Learn About Weight Room Flooring

Learn about Rubber Flooring

---

Today I want to talk about why rubber flooring is the best choice for your facility. Rubber flooring proves best for many athletic and weight training areas. It’s best used in weight rooms, college strength rooms, student rec centers or gyms.

Pricing and Value

I also will talk a little bit about the pricing structure of these products and why they range in price .. something you’re interested in yourself. So we’ll first start out with the most noteworthy rubber flooring type — recycled rubber. Recycled rubber flooring a great choice in weight rooms, strength rooms, and gyms. Some of the key reasons are affordability, durability, and performance.

Recycled rubber also comes in the form of vulcanized rubber. Vulcanization is the process of how this rubber is bound together. Vulcanizing rubber gives it a higher tear strength. So it doesn’t rip apart or come apart quite as easy as general recycled rubber. This type of rubber would prove useful in dynamic areas that get a great deal of impact.

The thicknesses, density, and quality of rubber flooring qualify price differences. You can see pricing variation between $1.50 per square foot to $11 per square foot for rubber flooring. If you’re planning on using a thin $1.50 a square foot rubber floor, it may come in a slim 4mm to 6mm thickness. If you plan to cover a concrete floor in high impact areas, you’re not going get long term high impact resistance.

Rubber Floor Mats

Rubber floor mats provide basic cement or substrate protection. Standard size mats are 48″ x 72″. The standard thickness of floor mats ranges from 3/8″, 1/2″ to 3/4″. Floor mats are slip-resistant and much less expensive than professional flooring solutions. But, standard rubber floor mats are best suited for home workout rooms. These types of mats are not suggested for a commercial gym or for weight room use. We’ll go into professional weight room flooring solutions below.

Defects and Damage

If you choose the wrong rubber flooring in a weight room, you’ll experience failure. You’ll see pulverizing effects on the concrete. Over time from the use of kettlebells, barbells or dumbbells will cause damage. You’ll see flooring waves, bumps, and humps develop. That’s because you get delamination, a failure in the structure. This happens when the substrate starts to break down. The bond between the rubber and concrete or substrate will fail. This is because the rubber will pull away from the deteriorating substrate. This is a result of low-value flooring. The surface beneath your rubber flooring beaks down as well.

Expensive. This is an expensive error in judgment. You’ll have to replace the rubber flooring. You will have to resurface concrete or repair the substrate caused by an impact on the flooring. Buying and installing the proper rubber flooring for your space makes sense. You’re saving money on the front end by planning long term and making the best choices now, rather than later.

Benefits of Recycled Rubber Flooring?

Recycled rubber and vulcanized rubber flooring are available in rubber rolls or tiles.

• less expensive than other options
• durable
• easy to clean
• excellent traction
• impact resistant
• installs over substrates – concrete, asphalt, wood, tile or other rubber flooring
• anti-fatigue qualities
• eco friendly
• sound absorbent
• static resistance
• PVC free
• stable – in heat and sunlight
• homogenous construction
• color uniformity

Qualities of Rolled Rubber Flooring?

• smoother finish, less seams or joints
• will not roll or wrinkle under a rolling load

Benefits of Interlocking Floor Tiles?

• self installation is easy
• easy to replace if needed
• delivery is easy with lighter and smaller loads of tile
• doesn’t usually need adhesive – portable

Interlocking Rubber Tiles

The rubber tiles are available in 2′ x 2′, 3′ x 3′ or 4′ x 4′ sections and varied thicknesses. Interlocking rubber tiles provide excellent performance and protection in heavy use areas. They are interlocking and they may not need gluing. The “puzzle piece” tiles install easily as they assemble with interlocking border, center, and corner pieces. Additionally, interlocking tiles aide noise reduction and sound abatement.

