Synthetic sport court or rubber gym flooring is widely used by gyms, schools, and other similar facilities for use as an indoor track, basketball floor, tennis court, or weight room floor among a range of other athletic uses.  This sports flooring type is available in a wide variety of colors with design and logo options for a school or facility and they look impressive in an indoor fieldhouse or weight room when they are first installed.  However, repeated use of rubber gym flooring causes scuff marks and dirt to accumulate as the texture of the floor’s surface traps dirt and soil from shoes.  The accumulated dirt and scuff marks make the floor look dull and worn out, requiring regular cleaning and maintenance to keep the sport court looking new.  The following cleaning tips will help you effectively clean and maintain rubber gym and synthetic sports flooring.

Synthetic sports floor in University of St. Thomas fieldhouse: St. Paul, MN

Daily Cleaning Tips for Rubber Gym Flooring

The best way to maintain rubber gym flooring is to clean it daily with these tips:

• Start by checking the floor for sticky substances such as gum or loose tape and use a putty knife to remove them.
• Go over the entire floor with a 60 inch or 72 inch microfiber dust mop specially designed for gym floors.
• Mix 2 ounces of the floor cleaner suggested by the manufacturer of your sport court per 1 gallon of cold tap water.
• For mopping, make sure to use mop heads designed for synthetic sports flooring and change the heads when needed.
• If you are using an auto-scrubber, put the cleaning solution into the auto-scrubber and use on the entire floor with a blue scrub pad.

Rubber Gym Flooring Maintenance Tips

It is important to maintain synthetic sports flooring every day and preventative maintenance will help avoid surface damage.

• Put waterhog floor mats at gym entrances to prevent moisture from getting to the floor and vacuum them daily.
• Try to dust mop the floor at least 2-3 times per day.
• Chairs and moveable equipment should be fitted with wheels and supports that won’t indent the floor.
• If you use a battery operated auto-scrubber, make sure the battery is charged before use to prevent battery acid leaks and check the condition of the squeegee.

Preventative Maintenance for Synthetic Sports Floors

• Avoid using commercially treated dust mops because they leave a residue on the floor.
• Steel wool, sandpaper, abrasive cleaners, and soap with solvents should be avoided because they can damage the surface of the floor.
• Do not use acid or caustic based cleaners.
• Avoid using ammonia-based cleaners or full strength strippers.
• Allow only shoes with indoor, non-marking soles on the floor.

Removing Scuff Marks from Rubber Gym Flooring

Scuff marks are a common problem on synthetic sports flooring and they can be removed with these tips:

• Mix 8 ounces of a scuff mark cleaner with 1 gallon of tap water.
• Apply a light mist of the cleaning solution on black and white scuff marks and let the cleaner sit for about 2-3 minutes.
• Scrub the marks from the floor using a scuff pad.
• Use either an auto-scrubber or mop to rinse the whole floor with clean water.

Restoring Synthetic Sports Floors

Fieldhouse at Indiana- Purdue University in Fort Wayne, IN

If your sport court is looking dingy and worn out, you can restore its original appearance with the following steps:

• Remove any sticky substance from the floor such as gum or loose tape using a putty knife.
• Thoroughly dust mop the entire floor with a 60 inch or 72 inch microfiber dust mop.
• Create a cleaning solution with 4 ounces of the suggested restoration cleaner to 1 gallon of tap water.
• Use either an auto-scrubber or fan-tailed mop to apply the cleaning solution generously in controlled areas of the floor.
• After leaving the solution to sit for about 2-3 minutes, use a scrubber or buffer machine with a 20 inch rotary 175 RPM blue scrub pad to scrub the floor back and forth over the wet areas.
• Use an auto-scrubber with clean water and a red scrub pad to rinse the floor.
• Use a high velocity air mover if necessary to enhance drying.

Rubber gym flooring is chosen for its durability and color options and it looks great when it is new, but wear and tear on the floor can cause it to look dirty or dull without proper cleaning and maintenance.  By following these cleaning and maintenance tips, you can keep your synthetic sports flooring looking new and colorful.  If you do not have the equipment or resources to effectively clean your synthetic sports flooring, you can contact Kiefer USA for cleaning products.

About Vince Sandri

Vince Sandri is a content writer and blogger with more than 12 years of experience. His expertise is in creating content related to disaster restoration, including information about preventing and reacting to natural disasters like flooding, water damage, fire and smoke damage, mold growth, storm damage and more.
Vince has been the main contributor to RestorationMasterFinder.com since 2014. Over that time, he has written numerous service pages and blogs for disaster restoration providers featured on RestorationMasterFinder.com. Vince has done extensive research and covered a wide range of topics relating to disaster restoration to help homeowners, business owners, and property managers better protect their property. He understands the problems that disasters like flooding, fire, smoke, and mold can cause as well as the best ways to respond to these issues to limit the damage.
Vince completed his Bachelor of Arts degree at Aurora University and his master’s degree at DePaul University. He has been writing SEO website pages, blogs, and press releases since 2012. Vince is also a musician and can be seen playing in the Chicago, IL area.