|
| Please excuse this, Im cross posting from the flooring forum.
Where I live in Florida there is no soil to speak of, only sand. It is fine as sugar and gets tracked in at every access point. I have invested in a number of mats of different types and all of them work to varying degrees. But before I do my floors, I need to invest some money in really good mats! When we get to the lawn and landscape, that will help, but in the meanwhile I need to reduce the volume of abrasive sand that's coming in. I have three main access points that I want to put a mat on - one outside and another inside the door. They don't all have to be alike. The exterior mats should have some water resistance as they are subject to salt air and sprinkler over-spray. Can anyone recommend mats that are good for catching sand? Thank you. Beatrice |
Follow-Up Postings:
|
- Posted by michelle_phxaz (My Page) on Thu, Jul 17, 08 at 2:49
| I don't have a mat answer, but make sure you have everyone take their shoes off before they enter. We live in Phoenix, same problem, after the last carpet cleaning we went to the no shoes in the house rule. It has kept the dirt WAY down. Good luck! |
|
- Posted by arizonarose (My Page) on Thu, Jul 17, 08 at 9:44
| I agree with michelle on this. We don't expect guests to remove shoes, but we usually kick them off when we come in.It is so sandy here it blows thru the screens. We also ripped out all the carpet and have only hard floors. As far as mats go, I think most of them work equally well for catching sand. It pretty much just brushes off your shoes with most mats. |
|
- Posted by abejadulce_z9b (My Page) on Thu, Jul 17, 08 at 10:47
| Living in a construction zone it's not safe to go barefooted. There are several remodeling projects going on and will be for the foreseeable future. On the upside, there is no carpeting in this house and never will be again while I live in it! B |
|
| I love the LL Bean Waterhog mats. Lots of people on the Home Dec forum recommend them, and I took their advice. They are not cheap, but are worth the extra money IMO. They have other styles besides the one linked. |
Here is a link that might be useful: LL Bean Mat
|
| I had this same problem while I was living in Florida, and I had hardwood floors to boot, so I felt it was crucial to keep as much sand off of them as possible. I was constantly searching for the best ones to use; I don't like the coir mats because they're heavy to pick up, and they mat down over time, thereby reducing the amount of dirt or sand they would remove from shoes or bare feet. The best outdoor mats I found where those "astro turf" kind, the bright green (sometimes brown) ones with the long plastic tufts. You know the ones, they sometimes have a plastic daisy attached in one corner. Definitely not high-end or fashionable, but nothing got the job done like those. They would remove buckets of sand at the door, they were very lightweight, and you could hose them off & they'de be dry again in no time. Once I was hooked on them, I had trouble finding them though. I will investigate the LL Bean mat, as I do trust the opinions of people here. |
|
- Posted by abejadulce_z9b (My Page) on Sat, Jul 19, 08 at 9:42
| telly2, thanks for so much for sharing your experience! I have one of those fake grass mats among my assortment. Every time I buy one I have bought thinking I would compare them, but I haven't been able to make any meaningful comparisons. Right now we're living on the bare concrete slab, but I want to get a handle on the sand before we finish the floors and start grinding them up with loose sand. B |
|
| I just received a new LL Bean catalog today that has the waterhog mats in it, AND free shipping with no minimum purchase ! This might be a good time to try a new mat ! |
|
| I suggest you install some dirt removal door mats. I have been using tackmats (www.tackmat.com since long and they help all all the dirt particles from shoe surface magically. |
Please Note: Only registered members are able to post messages to this forum. If you are a member, please log in. If you aren't yet a member, join now!
Return to the Cleaning Tips Forum
Instructions
- You must be a registered member and logged in to post messages on our forums.
- Posting is a two-step process. Once you have composed your message, you will be taken to the preview page. You will then have a chance to review the contents and make changes.
- After posting your message, you may need to refresh the forum page in order to see it.
- It is illegal to post copyrighted material without the owner's consent.
- HTML codes are allowed in the message field only.
- No advertising is allowed in any of the forums.
- If you would like to practice posting or uploading photos, please visit our Test forum.
- If you need assistance, please Contact Us and we will be happy to help.