are 1" thick, hard rubber and do not interlock but they fit together with overlap. I confess I don't know how Ollie's works, whether the products and deals are only local or not.