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pavers in barn aisle

Around The Farm
#1

Has anyone installed rubber pavers over a concrete aisle? We are trying to decide what to use for our center aisle (new build). I like the look of real (ie concrete) pavers and brick, but am concerned they might be too slippery for the horses. I understand the rubber products can be a pain to clean but safety first so that might be a compromise.

I recently inquired with a supplier and was told rubber pavers should never be applied over concrete because, according to this person, water will become trapped under them and cause a major mold and mildew issue and that the barn will reek. (They advised installing only over aggregate). For various reason, we are pretty set on having concrete under pavers or mats, not aggregate.

I’d appreciate any thoughts/advice, particularly from those familiar with rubber pavers. Also open to suggestions on brands/materials. Thanks!

#2

The main barn at Poplar Place Farm (Hamilton, GA) has rubber pavers in the barn aisles. I boarded there for a while and really liked them. Very forgiving surface with good traction. I think your supplier is right, if you put them over concrete that will hold water and it won’t be pretty. I’ve only seen pavers done with concrete edges, and over something that drains well.

I’d love to do pavers in my barn but it’s really far down the list of things to spend money on. I’d probably look at whatever FarmTek sells, I’ve been happy with everything else from them.

#3

My mom and I are currently building a barn, and we’re planning on putting rubber pavers on concrete. I’ve never heard of it being a problem, but I’m sure it’s important to make sure that the concrete is properly prepared. We installed a vapor barrier under our entire slab and let the concrete cure for the recommended 30 days. We found the best price on the pavers from Innovative Equine Systems. They were really helpful and super nice to deal with!!

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#4

There must be an underlayment which is sold to accomodate a concrete floor, like a porous fabric or corrugated membrane or something which will direct water away.

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#5

We used concrete pavers. The barn has a concrete perimeter. The pavers are installed over a bed of road based . The base was at least 4 inches compacted, then 1.5 inches un-compacted sand which the pavers were placed on then compacted, the surface was swept with a very fine sand then re-compacted

Pavestone has a plant about six miles away, we bought what were called color variation rejects for 25 cents on the dollar of wholesale cost… the complete floor less labor cost less than 90 cents per square foot

Floor has been down for thirty years, no wear. No falls, but some slips when a horse has decided it wanted to get out of Dodge as fast as a rabbit… but all understand they can and will slip if they really try to accelerate.

The only problem I have heard on the rubber pavers is a good freind had one horse injure a knee when it left a stall. The horse was turned as it was exiting the stall at a sharp angle. The turn being tight had the horse rotate the knee as the hoof would not slip on the rubber

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#6

I suppose it comes down to the brand.

PaveSafe are the original that were introduced to the country in the mid 80s. They were developed by an Australian company. The can be installed on concrete or a packed stone base. There are no worries about mold/mildew. The company did have problems with this when first introduced. But they reformulated the manufacturing process a long time ago.

I have not used them personally. Always wanted to bu never came up with the $$ to install over the concrete isle in my barn. But I have been in LOTS of barns and racetracks that installed them years ago. Like 25-30 years ago. They have stood the test of time. I have never talked to anybody that had issues with them. But like any paver they are only as hassle free, stay looking good when installed correctly.

When I moved to Lexington KY in 86 not long after I went to play a round of golf by myself at the Griffen Gate Marriott resort. Was paired up with an Ausy. He turned out to be the company’s rep. Being a horse guy he told me all about them. He was in Lexington to get Keeneland to install them along with several other high profile farms.

Fast forward to 2006 not long after I moved to PA. My wife’s good friend married a great guy from Lancaster Pa. He runs his family’s “rubber” flooring business. Which happens to be the American company that is licensed to manufacture them. Small world.

This is the link to the company. Pretty impressive list of horse places that installed them.

http://pavesafe.com/products.html

#7

The high end barn I worked at for many years had them. They were set on a very solid base with the top layer being stone dust (regionally called lots of different things lol). I really liked them but they can shift a bit over time. My advice would be to definitely have them installed by a professional who’s work you’ve seen real life examples of.

