NEVER use "protective" mats on hardwood floors! (WnW
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- Опубліковано 15 жов 2024
- They destroy the finish. Let's see if I can fix that up.
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I installed oak hardwood floors in our home over a decade ago. In one room, we have a few desks, as that is where my wife and I work on the computer. I knew that office chairs mar the finish of hardwood floors, so I bought us some of those vinyl "floor protecting" mats.
This was a HUGE MISTAKE. I should probably have just used the chairs right on the floor.
The problem is that grit would gather along the edge of the mat. No matter how clean you keep your house, over the months and years, little bits of grit and dirt do come into the room. And the grit gets under the edge of the mat where it proceeds to grind into the wood like sandpaper.
I finally had enough of ignoring the problem. I bought protective rubber wheels for our office chairs, and threw out the mats. Now it is time to clean the floors, pick out the grit, and apply some new polyurethane finish to see if we can save the floor before it gets even worse.
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🗜 LINKS TO SOME OF THE ITEMS USED:
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amzn.to/30aedBO -- Our replacement chair wheels
amzn.to/2M0qbEI -- Other options for hardwood floor protecting casters
amzn.to/302OP1l - Varathane Floor Finish
I could not find an exact match on Amazon for the particular floor finish I used. Instead this is a link to a more general Amazon search, which does include other options from the same company.
However, just for completeness, here is a link to the actual Rustoleum product page for the finish I used: tinyurl.com/yx...
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I installed oak hardwood floors in our home over a decade ago. In one room, we have a few desks, as that is where my wife and I work on the computer. I knew that office chairs mar the finish of hardwood floors, so I bought us some of those vinyl "floor protecting" mats.
This was a HUGE MISTAKE. I should probably have just used the chairs right on the floor.
The problem is that grit would gather along the edge of the mat. No matter how clean you keep your house, over the months and years, little bits of grit and dirt do come into the room. And the grit gets under the edge of the mat where it proceeds to grind into the wood like sandpaper.
I finally had enough of ignoring the problem. I bought protective rubber wheels for our office chairs, and threw out the mats. Now it is time to clean the floors, pick out the grit, and apply some new polyurethane finish to see if we can save the floor before it gets even worse.
YOUR SUPPORT IS APPRECIATED:
💵 Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/wordsnwood
🛒 Buy a Plan: wordsnwood.com/plans/
👕 Buy Merch: wordsnwood.com/merch.html
🗜 LINKS TO SOME OF THE ITEMS USED:
amzn.to/30aedBO -- Floor Protecting Rubber office chair replacement wheels
amzn.to/302OP1l - Varathane Floor Finish
I could not find an exact match on Amazon for the particular floor finish I used. Instead this is a link to a more general Amazon search, which does include other options from the same company.
However, just for completeness, here is a link to the actual Rustoleum product page for the finish I used: tinyurl.com/yxdl3xxx
Interesting, I can say with experience that without a matt I completely destroyed my flooring :P
I modified my chair to protect my hardwood. I pulled the wheels off, made blocks of wood to replace the wheels and stuck felt pads to the bottom of the blocks. The chair doesn't move as easy now, which turned out to be a good thing. That fix looks pretty good. Hardwood floors are like a pair of jeans... they should have a lived-in look!
Every now and then I swap to a yoga ball -- no wheels at all -- but I still like a real chair most of the time.
That's a great idea.
Um, it doesn't make much sense to get a chair with wheels on it, if you don't want to use the wheels. Good grief.
Alan unless you’re lucky enough to to possess the ability to modify things to fit your life... what’s a stupid thing to say.
I would replace the casters with the rollerblade type wheels. Those are more gentle on the hardwood floor although will still wear it a bit over the years.
I'm four years behind in that I just found this video now. After I fix the floor under my office chair, I think some rubber casters will be in order. I'm curious to learn of an update regarding their performance over the past years, if you want to give one.
there is still wear, but much less.
l always put down an area rug first and then a plastic protective mat on top of the area rug. 15 years later, no problems or wear spots. Fabric is very forgiving. Also makes cleaning easy because the area rug just slides out of the way with the slightest encouragement so never a chance for grit to build up underneath.
sounds like a good approach!
Just discovered my mats were doing the exxact same thing to my floors. I am furious at myself for letting this happen. I don't think the damage is as severe as yours; I am getting a buffer to polish up the floor a little and see if I can't get the shine to come back. Mostly just.. "dull" in the middle, but definitely some scratches around where the edge of the mat was.
I just got rollerblade-like wheels for my chair. They seem like they wwill work nicely moving forward. NO mat.
I always recommend felt replacement wheels for office chairs to my customers. Mats are never recommended over hardwood for this reason.
Felt? Felt Wheels? What are those? Got a link?
Yeah, they are pretty cool. We sell them in our store. Just look up felt wheels for office chairs on amazon. They are pricey though.
Oil based varnish might have made a better match, it also adheres a bit better. As for the rubber wheels - don't use them. I used casters with rubber wheels on hardwood, and the grit just sticks to them. The floor ended up really dimpled.
I guess we'll have to see... I've had rubber wheels on two of our chairs for a few months now and it seems better. Just added a third. The stock hard plastic wheels definitely get gritty very fast in my experience.
@Richard Cranium I use the rollerblade style casters, and have never experienced damage on flooring - but as you've mentioned, we don't wear shoes into the house.
Try large rollerblade clear wheels. That's what I've used to replace my office chair wheels. Always important to keep the floor and your wheels as clean as possible.