Virgin Rubber

Moving on, virgin rubber is a smooth homogeneous rubber product. Virgin rubber flooring gives you more of a consistent color. It is more expensive. It’s used in areas wherein customers need a richer color and aesthetics are a bigger concern. You’ll see virgin rubber in student rec centers, and wellness centers for reasons of design. Virgin rubber flooring has a lower odor from the rubber. Recycled rubber emits an odor caused by “off-gassing”. This odor is greater than odor from virgin rubber flooring. There is a price difference and virgin rubber installation costs are higher.

Vinyl Flooring

General fitness areas and group fitness areas benefit from the use of vinyl flooring. Vinyl flooring with rubber backing is a good solution for light equipment and cardio areas. These areas have pin select exercise equipment and cardio equipment. These areas do not have impact areas designed for weightlifting. Vinyl areas do not accommodate the use of barbells, dumbbells, and kettlebells. The appearance of vinyl flooring has a nice woodgrain finish in various colors. You’ll see vinyl flooring in gymnasiums, general fitness areas. You’ll also see vinyl in group fitness and assembly areas or rooms in municipalities. Vinyl is great for general recreation areas for basketball and other recreational sports. Vinyl flooring is a very durable product.

Consult with a Professional

I’ll leave you with this, I urge you to speak with a flooring professional. Durability and performance both are high-value qualities. Student-athletes and lifters practice plyometrics, powerlifting, and Olympic weightlifting. These activities cause an excessive impact on the floor and to the substrate. It would be good to consult with a professional to assess your needs.

Get a Quote

If you would like to get your custom quote, please click on one of the blue get a quote buttons. We will be happy to explain how we can help you without obligation. Please use the quote calculator at the bottom of this article, again obligation-free. We created the flooring quote calculator to give you an idea of your needs and investment.

Thank you very much for watching the video above.

---

Weight Room Design | Athletic Rubber Flooring | Weightlifting Platforms | Platform Logos | Floor Graphics | 3D Rendering | Racquet Courts

Learn About Weight Room Flooring Solutions

Rubber Flooring Questions and Answers

I’m going to answer several questions like, “What type of flooring should I use in my weight room?” What is the cost of rubber flooring per square foot? What is the best type of sports flooring? Or, What is the pros and cons of vinyl flooring? I want you to walk away from this article with a confident sense of authentic disclosure. If you’re like me, you will respect transparency and authenticity above all.

People searching online have questions about rubber flooring renovation, selection, price, installation, and maintenance. This article serves to answer many, if not all your flooring questions. I’ll explain ways to cut costs related to shipping, ordering, and product selection. I will detail the cost per square foot for different floor products. You’ll read key points on the flooring installation for your facility. And, you’ll read which types of floor best meets the use requirements of your facility. So please, read on.

Click to Jump ›

---

Rubber Flooring
Virgin Rubber
Interlocking Tiles
Stacked Flooring
Vulcanized Rubber
Vinyl Flooring
Flooring Samples

Budget and Liability

Flooring is the foundation of what you are building with your weight room. Flooring is an important element in the design process. It is vital your organization’s strength & conditioning programming. As a coach, athletic director, principal or rec coordinator, you have many responsibilities. The top of your agenda concerns — your athletes and students.

I’ve got to talk about the elephant in the room. As a coach, athletic director, or facility director, you have a lot of responsibility. You’re tasked with providing a well equipped and safe environment for your athletes. Nine times out of ten, you must do this with one arm tied behind your back. Meaning, you have a long list to cover and a short budget to pay for it. This means you focus on the items on that list, so you can make that budget go as far as possible. You know that the one thing you do not want to do is go back and ask for more money in the end. Probably, chances are, you are going to hear – no.

Where am I going with this? Simple, the more informed you are you won’t take an unnecessary hit to the budget. The choices you make will affect the price tag of your rubber or tile flooring. I would like to do is share as much as possible without putting you to sleep! My goal is to arm you with all the information you need to consider your weight room project. If you refurbish or plan a new weight room, you’ll have cost and practical information. You’ll ask the right questions and make the best decisions possible.

