# Rubber mat in between ribs



## Mattais33 (Jun 19, 2014)

Does anyone know where to get this stuff and what it is called. It looks like some guys are running some sort of rubber mat like anti fatigue matting in between the ribs and I am really interested in that opposed to decking the whole floor.


Any thoughts?

Thanks.


----------



## TNtroller (Jun 19, 2014)

Check home depot or lowes for rubber mats, or even welcome mats might work if the right material. Will probably be a bit heavy but it needs to be so it won't blow when towing or going down the water.


----------



## Mattais33 (Jun 19, 2014)

Good idea. I actually was thinking of gluing them down just a bit to keep them in. Would have to be about 1" thick to accomplish what I am trying to do so not sure if the big boxes will have that. good idea though will check It out.

See the below boat that I found on this site that I now cannot find or I would ask him. Anyone know the attached pics owners handle?

Thanks


----------



## ccm (Jun 19, 2014)

I used something similar I believe it was called a horse stall mat. It is 3/8 inches thick & is very comfortable under foot. I is black in color & has pieces of rope/webbing in it for strength & durability. I don't think it will ever wear out, at least not in my lifetime. It is also slip resistant even when covered in water & fish slime. It came on a giant role & I had it cut to size for a perfect fit. I bought it at Tractor Supply but most farm supply/equipment stores will carry it. If such a store is not in your area check out places that carry things for tractor trailers, surprisingly enough a lot of companies/truckers use this stuff to line the floor of their trailers. It comes in a variety of thicknesses.


----------



## Mattais33 (Jun 20, 2014)

Awesome and thanks for the response. Tractor supply tomorrow it looks like....lol. Thanks again.


----------



## turbotodd (Jun 20, 2014)

Stall mat. Tractor supply. It's heavy, though.


----------



## ccm (Jun 21, 2014)

Well worth it in my opinion. Makes the boat super quiet & it's comfortable under foot. Plus it makes the boat a little bit warmer for those late fall through early spring fishing trips. The only drawbacks are it's weight & it can get hot ( I've only noticed it when the temp outside is over 105 degrees Fahrenheit ) but not as hot as the bare aluminum. I fish bare foot a lot so If it gets too hot I just remove it & wear tennis shoes during those 100+ degrees Texas summers ( thankfully it's not that hot this year, last summer was brutal ). Also it's removable for easy cleaning, & its slip resistant.


----------



## AKFF (Jun 21, 2014)

What was the cost like? Wouldn't mind something like that in mine, but would take a bit of material to do the 18'. Don't have TS here, maybe Farm & Feed or similar...not sure, never been much in tractors or farm markets.


----------



## ccm (Jun 21, 2014)

When I bought mine ( about a year and a half ago ) I paid about $7.25 per linear foot the 3/8 inch thick. The 1/4 inch thick was around a dollar cheaper but it was sold out at the time & it would have been another week before it got in so I got the 3/8. I have it in a 14ft v hull with a 4hp motor & I have never really noticed a difference in speed with or without the mat. If weight is a concern I think the 1/4 would work just as well. It is a little pricy but I don't think I'll ever have to replace it.


----------



## Mattais33 (Jun 21, 2014)

Just check TS site.

Width : 4 ft. | Product Length : 6 ft. | Product Thickness : 3/4 in
$39.99

They also have rolls sold by LF.
1/4" is $5.79 LF at 4 ft roll width
3/8" is $7.79 LF at 4 ft roll width

I am thinking of running the purple Board insulation from HD under the mat. My ribs are right at 1" tall so I will have to do whatever works. The 4'x6' piece of 3/4" is 100 pounds according to the website. I am gonna go check it our tomorrow and will give an update then. I am thinking I like the way this is going to work, somewhat temporary, easy to clean, tough material and easy to replace and clean. 

So in my line of work we sometimes do projects where we use WallGuard which is basically a vinyl wall protection material that comes in various widths starting at .040. It is extremely strong but it is very flexible, light and easy to clean and very waterproof. I was wondering what this would be like over either foam board or the stall mat. Would be a good alternative to the black of the stall mat. I may do some testing with some scrap I have laying around.

Thoughts?

Details to follow tomorrow.


----------



## Siguz (Aug 8, 2014)

[url=https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=356386#p356386 said:


> Mattais33 » 19 Jun 2014, 21:53[/url]"]Good idea. I actually was thinking of gluing them down just a bit to keep them in. Would have to be about 1" thick to accomplish what I am trying to do so not sure if the big boxes will have that. good idea though will check It out.
> 
> See the below boat that I found on this site that I now cannot find or I would ask him. Anyone know the attached pics owners handle?
> 
> Thanks




Hi
I'm the owner of this boat 

I got the mats at Canadian Tire..... in Canada....I'm Canadian
You would probably find this stuff at a farm supply store or at a place that sells industrial supplies.

