Horse Stall Mats

Written By PJ

Introduction

I installed 4’x6’ ¾” thick horse stall mats throughout the gym. These Horse stall mats are a great cost-effective way to install extremely durable gym flooring in your home gym. I love the look of them, the durability, and the cheap price tag.

To install your own horse stall mats: I recommend the P.A.N.I.S. method. The acronym P.A.N.I.S stands for PLAN, ACQUIRE, NEUTRALIZE, INSTALL and SECURE.

Plan

 To start planning, you must first accurately measure the dimensions of your home gym and then take those measurements over to program like Microsoft Visio - where you can drag the “room” shapes with specified dimensions and then place the 4’x6’ mat shapes in that that space. 

The primary purpose of doing this in a program like Visio (rather than paper), is that you can easily experiment with different mat orientations (i.e., landscape or vertical), different alignment patterns (i.e., completely aligned or staggered), all in the pursuit of easily determining:

  • how many mats you will need

  • which layout/alignment pattern will look the best

  • how many mats you will need to cut (this will help you estimate the level of effort).

If you don’t want to pay for a Visio license, there are many free alternatives. Just Google “Room Layout Planner” - and you will find many free apps, and software that can be downloaded. I have a Visio license so I did not extensively search for and evaluate all the options out there. However, there is ONE web-based version I experimented with called PlanYourRoom.com: http://www.planyourroom.com/

Using PlanYourRoom.com worked pretty worked well. Just like Visio, You can define the dimensions of a room, and then layout the mats. For the Mat, I used the “Rug” object, and then set the dimensions of the rug to 48”x72”. Shown here:

When it comes to alignment patterns, I chose a vertical orientation (with relation to the entry of the room), to give the room a longer/deeper visual effect.

Further, I chose a completely-aligned layout pattern. In other words, I did not choose a “staggered” pattern. I did not stagger them despite the fact that staggered pattern is supposed to be better for ensuring that the mats will not move as easily. Here are my reasons:

  • The clean, contiguous lines of the aligned pattern aided in providing a “deeper/longer” visual look to my gym

  • Since I am in a room where the mats go wall to wall, there is little chance of the mats shifting. If I I was not going wall-to-wall, then I would likely stagger them.

  • Staggering them makes the flooring look “busier” (especially after taping the seams where this pattern will be even more pronounced)

  • More Work due to more mats needing to be cut.

That being said, you should consider the staggered pattern if you are not going wall to wall with your mats.

Acquire

Where to Buy?

Horse Stall mats can be bought at any local feed/livestock store. I bought mine a Tractor Supply Company (TSC). 

Which type should you get?

I recommend the mats which are flat one side and have raised bumps on the other side. Other Mats are flat on both sides. Some have will a diamond pattern on one or both sides.

But here is why you don’t want those other types…First of all, I don’t think that there is any good reason to have my feet (or any other body part) or my equipment on an uneven surface.

Some may try to convince you that the diamond pattern (or even the bumps) should face up - because they will help your shoes grip the mat. Nonsense. The flat side of the mat it plenty grippy on its own…IT’S RUBBER! Also - the bumps being on top will give you LESS grip, because the soles of your shoes will actually have LESS contact with mat’s surface area (they will only come into contact with the bumps).

Further, especially with bumps facing up, you will limit the exercises you can do comfortably. For example, an exercise like pushups would be very annoying to execute with the rubber bumps digging into the palms of you hands which are on top of an uneven surface. No thanks!

Lastly, the reason why I like the bumps on the bottom, is because those bumps offer some degree of ventilation under the mat if water (or any other liquid) ever gets underneath them. This air pocket can help to mitigate mold from growing under the mats.

Call Ahead

Now despite the TSC website having a picture of one type of mat (the one that I recommend), your local TSC location MAY sell a different type. Therefore, before ordering online/or driving to the your local TSC, call ahead and ensure they have the SPECIFIC kind (i.e., Flat on one side, Bumps on the other) of mat you want in stock.

Transporting the Mats

Another consideration is, “how will you get them home?” If you drive a Prius, you won’t be able to haul that many. I have a Honda Odyssey, and with the seats removed, I had no problem fitting the 4’x6’ mats inside the vehicle. If this is a concern for you consider paying a delivery fee and having TSC deliver them to you ( if it’s available in your area).