Safety Concerns

That said, every step that your athletes or students take in your facilities are relevant. When you think about the flooring choices that you make, every step counts. These choices are key because they can mean a difference in many areas. Issues like traction, force reduction, and energy restitution affect flooring safety and performance. Branding and design interpret style and aesthetic quality among several other attributes. These issues and factors are relevant. Hence, they translate into student-athlete safety, and fewer accidents and injury.

High School Weight Room Flooring Renovations

Note the safety zones highlighted for weightlifting on the lifting platforms apart from the rubber flooring in the first two images below. In the next two images you can see how we designated running, and agility training areas apart from the common weight room flooring using artificial turf. These are examples of how we use different types of weight room flooring to accomplish safer training areas.

Weight Room Flooring Features and Benefits

Rubber flooring is a must-have surface in your facility. Standard rubber floor mats are used in home workout rooms. Floor matting ranks among the highest percentage of discarded flooring materials we replace. We’re focusing on flooring solutions for commercial facilities. You are about to learn all about rubber flooring for weight rooms, student rec centers, and gyms. After reading this article you will have all the information you need to get pricing information. You’ll know why to buy the best rubber flooring for your facility. If I’ve given you value for your time reading this article — you’ll use the flooring quote calculator at the bottom of the page to get a quote.

Manufacturers use recycled rubber granulated from tires to make rubber flooring. Recycled rolled rubber and interlocking rubber tiles are two types of flooring products. Other types of flooring systems include stacked rubber and vinyl flooring. Special rubber flooring varieties include vulcanized and virgin rubber flooring.

The use of select products makes sense in different types of facilities. A gym uses rolled rubber flooring. A student recreation center requires combined flooring solutions. A campus strength room may use indoor turf, vulcanized rubber, and vinyl flooring. While a dedicated weight room calls for thick rubber flooring and platforms.

A gym and a weight room may sound the same. But, there is a useful difference between a gym floor and a weight room floor. Gym or health club flooring accepts the demands and interests of the general population. While a weight room floor must survive student-athlete strength & conditioning training. The right flooring products protect the subfloor. Thus, technical needs for traction, force reduction, and energy restitution for users is key.

Rubber Weight Room Flooring and Weightlifting Platforms

The images below illustrate a close-up view of 8mm weight room flooring and a gym scene. These two images show how rubber flooring products support activities in the weight room. Note the 8mm rolled flooring covering the substrate, it’s 90% grey.

On top of the rubber floor, we added high-density rubber lifting platforms. The rubber weightlifting platforms are ¾” thick, with beveled edges. These platforms will sit on top of your weight room floor. Other lifting platforms can be inlaid flush or level with other flooring solutions. Also, note the “S” gym logos on the rubber platforms — a part of a larger weight room branding and design strategy.

Interlocking Rubber Flooring Tiles

Interlocking rubber floor tiles vary in size and thickness. Tiles account for about 75% of our remodeling projects. Rubber tiles are manufactured and sold in 24″ x 24″, 36″ x 36″, and 48″ x 48″ squares. As mentioned in the video above, interlocking tiles may not need to be applied with an adhesive to substrate flooring. They are movable and mobile. This type of rubber flooring provides exceptional floor protection and reduces vibration and noise.

Notice in the first image below how the “jigsaw puzzle” interlocking pieces fit together like puzzle pieces. Interlocking rubber tiles install easily and quickly. We added the strength room scene to help you visualize how your facility would look finished with 20% EPDM color added to the interlocking flooring.

Stacked Rubber Flooring

The first picture shows a close-up view of stacked or layered weight room flooring. The second picture shows the practical use of all rubber products in the weight room. These pictures show you how stacked flooring adds force reduction and energy restitution. The top layer of rubber flooring is higher in density than the bottom layer. The bottom rubber layer acts as cushioning for force reduction. The top of the stack is mocha brown in color. The top layer is the energy restitution and wear layer.

Again, we are showing you the 19mm rubber platforms with beveled edges. These rubber platforms cost much less than traditional oak lifting platforms. The platforms have the blue oval and yellow “B” school logo bonded on them.

