Purchasing Rubber mats Advise please

[thimble]

I have decided to invest in putting rubber matting down in my two 12 x 12 stables. It seems to a mind field with lots of different makes.
Is there make anyone recommends and am I right in thinking the thicker and heavier the better so they don't move?
Have seen some Eva mats for sale which are thick but lightweight but I'm worried about movement.
Any advice gratefully received before I spend lots of money. Thanks

[archiepoo]

hi thimble i have 34mm EVA matting and theyre brilliant-dont move at all, much better than the heavy stuff to handle and wash and much warmer for the horse,i use a sprinkle of shavings on top and sweep out everything in the morning .1 bale of shavings lasts me two weeks doing this for three stables!!

[mcnaughty]

The heavy ones are good and will last practically forever but they are a pain in the a*** if you want to move them! I bought my heavy ones off ebay - cheapest I could find anywhere but still good quality even with postage!

[Sam]

I have equimats, they are like a jig saw puzzle so they interlock to stop any movement, some of mine are 12 years old and still very good, I use normal cattle ones for the foal stables, they are just basic rubber mats, not as thick as horse ones but are ideal for ponies and youngstock. cheaper than horse mats too.

[aphrodite]

I bought some secondhand playground matting, it is 3 inches thick and stands on rubber feet so drains very well. It is made up of 1m square blocks. Its extremely cushioned and drains very well. It doesnt move at all as we have trimmed it to fit wall to wall.

[ferret]

I have the thick EVA in two stables I love it , got mine from Quattro in Carlisle . I also have one stable with the thick playground matting , this was much cheaper and it's also good . But the EVA is worth every penny !

[Karen, garrettponies]

I got some from fieldguard which were expensive but are very good. However, I got some from our local feed merchant, don't know the make, but they were £25 each and are really good, grooved on top so the wee runs away and nobbly underneath so they don't move. They are 6' x 4'. They are thick and a bit heavy if you do need to move them but mine are on hardcore as my stables are 'mobile' and never had a problem. I too have minimal bedding, all the ponies lay down, flat out so they must be nice and warm for them. One of them doesn't lay on his bed, he lays behind the door but then he is a bit weird!

[silvester]

I've had the heavy 6' x 4' ones before and hate them. Horses can lift an edge when the enter the stable / turn, then you get bedding underneath and it makes them worse, they bulge up with bedding and twist and become horrible!! You then need to move them and they stink lol

I've now bought some mighty lite mats from horse requisites in Newmarket, they are 4'x3 and just under £30 each but super light and interlocking like a jigsaw. They ate brilliant!!!

One thing though, I find they swell with cold weather and again with hit weather, they constantly grow, so you need to leave at least an inch all the way round, and every year or two trim a bit more off

[roseview]

Stable mats need to be well fitted, we had ours from Polymax and OH fitted them himself, you just need a sharp stanley knife and fit them tight so nothing can get underneath them. We had 18mm ones and have had them for several years with no problem at all. They do not move, never need to be taken out to wash underneath as there is no smell. I pressure wash them a couple of times a year just to keep them in good order and use wood pellet bedding in a small area.

[jacksprat]

eva all day for me, light as a feather and dont move if fitted properly, had mine 10 years and no wear at all to them

[honeypot]

I have two types, the heavy rubber which is stuck down glued and sealed. Great if your going to stay forever, you do not lift them as they are sealed nothing gets underneath. They do get slippery when wet.
I then have two types of EVA one the thiner and one the thick Equimat. Great if you are a livery yard as you cantake them with you or for show stables as you need bed down a whole box. The Equmats I bought secondhand and a horses has mangaged to scrap the surface of one so they are not indistructable.

[sarahp]

garrattponies mine sound like yours - 6'4" and very heavy, I don't know the make though. I have four per stable, just laid down to fit - the boxes are 12' by 10' so there is a gap at the front of the box which has never been a problem. They must be different to yours though silvester as I've never had one turn an edge up (far too heavy for that), bulge or twist, they stay flat as a pancake without moving an inch in any direction. They aren't stuck down, they just sit there, and will be moving with me when we go, I love them. I got knocked over by a foal the other day and I reckon could have broken my hip if I'd landed on the concrete underneath instead of the matting.