If you Buy Online (Curbside Pickup or Delivery) - Please use my Affiliate Link

Further, TSC does offer curbside pickup. If you do elect to use curbside pickup or delivery, I would greatly appreciate you using the link below, as I am a TSC affiliate. Shopping via my affiliate link costs you nothing extra and it does help support the channel. I really appreciate it!

Tractor Supply CO Horse Stall Mats: https://bit.ly/3KDfExe

Unloading

When I got them home, I obviously had to unload the mats. This is best done as a 2 man job. The mats weigh about 100 pounds and are difficult to move since they are flexible. Therefore, I used a Hand truck. I found this to be incredibly easy. Some people will recommend a “Horse Stall Mat Movers” which will help you grip the mat in order to drag/carry them.

• Stall Mat Movers: https://bit.ly/3AEr9jw

• Hand Truck: https://bit.ly/3AH6P0G

Neutralize (Odor)

You can skip this step if you buy mats that are made out of “virgin rubber” instead of recycled rubber (like the TSC version). One such company is REP fitness – they sell virgin rubber mats that will not stink, has free shipping, and has tremendous customer service. Of course, these mats are going to cost you a lot more money. If you decide to go this route – please consider using my rep fitness affiliate link. I would greatly appreciate it!

 Rep Fitness Virgin Rubber Mats: https://bit.ly/3AI6CKI

One thing I neglected to mention in the video: VOLUME DISCOUNTS! Rep Fitness has volume discounts. If you buy only one - the price is insanely high. If you but 10 - then the price is significantly cheaper!

Removing The Smell (The S.H.A.T. Process)

Now if you are looking to save money and just get mats made of recycled rubber - Here is my sure fire method to get the stink out out recycle rubber Mats: the S.H.A.T. “Offgas” Process (Sunlight, Heat, Air, Time).

  • Sunlight: the mats should sit in an area that gets plenty of Direct sunlight. The sun’s U.V. rays will help prevent any mildew or other crud from growing on the mats while they “defunkify” outdoors.

  • Heat: Doing this when it is hot outside will help the mat to slightly expand opening  up the mat’s pores and allow the VOCs to escape at a muh faster rate.

  • Air: air ventilation is key. When you store these outside your want as much ventilation on both sides of the mat as possible. I propped up my mats with scrap wood underneath.

  • Time: The longer you apply this process the more effective it will be… but how long is long enough? Well that will depend upon three variables:

    • The level of stink of the mats themselves. Even if you buy from the same store as me and get the same mats made by the same manufacturer… we could both have different stank severity. Each lot of mats can differ. Some not so bad, some will be putrid. The stinkier, the longer it will take.

    • The level ventilation of your home gym. If you have a garage gym you are generally going to have better ventilation than a basement gym. So the worse the ventilation, the longer it will take.

    • And lastly- personal sensitivity to the rubber odor. Now don’t just go by your own personal sensitivity- but also the personal sensitivity of those who you live with. The higher the sensitivity, the longer it will take.

So for me, someone whose mats were not horribly stinky, but who lives with people who are highly sensitive,  and who has a basement gym with poor ventilation… I left my mats out for 3 weeks. I left them outside in the hot summer sun (bumps facing up), with scrap pieces of wood underneath to improve air ventilation on both sides. Then I pressure washed them, and flipped them over (bumps facing down). Then I left them outside for another week and a half. Before bring them in a gave them a scrub with hot soapy water mixed with “Odoban” disinfectant (this cleaned them up nicely and made them smell fresh).

Yes - I could have included “Washing/ Scrubbing” in the S.H.A.T. acronym. But here is why I didn’t: 1) It would not be as funny/memorable, and 2) I am not convinced that this actually helps get the stink out. It might. It certainly can’t hurt. It certainly makes the mats clean…but helping “offgas” - I am not so sure. That being said, I would still do it. The mats will be dirty, and its easier to clean them outside than inside your gym.

Installation

Laying Your Cornerstone Mat

So here we are going to challenge the plan that we had back in the first phase. Now that you have the mats inside/near your home gym space, you can begin laying them out to ensure your planned layout/orientation will still work for your space.

Once satisfied that your planned layout will work for your space, Lay down the first mat. This first mat is the Cornerstone mat —- so ensure that the cornerstone piece is exactly where you want it. If its not where it belongs…then no other piece will be where it belongs - Because all other pieces will be laid in relationship to the position of the cornerstone mat.

