Stable mats - rubber/ EVA?

laurenn1010

laurenn1010

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I have tried searching through all the old posts on here but i cant seem to find any real winner in the stable mats front...

have had some indication that the EVA mats are much warmer/comfier than the rubber mats so i may be more inclined to go with these? what are the downsides? would i be better just having a traditional bed???

can everyone tel me their experiences with which type of mat they have and also who the manufacturer was?

we have just built a new stable block so i really wouldn't like to make the wrong choice and waste all that money!

thanks in advance!!!
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I have EVA 24mm thickness mats from Horse Comfort. I've had them for 6 years now and have moved them many times. They are more cushioning than traditional rubber and easily movable and light. Rubber mats are heavy.

They are an expensive outlay but I have to say well worth the investment on saving time and bedding costs so have paid for themselves several times over now.
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the stables have been built with a supposedly sloped floor (altho i cant see it... will have to do the bucket test yet!) but do the eva mats work ok if it isn't such a obvious slope?

also our stables have been made an odd size, am i rite in thinking i would need around 8 mats for a 13x13 stable?

i was actually keen on those horse comfort mats, they are manufactured by mayo mats aren't they? do they stink at all? what thickness of bedding do you lay on top and what kind is it?
 
I have the Equimats (EVA) in two out of my three stables and they are great, I am getting the third stable done this summer. The nice delivery man fitted the second one, so I am sure he coud cope with weird shaped stables if you asked nicely! I have saved loads on bedding; one horse has just a sprinkle of shavings and the other has a third of a normal bed if that (and she is quite wet). Works a treat. PS My stables are not sloped at all.
 
If they are going to be permanent mats (i.e. you arent moving them about) then I would personally go for rubber as they last longer and wont absorb the wet like EVA does.

I have 34mm EVA mats and they are very good, but I have moved them several times and they dont tend to fit as well - especially when you have to cut them down etc. Also, they do tend to flatten a bit at the front where my horse stands, so it is about 20 mm thick there and 34mm at the back of the mat. I also have to clean underneath periodically as they do tend to smell. I currently use straw and the mats are sprayed with disinfectant daily/5 times a week.
 
I've had mine in stables with and without drains in. I don't find they absorb the wet or have been flattened. They dry very quickly and I only use a bit of disinfectant every few weeks as my boy is clean. I just use a sprinkling of shavings just to absorb the wet but it depends on how dirty your horse is so best to experiment a bit. I hose them every couple of weeks and take them out once a year to power wash both sides of the mats and the entire stable.
 
I've had EVA mats for about 9 years now and they're still going strong - moved them several times and easier to fit than rubber (tho do have to ensure they are wedged in else they move). Mine were cheaper I think 18mm thick - cow mats rather than horse mats. I have one stable with rubber and prefer the EVA. None of the stables have been fantastic on drainage but had no problem with smell. If you do advantage to EVA is they're really easy to pick up to clean underneath!
 
We have 30mm cow mayo mats (EVA) in three stables. Down now for 7 years and still going strong with very little wear even at the fron where they stand.

There is no smell, and they have NEVER been lifted to clean underneath. They are well fitted with little wedges of mat at the sides to stop them moving.

Fiona
 
what size do the cow mats come in? 6x4 like the horse mats?

fiona did you buy an extra mat to make the wedges from or could you use like wood or something to wedge with? is there much saving buyin the cow mats over the horse ones? and what exactly is the difference?

many thanks for your help!
 
Hi,
I have had the thickest (34mm i think) Equimats down for a year and rate them highly. they haven't flattened at all or worn. I have moved stables once and had to cut them for this and it was quite easy. They have urine marked in an area where I had a straw bed (not as absorbent) but never when I have used chopped straw or shavings even if wet patches not removed for a day, it must just be when pools that go through normal straw. I have saved pounds on bedding and time and like them best with the thinnest 1cm of bedding in a bed shape. The only gripe I have is that if you order say enough for a 12' by 12' stable, they will come as 11'10" x 11'10" to allow for spreading. Mine have never spread and it just meant in my first stable that you had hard to clean gaps that filled with food and bedding. Much better now that they are fitted to walls. If you have them it would be worth mentioning to the company when you ask for fitting. they were very helpful and sent a free 4 ins x 4 ft piece to fit into doorway free as first stable had extra at door. you get 10% off price if you are a BHS member.
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I would highly highly recommend these mats if you want to really reduce bedding and time!
I have had normal 17mm rubber mats before these and these were also very good. I didn't feel that I could use less bedding on them as still quite hard, but when fitted properly and butted up tightly, hardly any urine makes its way through to bottom. they do make the stable warmer.
I have tried various hygeine methods with both sets of mats and for a while washed under rubber ones weekly. i must admit that mine haven't been lifted since the move in Aug and there is zero smell. Both stables have poor drainage.
 
There was DEFINITELY a saving in buying the cow mats rather than horse mats (but just as good IMO).

They come in 6 x 4.

We had enough offcuts to make the little wedges for the edges of the stable, and this was a really good idea (rather than fitting tightly to the edges), as the mats do spread very slightly after they have bedded down, so some of the wedges I was able to lever out and cut down slightly to let the mats settle properly.

Sorry to be so late, I hadn't seen your reply.

Fiona
 
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