Another question please - carpet fibre for maneges?

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JillA

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I have an outdoor school which was originally wood chip (BIG mistake, not fit for purpose, they should never sell it as such) which when it started to break down, I had topped up with rubber. That worked quite well, except in the wettest of weather when it rode deep but as part of a general drainage scheme more drains have been installed under it. But now it needs topping up again and the local rubber suppliers have ceased and are turning their tyres into something else. All the others are so far away the cost of transport makes it prohibitively expensive.
I have found two suppliers of recycled carpet fibre within a reasonable distance but both are trying to sell me a full remove and replace, whilst I was enquiring about topping up.
Has anyone done similar, i.e. topped up another type of surface with carpet fibre, and how did it work? Are they just trying to get a bigger sale or will it genuinely not work, does anyone know from experience?
 
I haven't done it but I've heard many positive reports about carpet fibre top ups.

I go to a lot of SJ clinics and the carpet fibre mix arenas are superior to rubber and sand.

One particular arena was horrendously deep and I went there recently and couldn't be lien the difference. They had added carpet fibre.
 
There's no reason why this won't help .
I am thinking of adding carpet to my area which is sand and rubber and fibre over time we have lost the fibre ( which was very fine ground up carpet ) .
The fact you can get it round bales means it's easy to manage the top up yourself .
I would go for it .
 
We have exactly the same problem in our round pen! Where is a good place to get carpet fibres? How much roughly per bale? Can they go straight on top of wood chip?
 
FFAQ said:
We have exactly the same problem in our round pen! Where is a good place to get carpet fibres? How much roughly per bale? Can they go straight on top of wood chip?
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I don't know where you are but ask your local waste management companies. The two in this area I know about are Welshpool/Newtown and Walsall - local is good because transport costs hike the price significantly. I have just been quoted £85 per tonne plus £75 transport from Walsall, presumably plus VAT. I was told I would need 4 tonnes to top up a 20m x 40m manege by an inch or so.
 
We have a mix of sand and carpet fibre in the school at the yard I'm on. We do find that it needs watering and the arena dragged and rolled quite frequently as the carpet fibre tends to rise to the top if it's not done regularly.
 
Equestrian Flooring do some great deals. We topped up with this over sand (with plastic crumb mixed in which had all but disappeared). I've had it down a year now. It has never frozen and didn't run deep in summer either - both were serious problems before. I hardly ever have to level it: it just sits on top and we ride on top of it! I am so so pleased with it. And even living right at the top of the pennines, it hasn't blown away! no mean feat given we are 1300 feet up! Best money I've ever spent.
 
JillA said:
I don't know where you are but ask your local waste management companies. The two in this area I know about are Welshpool/Newtown and Walsall - local is good because transport costs hike the price significantly. I have just been quoted £85 per tonne plus £75 transport from Walsall, presumably plus VAT. I was told I would need 4 tonnes to top up a 20m x 40m manege by an inch or so.
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Thanks! I will try that. We are in Devon :)
 
A yard I was on did this, they had a new sand arena that was too deep, and the carpet helped a bit with the deepness, but it was an awful surface! It was very "flat" to ride on, it really needed rubber on it.
 
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As a matter of interest, do any of you know how much per tonne it cost? I had a good quote and then a not so good one, in which both tried to persuade me to buy vast quantities. When I said all I wanted was a few tonnes for a top up, one went up from £122 + VAT to £532!!! Not a mistake, I queried it.
 
JillA said:
I have an outdoor school which was originally wood chip (BIG mistake, not fit for purpose, they should never sell it as such) which when it started to break down, I had topped up with rubber. That worked quite well, except in the wettest of weather when it rode deep but as part of a general drainage scheme more drains have been installed under it. But now it needs topping up again and the local rubber suppliers have ceased and are turning their tyres into something else. All the others are so far away the cost of transport makes it prohibitively expensive.
I have found two suppliers of recycled carpet fibre within a reasonable distance but both are trying to sell me a full remove and replace, whilst I was enquiring about topping up.
Has anyone done similar, i.e. topped up another type of surface with carpet fibre, and how did it work? Are they just trying to get a bigger sale or will it genuinely not work, does anyone know from experience?
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Robow said:
Hi just wondering if you topped up your woodchip arenawith carpet fibre as I have the same problem
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Yes, I did and it works well. The carpet doesn't move much so it sits on the top and barely needs grading. The only problem I have found is because it doesn't need grading you do get weed growth but that is easily solved with a weedkiller spray every once in a while. Oh, and finding the odd bit of carpet int he adjoining paddock, thanks probably to the birds lol.

Carpet Gallop aren't that far from me and I got a good deal with a cancelled order which made it even better!
 
Ours is a mix of carpet and sand. However, it was completely redone with better drainage. Its really good. Locally we've been flooded but no matter how much rain we have, the manege is always water free. After 3 years use on a 60 horse yard, it is still great. In summer it hasnt been dusty like the previous sand and rubber surface. The farmer keeps the school well maintained and levels it regularly though.
 
Sounds like a plan then! How much did you use? I have an unusable 20x40 arena, and not going to spend too much on it as it’s not mine (parents’ who live next door). there’s only me that uses it. I phoned carpet gallop a couple of years ago about topping up a woodchip arena, they didn’t recommend it
 
There is a local lady who has just had a really badly neglected on topped up with carpet. She is on FB but I have asked for an email address, you can ask her how it worked out for her. Watch this space ........... messaged you, she has replied.
 
