rubber matting, shavings, aquamax and confusion!!!!!

[debonhorse]

Hi all,
After such a great response from my first posting (feeding calmers) I am now after more advice.
I am in the process of putting rubber matting in my stables, I note on here that a lot of people use shavings on top. I have been doing a lot of internet research and a product called Aquamax sounds really good.
Does anyone use this? and how good is it.? Does it work out much more expensive than shavings? How much would I need to use to start with? how much would I need to put down over the week?
Any advice would be very gratefully recieved. I have never used rubber matting before, always been old fashioned straw, what are the real benefits of rubber matting except for quickness of mucking out, is it better for the horse?
could I put a dusting of shavings down and use straw on top, or is that just defeating the object.
Please help as I am so confused.

 

[Hattikins]

rubber mats are fantastic - at home we cant speak more highly of them

we were in the same state of confusion as you are in now as to what to put on top of the mats so ran a test on several brands of bedding to see their absorbancy levels, shavings were not great at all although better than straw, aquamax was quite good but high maintenance to start with, and hemp i think we tried wasnt that good either. In the end Megazorb came out as the clear winner and we have used it ever since - the most fantastic stuff that looks like paper thats gone through the washing machine

and has been christened "popcorn bedding" because my brother thought it looked like popcorn

cant speak more highly of it - extremely absorbent and dust free

google it - they definately have a website if you're interested

 

[debonhorse]

Off to do a google now, sounds like good stuff thanks.

 

[debonhorse]

just did a google, sounds fantastic. Do you live near suffolk?? I wondered about local delivery. the place closest to us is still 1.5 hours drive away, do you know if they charge the same prices as the 'head office'? i.e. 4.95 up to 100 bags.

 

[Hattikins]

i live in sussex and we get it delivered to us, i think its about that much down here £4.95, we get ours by the pallet (about 60 bags) and we put in about a bag a week (they are sacks as you probably saw rather than bales) it takes about 4 to start a winter bed off and about 2 for a summer bed, 60 bags lasts us a long time with two reasonably tidy horses - a 15hh and a 16hh

 

[Louby]

Mmmm, sound interesting.
I have a pretty clean horse but very wet and am using shavings at the moment on rubber mats so megazorb sounds great if it is so absorbant. How do you muck it out?
We once tried something called Woodypet or something??? and you had to water it at first and it swelled. It looked like cat litter. It was great at first but was the most awful dirty stuff after a few weeks and was a nightmare to muck out.

 

[Hattikins]

muck it out just like shavings, if you dont have rubber mats then leave the wet in for the first few weeks and it will form a firm base and then just semi deep litter it and its fab, we did this in a different box that didnt have matting for a while, it is the most absorbant thing we have ever used, soaks every drop up and doesnt smell at all. and you dont have to put water on it to swell

 

[Louby]

Thanks,
It was really funny, a few of us tried the woodypet? and all had watering cans, watering our beds! Looked like a right load of wallys!!
I have got mats, do you leave the wee for a few days, then remove?
Thanks again

 

[Hattikins]

lol! we dont we take it out, but you can to make a base. its so absorbant that even if they wee alot it doesnt use up too much bedding.