If you haven't found them yet...good luck.


----------



## richg99 (Aug 8, 2014)

My 1648 Lowe had a big rubberized mat when I bought it. 

The previous owner said it stunk all of the time. He was right. I dumped it a day after I brought the boat home.

May have just been that type of mat.
richg99


----------



## Dkyle47 (Aug 9, 2014)

I bought an anti fatigue mat from Sears for $27. It weighs next to nothing and was pretty big with diamond plate design (can't remember the exact size but I had almost half left over on my 12ft jon) only downside is it has to be removed when transporting the boat because it would fly out...


----------



## Southern Appal (Sep 18, 2014)

Simlar question came up awhile back. You might search forum for the horse stall mats to find the thread. Someone who posted was very happy with Bedrug.


----------



## lovedr79 (Sep 18, 2014)

my boat has a few pieces of rubber door mat that I cut up under the battery box, fuel tank, and lined the area under the rear hatch. I also have a old conveyor belt that is in the front storage area.


----------



## hawghunters (Sep 18, 2014)

I thought about putting in the horse stall mats, but they were very heavy. I opted to the mats with the quarter sized holes in it. I just got mine off amazon and it was fairly cheap, and was lighter than the horse stall mats. I also was afraid of water sticking underneath the mats and not drying. I've had good luck with my quarter sized hole rubber mats thus far.


----------



## SquiggyFreud (Sep 19, 2014)

[url=https://forum.tinboats.net/viewtopic.php?p=362773#p362773 said:


> Dkyle47 » 08 Aug 2014, 23:32[/url]"]I bought an anti fatigue mat from Sears for $27. It weighs next to nothing and was pretty big with diamond plate design (can't remember the exact size but I had almost half left over on my 12ft jon) only downside is it has to be removed when transporting the boat because it would fly out...



I have something similar from Academy...for exercise equipment, they also sell it for flooring a tent. I taped them together and can drive up to 60MPH without them flying out.


----------



## SaltyGhost (Sep 19, 2014)

There is a company called SeaDek Marine Products that make very cool mats for boats. They even have camo which is cool. Of course it's expensive, but it's made for boats and has a self stick back so you can just stick it down. I plan to get some for the bench seats of my SeaArk. https://www.seadek.com


----------



## bobby_bates (Sep 19, 2014)

I used "anti-fatigue" floor mats from Lowes. It's expensive though, $22 per section. I could do two rib sections per mat in my boat.


----------



## onthewater102 (Sep 19, 2014)

[url=https://forum.tinboats.net/viewtopic.php?p=362747#p362747 said:


> richg99 » 08 Aug 2014, 19:46[/url]"]My 1648 Lowe had a big rubberized mat when I bought it.
> 
> The previous owner said it stunk all of the time. He was right. I dumped it a day after I brought the boat home.
> 
> ...




perhaps it had actually been used in a horse stall prior to landing in the boat


----------



## richg99 (Sep 19, 2014)

Re horse stall...you may have the real answer!! Ha Ha. richg99


----------



## bobmwsc (Sep 22, 2014)

They sell the anti-fatigue mats at harbor freight as well. A 4 pack of the interlocking squares is $10. Each square is 25 x 25 x 1/2" thick. They also have an Anti-Fatigue Roll Mat for $8. It's 24 x 72 x 5/16" thick weighing in at a whopping 1.55 lbs. And they're both even less with the 20-25% off coupons online.

We have interlocking tiles on our 3 season porch. They're assorted colors on one side and either gray or black on the other. They've held up to 6 years of kids playing and spilling on them and they still look great. We got those at Sam's Club - 8 mats w/ edging for about $22.

You may have to go a two layers to achieve the needed thickness with the squares but they weigh next to nothing.


----------



## adelmo (Sep 25, 2014)

I plan on using Best Step Anti-Fatigue Mat over my sealed plywood deck.

On sale at Menards: https://www.menards.com/main/p-2289280-c-6527.htm


----------



## looserivet (Oct 4, 2014)

I cut up a truck bed liner for one of my boats. I have a plywood deck though that extends from the last rib to under the front bench seat. I lined the rear section so the battery didn't bang up the aluminum hull, and the front to protect it from the anchor which sits up there. 

On my other boat I used some old gym mat, a local school replaced their gym floor which was covered with 1/4" thick urethane rubber mat. The down side is that its bright blue in color but it serves its purpose well and doesn't blow out when on the road.

I've thought about tacking the corners down with 3M 5200 adhesive but so far its never moved and having it easy to remove makes it easier to wash out the boat after a day in the saltwater.


----------



## lswoody (Oct 4, 2014)

Sounds like a good idea. Would love to do this with my 14'er.