Vulcanized Rubber Flooring

These images show vulcanized flooring. This type of processed rubber flooring adds hardened protection to the athletic facility. The vulcanized rubber flooring is black with 20% blue specks. The vulcanized rubber flooring covers large areas with a smooth appearance. Vulcanized flooring also pairs well with artificial turf for athletic performance training.

Like in the other images above, we support the use of 19mm rubber platforms with beveled edges. These platforms are less expensive and perform better than older oak platforms. The platforms have deep orange school logos bonded on top of them.

Vulcanized Rubber Flooring Pricing

Now that we’ve covered the basics in recycled rubber flooring, let’s cover processing. The process of vulcanization produces vulcanized rubber. Vulcanized rubber is a more durable product. The process uses a chemical component that produces a product impermeable to liquids. This isn’t the case with normally recycled rubber finishes. The process uses a chemical bath known as continuous vulcanization. How much does vulcanized rubber cost? It costs $4 to $7 per square foot. Consider the thickness, quality, and color of rubber floor tiles or vulcanized rubber rolls. Short, and sweet — vulcanized rubber floor is tough stuff!

Product Comparison

What are the best types of flooring for a weight room? Both rolled rubber and interlocking tiles use the vulcanization process. The process gives a good deal of strength and toughness to the material. Vulcanized rubber flooring is a more durable product. Vulcanized rubber flooring has a less “sticky” surface compared to rolled recycle rubber. It also appears to have less odor than normally recycled rubber flooring. The odor associated with rubber flooring occurs by off-gassing. This off-gassing is a natural occurrence. Rubber is always in a state of curing and the gas is a natural byproduct of the curing process. The odor from vulcanized rolled rubber weight room flooring lessens over time. But the odor will always be there to some degree. The vulcanized rubber material is great for high traffic areas. This includes weight room and strength room areas renovated for heavyweight use. Remember strength & conditioning training takes a toll on your flooring. If you use dumbbells, kettlebells and similar for training your athletes, durable wear.

Virgin Rubber Flooring

Virgin rubber flooring is commonly used in recreation centers, strength rooms and weight rooms wherein the design of the space supports the brand. Virgin rubber adds deep full color to the strength room floor. Yellow, red, black, and blue virgin rubber colors are most common but many colors are available. It produces less off-gassing odor and a smooth brilliant appearance.

The next two images show a closeup view of 8mm red virgin rubber flooring and a remodeled weight room scene. We paired these images to show you how rubber flooring can boost the design of your weight room. The 8mm flooring is deep red and shows great contrast installed in combination with green artificial turf. Over the red weight room floor, we used black dense rubber weight lifting platforms. The rubber platforms are 19mm thick, with beveled edges. These platforms aren’t mounted flush or inlaid, they sit on top of the weight room floor. The rubber platforms have the “W” school logo bonded on them.

Virgin Rubber Flooring Pricing

Virgin rubber produces vibrant colors and a smooth finish. It’s of the most expensive options for covering your strength room and weight room floors. How much does virgin rubber floor cost? It costs between $8 and $14 a square foot. Consider quantity, quality, and thickness in pricing. Exceptional shipping variables for pricing exist.

Is virgin rubber manufactured in both rolled and tiles forms? Yes. What color and style options are available? Virgin rubber can have a consistent color throughout the material. It can also have a marbled look throughout. The “marbled look” in virgin rubber is the more difficult of the two styles. One reason is that different production runs yield different results. The installation of a marbled virgin rubber floor must be from the same production run. The same is true for potential replacements of damaged tiles or areas in a roll. It is almost impossible to certify a color match for marbled virgin rubber floor rolls. You will find that type of weight room flooring in tiles with interlocking edges.