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Looking at surfaces but I can’t get my head round the fact that chopped up carpet (polypropylene, acrylic etc) are all man made plastics (no wool, it rots too quick) so anyone buying it is spreading plastic waste on their property for the plastic fibres to flush down through the drains, into our watercourses. I’m no eco warrior but it just doesn’t sit right with me. Any thoughts?
 
rider74 said:
Looking at surfaces but I can’t get my head round the fact that chopped up carpet (polypropylene, acrylic etc) are all man made plastics (no wool, it rots too quick) so anyone buying it is spreading plastic waste on their property for the plastic fibres to flush down through the drains, into our watercourses. I’m no eco warrior but it just doesn’t sit right with me. Any thoughts?
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So what's the alternative? The waste is there anyway, we may as well find a use for it.
 
I inherited an old arena when I moved to current house - it was sand and the tiny bits of plastic (from electrical cable that used to be fashionable). I first topped up with sand / rubber mix which lasted less than a year before all disappearing -washed or blown away (expensive mistake)
2 years ago I did the carpet fibre and it's great - it does need the sides digging in a couple of times a year but really held up well and good in dry summer last year unlike many many others
 
I know someone who has just put in a new carpet fibre/sand mix. It feels good but it's too early to tell how it will work out long term.
 
hi. I have ridden on both types of surfaces and tbh I'd worry that carpet fibre would simply disappear through the rubber and wood chip. The surface is now sand and carpet fibre and its perfect. never rides deep copes with all weather except very very cold.

I'd worry that you'd top it up now with carpet fibre only to find you had to relay it all anyway.
 
Parrotperson said:
hi. I have ridden on both types of surfaces and tbh I'd worry that carpet fibre would simply disappear through the rubber and wood chip. The surface is now sand and carpet fibre and its perfect. never rides deep copes with all weather except very very cold.

I'd worry that you'd top it up now with carpet fibre only to find you had to relay it all anyway.
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Mine is laid on top of wood chip which also had rubber top up. It sits on top of them and never moves, never needs grading (although it doesn't get a huge amount of use). The biggest problem I have encountered is weed growth, it needs spraying a few times a year
 
Still not done anything with my horrible woodchip arena, I rode in a sharp sand arena that had been topped up with shredded carpet, that was really nice and firm, the owner said it’s great.
 
JillA said:
Mine is laid on top of wood chip which also had rubber top up. It sits on top of them and never moves, never needs grading (although it doesn't get a huge amount of use). The biggest problem I have encountered is weed growth, it needs spraying a few times a year
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I wondered if this is still a success? After such a wet winter, my Woodchip surface is now unusable as it has broken down so much and moves so much. I am considering replacing with sand and carpet fibre, but the work involved with taking up the Woodchip and the increased cost of a new surface make me very interested to hear if just carpet fibre on top of the Woodchip will work? The companies selling it have advised against it. Thanks
 
I had a woodchip manege at my last house www.cheapmenage.weebly.com for the whole sorry tale. Here, I have a sand & fibre surface. I can't imagine how adding fibre to a degraded woodchip surface would work. Mine was a soggy mess, pretty much unrideable & I don't think that adding fibre (not sure how that would even be possible) would have helped.
 
From Horse and Hounds

"Rules on waste carpet being used in riding arena surfaces changed in June 2021 in a move that has been welcomed by the industry.

The Environment Agency (EA) is changing its guidance on the use of shredded waste carpet in arena surfaces as of 17 June 2021. While carpet fibre can continue to be used in riding arena surfaces, companies providing these surfaces must ensure they comply with the new regulatory controls.

This is not to be confused with other fibres that are used in many arena surfaces and will continue to be permitted under the new rules.

Defra, which sponsors the EA and is working with the carpet recycling industry and equestrian surface providers on this matter, confirmed to H&H that there is no requirement at present for existing surfaces containing waste carpet to be removed and replaced.

The reasoning behind the decision comes from research into persistent organic pollutants and concerns over microplastics.

Carpet Recycling UK (CRUK), a non-profit trade association set up in 2008 to help the sector to use carpet waste as a resource and divert waste from landfill, was approached by the EA in September and is working with them.

“Carpet fibre in equestrian surfaces has grown in popularity and volume, as many of your readers will know, and understand there are advantages for using this kind of fibre relating to durability and performance as well as cushioning qualities,” CRUK manager Adnan Zeb-Khan told H&H, adding that the association’s aim is to “demonstrate best practice and produce standards for all involved in the supply chain”.

“As an independent organisation, CRUK is in a strong position to help the EA and the carpet sector through discussion and demonstration of testing for pollutants and microplastics, and successfully had the initial transitional period extended from three to six months, which is due to end on 17 June 2021.

“Through the setting up of a ‘working group’, CRUK is talking to and will continue to speak to the sector and the EA, seeking for a favourable outcome for both, to help with tightening standards and quality relating to the use of carpet fibres in equestrian surfaces.”

Justin Chittenden, managing director of Equine Health Centre which owns Equivia All-Weather Equestrian Surfaces, has welcomed the news.

“The new regulations are a huge step forward for the equine surfaces industry as it will help to ensure that surfaces are free from contaminants and are safer for both horses and the environment,” Mr Chittenden told H&H, adding that the brand has always used clean post-industrial fibres, as opposed to the material that is being banned."
 
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