I was thinking of getting a mat because the office chair doesn't move well on our hardwood, but I definitely won't now. Thanks for sharing
I have laminate floors and I’m now going to check my floor mat and most likely get rid of it. Thanks
If you have laminate floors, you are "most likely" OK. They are VERY scratch/chair mat resistant.
I have laminate floor and I recently used an office mat with the studs and it left little marking from the studs so I'm now trying to figure out how to fix it.
@@jackking20 A chair mat with studs is for carpet. You'd want one that's smooth on laminate. I was rolling around on my office chair daily for the past half year no mat straight on laminate, and there's now some big long scratches from what was likely bits of rock that have inevitably tracked in. I'd rather have the mat protect my floor from that and clean around the mat once a week (that's my vacuum schedule), than risk damaging the floor further, not to mention any imprints/compression that could possibly occur over time from the weight and wear.
So wie es aussieht, hattest Du die Strukturseite auf Dein Boden gelegt. In der Anweisung ist jedoch angegeben Strukturseite oben, glatte Seite zum Boden hin.
I was told to use a tempered glass mat by the company that put our floor in. Im sure its heavier and its flush with the floor. My floor got busted up by my chair, I had them look at my floor.
thanks for the post, I was going to just order a plastic mat. someone suggested a rug first which is a good idea. but I am thinking I don't know why they don't offer one with a thin layer of foam material on the bottom of the plastic mat
I had a plastic mat on my wood floors and now the whole floor where the mat sits was ruined. If I ever get a mat again it will be glass with bumpers or bamboo with felt on the bottom. Still remember the wood floor guy telling me to get a chair mat to protect the floors, but that was all he said.
Thank you!!! Was just about to buy a couple for my new hardwood floor. The things you find on UA-cam! :)
Glad I could help!
How soon did you put the mat down after you stained and poly’d? Oil based poly needs at minim 14 days to cure but better for 30 days. If you put down mats or rugs before it cures then you risk this happening.
Water based poly needs time to cure too. Though a shorter time
The original floor was prefinished. So those are baked on at the factory. I didn't put down the original poly.
Looks a whole lot better now Art. Good fix.
I've had great results with the replacement wheels on my wood floor. Thanks for the video.
Then what do you put instead in the hardwood floors, if mat is not a good idea?
Good job, I had a feeling the fix would be pretty good even if not perfect, let's say it adds character.
used to work nights at a hospital, strip seal and wax coats on floors, worst spot was always the desk for the front secretary, wear right through the old tile. Newer areas had solid rubber tile or sheets, would use a machine to rub a layer off, then buff to a sheen. Never ending battle against the winter parking lot salt.
Thank you. I was on the fence about getting an office chair mat!
That turned out pretty nicely!
The office chair wrecked the wood floor that was original with the turn of the century house, so I grabbed a chair mat and had it in place for 2 years. I did not experience this problem but I did have a small area rug underneath to protect .and that may have protected the floor from chair and mat.
This was interesting and informative.
It reminds me of something in my experience which is only peripherally related, but I think is worth mentioning. I used to sell high end oriental rugs. We would always encourage our clients to purchase our two layer, non-perforated rug pads to guard against abrasions to their floors and the weave of the underside of the rug. The bottom was a waffle pattern, tacky rubber and the top side which contacted the rug was a felt made of scrap textile. They were only marginally more expensive than those thin perforated pads you see commonly. Those truly are garbage, as they allow ingress of dust and grit. Once that happens, they lose grip creating a slipping hazard and will also destroy your rug and floor over time.
Good info, thanks for sharing!
I tried to buy 'rubber castors' only to find that they were just different coloured plastic so I bought an inner tube for a bike and cut bits off and put two layers on each wheel. I won't know how well it protects my floor for another year but it sounds much quieter and it only cost me $6 and an hour of my time and the retail alternatives I am positive were not better.
Maybe swiping under the mat every couple of days would prevent that damage?
lol, our house isn't using old school sanded wooden floors like that, instead we used a modern technique instead of taking weeks/months to sand/polish the floor we had dark stained wooden planks laid down like tiles, better finish, the texture looks very strong and scratch proof, i doubt we would have your problem. p.s it took 2 days hardwork to do (professionally done of course)
p.s no offense but your floors look like your house had just been put together due to the very light wood colour, i recommend getting stained wood planks put down (they're like tiles) our old carpet house transform into some rich looking mansion
good i saw this before getting one. thanks!
Damage, save the floor? or some wear on the finish after a decade of use
I would imagine part of that is every time u roll, it’s putting pressure on the edges, like a tiny wiggle.
Solution - put a piece of carpet under the mat
Or just a piece of carpet.
Just make sure the carpet/rug has a rubbery type of backing underneath it instead of that scratchy grid-type backing. My office rug had that scratchy stuff underneath, and now the floor is dimpled and damaged in the same way as grit under a plastic mat.
Not seeing that with my hardwood floor mat.
I bought a hard floor floor mat for my home office, but after this im worried to use it. I have wood parquet floors. Am i good to use it u think?
That is a reason instructions suggest to frequently ventilate and clean under it ;)
OMG I’m so glad I found this, thank u! When u lifted up that edge, yeeeshhh 😩
uh no offence but the mat wasn't the problem it was him never lifting the mat up and cleaning it and left it like that for years thats a "him" issue not the mat, you would get the same problem with a cupboard on a spot never moved
Contact paper
I did the exact same thing and regret it for the same reason.
Live and learn is all we got...
Maybe your hardwood is terrible quality, you need to think of an alternative mat or something lol not just say don’t use it haha
You don’t clean your floor as you should, that’s all.