Picking the Ideal Entrance Mat

We all know that when dirt, water, mud and snow are tracked into a store it makes things messy, unappealing, slippery and dangerous. The right entrance mat can stop dirty floors in their tracks and avoid the maintenance costs of dirt and water entering your facility.

High quality entrance mats are designed specifically to remove solid debris from shoes and soak up water.

These mats are broken down into one of three categories:

  • Scraper Mats or Recessed Well Matting
    • Is your first line of defense, and are designed to aggressively remove clumps of mud, dirt and snow. These are placed outside or just inside the entrance.
  • Scraper/Wiper Mats
    • Are dual-purpose mats that are designed to both remove clumps of dirt and soak up larges amount of water
  • Wiper Mats
    • Are mats designed to soak up residual water and fine sand and are the last line of defence for your store

Which to choose?

  • Ideally it is best to have all three types of mats. This way the scraper mat removes large debris, the scraper/wiper mat removes the smaller dirt and water and the wiper mat removes what is left of the water and sand.
  • It takes several steps to effectively remove debris and soak up water, so it is recommended to have up to 15 – 20 ft of entrance matting
  • If space is limited, using only two of the above styles or just a dual-purpose scraper/wiper can also be effective

When selecting mats it is also important to consider your location and plan accordingly:

Consider the weather and plan for the worst days of heavy rain or fresh snow. There are mats designed for different amounts of traffic. Not all mats are made equal. Mats vary in the amount of dirt and water they can absorb before becoming saturated and useless. This is a drawback of rental mats as they are often lighter wiper mats that become saturated quickly.

You also have to take into account your hours of operation. Many 9-5 businesses can use a standard setup, where the mat can dry over night and is periodically vacuumed. For 24-hour facilities, mats simply don’t have enough time to dry and in these cases it is best to have two sets that are switched out halfway through the day.

If you wish to learn more information on mats please contact us at 1-800-561-1951.