[welsh69]

make sure they are the right size and are fitted properly because if not they come up and are a PAIN to muck out !

[cre8tivekid]

I have had several different types from Horsemat over the years,

I have some really heavy ones with a ridged bottom which don't move at all and I have have at three different yards now and seem indestructible (just a killer everytime you want to move them). But to get the best drainage from these you need all the ridges going in the same direction which can mean that you need more mats.

Last ones that I got are some of their own design with square feet underneath - these drain absolutely brilliantly and are much lighter but I have noticed that occasionally if the horse has been 'partying it up in his stable' all night the edge of one lifts a little - but this is under extreme circumstances. These are great as you can lay them in either direction without affecting the drainage. I have found that I use much less bedding with these compared to the ridged ones.

Have never had either lift up in the doorway.

The company is really helpful and will explain which ones are best depending on the type of floor that you have in the stable/ and the use. (For the cynics out there - no I am not on commission or in any way related.)

[qbc]

I use Stablelite mats. Very thick, very heavy and have never moved and they have had two Clydesdales on them.

My first set were purchased in 1996 and are still in use in a field shelter, the set in Farra Clydesdale's stable are 8 years old and have no signs of wear and tear. The set in Stinky's stable are 3 years old and still look like new.

I take them up every two years - as I use a half bed of wood pellets, there is not a lot of mess underneath and the smell is not that bad. It is a big and dirty job to do two stables, so I pay some of the teens on the yard to help me.

I like the Stablelite mats as they are very warm and soft and also do allow liquid to soak through which keeps my stable very dry.

They were a big investment - I paid in 2009 £440 for 12 mats and delivery - the stable is 14' x 10'. However, I expect to be using them for many years to come and I do believe you get what you pay for in terms of quality.

They have paid for themselves very quickly as I save on bedding and also on mucking out - I only need the bed skipped out in the mornings rather than a full muckout which I used to have when on a full bed of shavings.

[flee]

We have had Equimats in 4 stables for 14 years and they look like they have plenty of life left in them .Would not hesitate to buy them again .

[donquattro]

Nov 5, 2011 18:18:08 GMT thimble said:

I have decided to invest in putting rubber matting down in my two 12 x 12 stables. It seems to a mind field with lots of different makes.
Is there make anyone recommends and am I right in thinking the thicker and heavier the better so they don't move?
Have seen some Eva mats for sale which are thick but lightweight but I'm worried about movement.
Any advice gratefully received before I spend lots of money. Thanks

[rasaljadi]

how much bedding do you put on top of mats, how many bales of shavings would you use a week, thinking of putting some in myself.

[donquattro]

The light EVA mats are really for walls and also useful as anti-cast, but the real floor mats are the 12mm and 18mm Supermats (18mm for 15 hands and above).

The light EVA can be used as a bed and where you accept cleaning out regularly, they are nice and light. The real investment is in the Supermat where it is fully bonded and sealed with a 10 year guarantee, nothing gets underneath and it is so easily cleaned with the minimum of shavings used.

As said in other messages, the heavy ones (18mm) dont move anyway, but they are so heavy to lift and clean if they are not sealed.

I supply them all, but even when it's livery where we dont fully bond them we would still seal the joints, nobody wants to be lifting these.

[B_31]

we have EVA mats - they are nice but they dont half move!

I had robinsons thick mats before these and if im honest i preffered them - except for their weight!!

much easier to clean EVA mats, but they do expand etc in heat etc

just mo

oh and also - i use 1 bale a month max of shavings! they just dont need it on mats

[rasaljadi]

my friend has some they are like sponge very comfy for your horse but wouldnt the wee run through these, i would still put bedding on top put really plan to not use a lot of bedding.

do they dry quickly, is there no smell with the wee, wouldnt the mats be wet all the time?

[ferret]

My Eva are not sponges and never move , look on Quattro's website , they are the same mats as horse comfort too

[donquattro]

Not sure your friend has the right mat, the EVA's and Supermats wont absorb anything, but the crumb rubber, used mainly for play areas would allow fluid into them.

Don (Quattro in Scotland)

[dawn]

We got ours off Ebay from a company near Birmingham. They are 6' x 4' but split down the middle with a jigsaw join. Fantastically easy to handle and lay and they don't move at all. Really pleased with them