Benefits of Rubber Flooring

Rubber as a flooring product is a more versatile, durable, and comfortable surfacing option versus other flooring products like wood, laminate, PVC, linoleum, or carpet. Rubber flooring comes in various forms, ranging from large rolls to small mats and even in interlocking tile form. Some of the other products listed such as PVC and carpet only come in one or two of these forms. Compared to wood, laminate, PVC, linoleum and carpet, the rubber flooring options are a user-friendly DIY product and do not require a professional installer to actually install these products. Most rubber surfacing products can be installed using simple double sided tape or, for a more permanent installation, using a glue like adhesive.

Rubber flooring can also considered an eco-friendly “Green” product if it is made using recycled and/or reclaimed rubber. The rubber used in these products mainly come from used car tires, which in turn keeps our landfills free of rubber tires. Since these recycled rubber products are made of used car tires this means the products are durable, especially when used in outdoor environments. Lastly, recycled rubber is a very cost-effective option for flooring that is a long lasting, durable product.

Rubber vs Wood Flooring:   Rubber flooring is more resistant to environmental effects than many wood flooring products. They do not need a stain or protective cover to prevent damage caused by UV rays or other environmental elements. Wood flooring can swell and become deformed when moisture seeps in while rubber flooring does not deform with moisture and actually works to wick away the moisture. Rubber flooring also resists the growth of mold and mildew compared to wood which actually promotes mold and mildew growth. Another reason why rubber products would be better to use than wood is because our rubber products come in different forms. Wood usually comes in planks or long boards. Flooring made from rubber offers more options. It can be either in a long roll, an individual small or large rubber mat, or even in square interlocking rubber tiles. This makes it easier for rubber flooring to fit into a space as well as the ease in which someone can cut the rubber to fit any space by simply using a sharp utility knife.

Rubber vs Laminate Flooring:   Rubber flooring can take more of a beating compared to laminate flooring. If a heavy weight is dropped on laminate it will crack, but if it is dropped on a thicker rubber product, either roll, mat or interlocking tile, than the rubber product will actually absorb the impact and dampen the vibration. For this reason, many people like to use rubber products for their gym flooring for either their home or commercial property. Both are easy to install, but laminate would require a liner underneath on a flat surface and power tools to shape it while the rubber only needs a sharp utility knife and a flat surface.

Rubber vs PVC Flooring:  Although PVC flooring is great with greases and oils, It is not great outdoors and it generally costs more than its rubber flooring equivalent. Flooring made from rubber is more shock absorbent as well so it will protect the sub floor or any floor that is placed on. There are some rubber products (nitrile rubber) made for kitchens that are made to resist grease. The main different is that rubber flooring is can be used both indoors and outdoors as well as it being durable to heavy foot traffic and some products being great for gym flooring.

Rubber vs Linoleum Flooring:   The downfall of linoleum flooring is that it requires specific natural types of cleaners to be used on it. When needing to clean the linoleum there are a limited amount of cleaners you can use since it is sensitive to pH levels. On the other hand, rubber flooring is not sensitive to these cleaners. Generally, a simple soap product with water can clean off the flooring. Linoleum is very similar to PVC except linoleum is made using natural oils. The rubber flooring products there for are superior to linoleum in the same aspects that I had described against the PVC flooring. Rubber flooring is also a more cost-effective option compared to both PVC and linoleum.

Rubber vs Carpet Flooring:  Carpet holds onto dirt and dust as well as soak in liquids that are spilled on it. It is also very hard to clean the dirt and any of the liquids spilled on it can stain the carpet while rubber flooring makes it easy to do this. Rubber flooring just needs to be hosed down or cleaned with a mop. This will remove any dirt or liquids from the rubber surface. Carpet is mainly used indoors, because it is not resistant to outdoor elements. On the other hand, rubber flooring (specifically recycled rubber) works great outdoors especially against the elements like UV rays or any form of water. These elements include UV rays, Rain, and snow just to name a few. The rubber tiles and floors are soft on bare feet and absorb shock so the floor underneath does not get damaged while carpet offers very minimal protection from heavy objects falling on its surface. Carpet also requires a professional installer to cut and install it while rubber flooring can be done by anyone and only requires a sharp utility knife to cut any part that needs to be cut. The other major thing that the rubber flooring has over carpet is that carpet only comes in rolls while most rubber options can be in either rolls, mats or interlocking tiles depending on use and preference.

As anyone can see, the rubber flooring options are a better choice when it comes to many flooring applications. It is cost effective, works great indoors or outdoors, can handle heavy foot traffic or heavy weights, comes in multiple forms and can be easily installed and cut by anyone. Besides it being a better product in different aspects of flooring the rubber is available in a recycled rubber form that is eco-friendly. With all these various benefits, rubber flooring should be a no-brainer decision!

2 thoughts on “Benefits of Rubber Flooring

  • July 15, 2016 at 11:36 am
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    How does recycled rubber do outdoors?

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    • July 19, 2016 at 2:09 pm
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      Hi Lance, thanks for reading this. Recycled rubber does very well in the outdoors because it is made from tire rubber. This type of rubber has a lot of EPDM in it. EPDM is a type of rubber designed for outdoor use and is used in tires extensively. The recycled rubber made from tires inherits this outdoor longevity against both UV rays and moisture.

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