Installing Rubber Stall Mats For Your Horse Stalls? What You Need to Know About Stall Preparation
by Tonia Frenzel
Rubber stall mats can be laid over concrete, asphalt, wood, or any level, well-compacted surface—but never over sand, which shifts beneath the mats and creates low spots. Where no hard floor exists, the best base is crushed limestone or granite fines no larger than 1/8", installed 4 to 5 inches deep, then leveled, soaked with water, and tamped into a solid subsurface that drains well. Once the base is dry, start interlocking mats in one corner, fit them together like a puzzle, and leave 1/4" to 1/2" between the mats and the stall wall so the rubber can expand and contract.
If you have made the decision to use Rubber Stall Mats in your horse stalls, then you've made a good choice. Rubber Stall Mats reduce bedding costs, save you time spent mucking your stalls, and ensure that your horses are safe and comfortable. The mats can be placed over concrete, asphalt, wood, or any level well-compacted surface. If you do not have concrete, asphalt, or wood, then the sub-surface preparation is the most important factor in having a safe, low maintenance, trouble-free stall.
Placing the mats over sand can cause problems; sand can shift under the mats, causing low spots that can create a trip hazard; or the horse will find those low spots and pull the mats up. An alternative to concrete, asphalt, or wood is crushed fines. Most common types are limestone or granite fines. These are easy to work with, compact well, provide good drainage, and stand up well to freeze/thaw conditions. Below are some excellent tips on how to prepare a stall using crushed granite fines.
Next you need to level and tamp the fines.
Use water to soak the material aiding in the compaction process. This will create a solid subsurface that will not shift under the mats and will also provide good drainage.
Now that the subsurface is level and compacted, let it dry and you are ready to install the mats. As stat
ed in our previous article, you can go with straight edge or interlocking mats, but if you do not have concrete or asphalt, straight edge mats can shift and the horse will dig holes.
You will then have to pick up the mats to fill holes.
Interlocking mats are the best choice when working with limestone or granite fines as your subsurface.
Once you've installed the mats, add a small amount of bedding and your horse can enter its new home. You will spend less time mucking the stall and more time enjoying your horse.
Humane Manufacturing, LLC, writer of the above article has made quality products since 1907 and has over 30 years of mat making experience. Creators of Loktuff interlocking flooring, we provide matting solutions for Stalls, Aisle Ways, Wash Bays, Walker Floors, Trailer Floors, Foaling Stalls and more!