Therefore, do not cut any mats until AFTER you have laid down your cornerstone mat and all other mats that directly/indirectly adjoin to the cornerstone mat which do not require cuts.

If your seams are not perfect (probably due to the room’s walls not being perfectly square)… Don’t worry about it too much. The tape that we will lay down later on is going to hide the seams anyways.

How to Cut Mats

Before you cut any mats you need to first ensure that all adjoining mats are in their proper place. If they are not snug against their adjoining mats or the wall – then the mat you are about to cut will not be properly sized. To nudge these adjoining mats into place, I just give the mats a few whacks with a rubber mallet.

Then we need to measure the gap where your new mat is going to be placed. If the mat is going along an edge such as a wall that is not perfectly square (and most walls aren’t), you need to take 2 measurements.

The first measurement will be taken from from the edge of the adjoining mat to the wall, and then I will do the same at the other end of the area.

Then take the mat you are going to cut and using a tape measure, measure the first length that we measured and mark it with a sharpie. Then do the same at the other end with the second length we measured.

Then take a chalk line, and connect the two marks you just made with the sharpie, and snap the line. Now you’ll have the perfect marking for where I am going to cut.

Then take a straight edge and place it against the chalk line, and you can use a straight piece of wood, but I prefer something with a metal edge which is why I used a level that has a metal edge. Using wood will not be quite as precise because the blade may want to cut into the wood which will result in a more crooked cut.

Now just begin the task of scoring the line using a razor knife with afresh blade. Score the mat the entire length you wish to cut. This will be tedious, but go slow and you will have terrific results. You don’t need to apply a lot of pressure, just let the razor do it job. If it becomes too difficult, its time to use a fresh razor. It may be overkill, but I like to use a fresh razor for EACH mat.

Once you have scored the entire chalk line sufficiently, place a large cylinder directly underneath the scored line. I used a rolled up scrap piece of carpet, but you could also use large pipe or any other large cylinder.

This cylinder will greatly help you cut all the way through the mat by having the weight of the mat helping to spread the newly created seam.

And there you have it! Now repeat this process for all remaining mats that require cuts!

Checking Level

This should be before laying fown any mats. However, I didn’t do this until my mats were already laid out. Whoops!

If you skip this step, and later determine that your equipment is wobbling - then you will have to remove the re-tape and shim/level the mats, and then re-tape.

Therefore, save yourself some heartache and ensure you do not have any significant sloping issues before starting the project and certainly before moving on to the “Security Phase” of the P.A.N.I.S. process.

To check, I simply laid my 6-foot level down on the group where I was going to put my Power Rack and a few other significant equipment items. All was good to go!

Security

How I secured My Mats

Since my mats go “wall-to-wall,” my baseboards help to secure the mats to some extent (in addition to hiding gaps where the mats isn’t against the wall perfectly). Further, I also taped all my seams with Gorilla Tape. Gorilla Tape offer three benefits:

  • Will keep mats from shifting

  • Hides uneven seams from misplacing/mis-cutting mats

  • Provides a waterproof seal between your mats to prevent mold from growing under mats

How to Tape Your Mats

Now before you tape, we needs these mats to be clean and dry… so give them a good sweep, then lightly “dry” mop, and allow the mats to completely dry before applying the tape. Since the tape is not on yet - use water sparingly when moping. You don’t want water to get under the mats.

When applying the tape just go nice and slow and try to keep your tape line as straight as possible. Pause and stand up often to ensure alignment.

I started with my horizontal seams first, because I wanted the vertical seams on top. I just thought it would look better from the entrance of my gym….however, the order did not really matter.

Other Options to Secure Mats

Since I am going “wall-to-wall” I do not need to worry as much about my mats shifting. However, if I wasn’t going wall-to-wall, I might need to consider some other options such as:

  • Rubber mat adhesive (Messy!)

  • Double sided rubber mat tape

  • Mending Plates (found in the Decking Hardware Section of your Local Hardware Store).

    • Here is a video from Alan Thrall on Mending Plates:

However, all three of these OTHER options will not work “perfectly” as intended since having the bumps on the bottom of the mat also means that the full surface area of the bottom side of the mat will not be in contact with the concrete. So meter your expectations.

SHOPPING

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Once you try this for yourself - be sure to let me know how it worked for you! Happy Lifting!

SHOUT IT OUT: If you Build this project and want to brag about it, please use the #DesignBuildLift hashtag so that I can feature your amazing creation on my social media to help inspire others!

PJ
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