Installation

This doesn’t leave the rolled virgin rubber flooring without its disadvantages. One virgin rubber brand popular in campus recreation facilities are very expensive. That said, the real disadvantage lies within installation costs. This particular flooring brand and type require bonding or welding. Bonding of the seams of this rolled rubber requires a special welding process. Both sides of the seams must be “bricked”. Bricking involves placing bricks on both seam sides to weigh it down for several hours. Bricking and “welding” the seams take up to a year before the curing process is complete. So, this means that even though the installation is complete, it isn’t complete until a year or so has passed. There are cases where “welded” and bricked seams have come apart and the edges rolled back from each other.

The other disadvantage is branding with your school or organization’s logo or mascot. The cost is higher when applying logos and mascots to recycled rubber with water jetting. Virgin rubber flooring is perfect for high traffic areas. It’s recommended for weight room & strength room areas for heavyweight use. Your floor will be stable with the use of dumbbells, kettlebells and similar for durable wear.

Vinyl Flooring

The first image is a sample of commercial vinyl flooring for a student recreation center. Look at the closeup image. It is woodgrain grey in appearance with a foam rubber backing. It’s very durable for general fitness activities. Vinyl flooring is not suggested for barbell, steel or iron weight impact use.

Vinyl is great for high traffic and general fitness areas in the recreation facility. Student rec centers use several flooring solutions for different areas. The second image shows vinyl flooring in a cardio area within the recreation center. It’s an area wherein people will not be using weights or dropping weights. You can see how that cardio area overlooks the rest of the facility — great looking space!

Vinyl Flooring Pricing

Don’t get yourself worked up .. I’m not referring to the same vinyl flooring that your grandmother had in her kitchen! Yes, that was a type of vinyl floor, but vinyl floors have come a long way since then. Athletic facilities use 7mm to 7.5mm vinyl, which has a 5mm foam/rubber backing and a 2mm or 2.5mm vinyl wear layer. It’s hygienic heavy vinyl with technical components that make it ideal for traffic and locker room use. How much does commercial vinyl flooring cost? It costs $6 to $9 per square foot depending on the quality and technical specifications. E.g., vinyl floor pricing depends on its thickness, density, and wear layer values. Again, shipping is another pricing variable.

Installation

Commercial vinyl floors today are rich and beautiful in texture and design. Woodgrain and concrete finishes look fantastic! Vinyl is popular in major health clubs because traffic areas make up most of the floor plan. Color and design appeal rates highest in traffic areas with vinyl floors. Rubber backed sheet vinyl requires a smooth foundation. Manufacturers produce 6′ wide vinyl floor rolls up to 45′ lengths. They have simply glued down installations, with a hot weld seam. These seams are not like those that I noted in the virgin rubber installation process. Vinyl is a user-friendly product and the failure rate of installation is negligible.

Pro’s and Con’s of Vinyl

What are the pros and cons of vinyl flooring? Vinyl flooring is budget-friendly and very durable. It is a good fit in many high traffic school areas. I wouldn’t recommend this product for heavyweight room use. Areas, where athletes use heavy training equipment, aren’t well suited for the vinyl floor. Students who drop chains, steel weight or drag weight sleds over vinyl floors would damage it. I would recommend this product type in stretching areas. Vinyl flooring is good in light multi-functional areas (not for weightlifting use). Also, it’s a great product for locker rooms and high traffic areas.

Summary and Samples

In conclusion, this article answers “why and how” to choose flooring for your weight room, gym or student rec center. What you have learned here will get you past 80% of the mistakes you will find in facilities today. There are many more types and variations of flooring to discuss. The sample images below show several different types of flooring solutions. We offer countless color, thickness and density combinations of each sample shown below.

Recycled Rubber Flooring

Interlocking Rubber Flooring Tiles

Artificial Turf

Vinyl Flooring

Please use our flooring quote tool to get project data and pricing.

We created this calculator and quote tool to help you. Get a total square foot value, and floor pricing estimate. Assess the cost of new student recreation center, gym or weight room flooring today.

Thank You

Your time was well invested today. I look forward to learning more about your project.

Get a Quote