----------



## Y_J (Oct 5, 2014)

48 Sq Ft EVA Foam Floor Interlocking Mat Show Floor Garage Gym Mat Black New

This is what I just ordered for the floor in my boat.. Here's the link on eBay. 48 sq ft, US $37.99, Free shipping

https://www.ebay.com/itm/351149772920?_trksid=p2059210.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT


----------



## looserivet (Oct 5, 2014)

I'd be cautious of that EVA foam mat material. We have both EVA and PVC foam mats at work around every work station, they made the mistake of taking a few of them outside to clean with a hose and they held water like a sponge. Its also available by the roll from most floor covering stores and Home Depot, its sold as carpet runner. Some of what we have are small 'fatigue' type mats, others are cut from bulk rolls. While its not really slippery when wet, it does absorb water like a sponge. When I went to life a 4x8' piece of mat that sat out on the curb for a week it felt like it weighed a hundred pounds or more. 

The PVC Foam has a label that states 'NOT for Wet Areas'. 

I would suppose that if left in a boat, between rain and just normal use it would no doubt absorb water. 

The barn stall or 'Cow' mats that I'm used to seeing are made from recycled tires and are usually 1" thick. Most come in 5x10 or so sizes but they're super heavy. 
They sell various sizes at Tractor Supply here, I'd say a full mat is over 80lbs, probably more. 

Years ago they used to make a rubber or foam mat that fit the back of a pickup truck, the purpose was to level the floor by filling in all the low areas in the ridged floor. I'd like to see something like that for a boat that leveled the ribs out. It would have to be light, along with water and UV resistant.


----------



## Djknyork (Oct 5, 2014)

I've seen greenhouse racks put in between ribs on another forum. Hard plastic rack/table tops cut to fit looked to b about 2 inches thick with 1 inch wide by 4 inch long slots for water drainage.


----------



## Y_J (Oct 5, 2014)

looserivet said:


> I'd be cautious of that EVA foam mat material. We have both EVA and PVC foam mats at work around every work station, they made the mistake of taking a few of them outside to clean with a hose and they held water like a sponge. Its also available by the roll from most floor covering stores and Home Depot, its sold as carpet runner. Some of what we have are small 'fatigue' type mats, others are cut from bulk rolls. While its not really slippery when wet, it does absorb water like a sponge. When I went to life a 4x8' piece of mat that sat out on the curb for a week it felt like it weighed a hundred pounds or more.


Darn and it said "Waterproof". Well, then if this one does as you say, then I'll put it in the Portable Garage, I'm getting from HF this next month as a flooring then figure a different way of doing the boat floor.



looserivet said:


> The barn stall or 'Cow' mats that I'm used to seeing are made from recycled tires and are usually 1" thick. Most come in 5x10 or so sizes but they're super heavy.
> They sell various sizes at Tractor Supply here, I'd say a full mat is over 80lbs, probably more.


Yep, the TS here has a pallet stack of these sitting outside the door.. Way to heavy for my little ol' 12 ftr. Thanks for the heads up..


----------



## looserivet (Oct 7, 2014)

Y_J said:


> looserivet said:
> 
> 
> > I'd be cautious of that EVA foam mat material. We have both EVA and PVC foam mats at work around every work station, they made the mistake of taking a few of them outside to clean with a hose and they held water like a sponge. Its also available by the roll from most floor covering stores and Home Depot, its sold as carpet runner. Some of what we have are small 'fatigue' type mats, others are cut from bulk rolls. While its not really slippery when wet, it does absorb water like a sponge. When I went to life a 4x8' piece of mat that sat out on the curb for a week it felt like it weighed a hundred pounds or more.


Darn and it said "Waterproof". Well, then if this one does as you say, then I'll put it in the Portable Garage, I'm getting from HF this next month as a flooring then figure a different way of doing the boat floor.

Take a piece of it and soak it, see if absorbs water. They have three types at work, one style connects together like a jigsaw puzzle, the others have tapered sealed edges, and the long pieces were cut from a roll like carpet runner. The stuff off the roll is the worst, it soaks up water FAST. 
The jigsaw linked pieces are the best but those are more dense, but they still gain weight when wet. The tapered edge molded mats are probably fine till he shiny surface gets a few punctures in it. These are the one's that are near the one door here and when it rains, they soak up enough water from the open door that they bleed water for a week or more afterwards when stepped on. 
The roll bought stuff gets so heavy it almost tears apart when you try and move it when wet. The jigsaw pieces are lighter to begin with but they still bleed water after being washed for a while. 
I can't saw for sure which is PVC or which is EVA, but there's a definite difference between the two materials. The jigsaw style mats are the odd material, the other two all feel like the same material. 

Another thought too, the fact that those mats tend to be black may not be the best choice on a hot summer day, I usually try to paint my boat interiors a flat white or light gray to help keep the surface cool while cutting down as much as I can on reflected heat.


----------