#8

Thanks everyone! You guys are all very helpful. I am confident the thin ones can be installed on concrete with adhesive without a problem. I think that’s what most with concrete do. I want to avoid gluing them, and I’m not sure the thicker (1.75 inch) ones can be dry installed over concrete. I guess I could try and then either glue them or replace them if it doesn’t work dry.

#9

I did think of something else- they have to stay clean or they get slippery, esp if you are in a humid climate. Ours got vacuumed 2 or 3 times a day

#10

I had them for 10 years in Florida, and just pulled them out. They were impossible to keep clean, and I keep a really clean barn. They never, ever got slippery. They were installed over concrete with no adhesive, and they were the thick ones. There was a concrete lip all around them, and they were fit very tightly in to that. I was curious to see what would be under them when we removed them. Only sand had filtered down through them. I grew to hate them…

#11

Thanks, Fancy! May I ask what you plan to replace them with?

#12

They sell regular rubber matting of all weights, thickness and finishes in rolls, some large enough, if unhandy to manage into place, that seem to work fine for aisles, if someone wants to have other than plain concrete.

Most places I know have plain concrete aisles and rubber mats in areas where horses and people will be standing, like grooming and wash stalls.
Some have mats in certain areas in aisles where they have cross ties, but not the whole aisle.

OP may consider leaving concrete at first and see how that is working while studying what else, if she is not sure what would work best for her barn.

Pavers always look so pretty in pictures, not sure how practical they would be to live with.
Maybe with one of those aisle commercial vacuums they could be kept picked up?
I see where a broom just would not do it.

#13

Unless you can vacuum them they are impossible to sweep or keep looking clean. I ended up using inter-locking rubber mats in my concrete aisle but only because the concrete contractor poured my aisle smooth! Talk about a complete YIKES on my part! The mats have held up well so far too.

#14

A barn I worked at had rubber pavers in one aisle (concrete lip on sides, no lip on barn ends) and the other barn had mats on top of concrete all the way down the barn.

I personally loved the way the rubber pavers looked and felt to walk on. They seemed to soak up more sound so the barn was nice and peaceful. They’d be difficult to sweep, but I used a leaf blower and it worked wonderfully. However, I don’t think these where on top of concrete.

In the other barn the mats were a pain because they weren’t glued down and shifted so easily (even though they are so thick and heavy that you need two people to move them). But if they had been glued down they’d probably be fine.

If I were you, I’d try to find a way to make the rubber pavers work because they are just lovely.

#15

I poured more concrete in and had the top brushed to be non slip. So much easier to keep clean, looks fine. Noisier, though. There is no perfect surface. Have some interlocking mats in the wash stall and grooming areas for when horses paw.

#16

I have rubber pavers in my barn aisle. I love the look, love them for the horses, but you can’t keep them clean unless you vacuum or use a leaf blower (dust!). My barn has a concrete gully on each side with drains to the septic system, so you can also hose them down (but not in winter). I have to say the BEST thing about my barn is this drainage system. It allows me to have a wash stall without a drain in it (because it’s in the concrete strip in front of the wash stall.

#17

there is a product specific to this need, I used to sell to dairy farms to resurface milking parlors

Flo-Coat® Concrete Resurfacer is a polymer modified concrete resurfacing material requiring only the addition of clean potable water. For resurfacing concrete substrates. Can be applied in a flowable consistency using a squeegee, in a stiffer consistency using a trowel or can be sprayed through a hopper gun.

https://www.sakrete.com/products/flo-coat-resurfacer

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#18

Wow, neat stuff, may consider using some of that some day.

Thanks!

#19

I almost went with this stuff. But fortunately I talked to a friend that did first, He is a very good DIY. Not a weekend warrior. This stuff is NOT easy to work with esp if doing a large area. Calling it “flo” is a misnomer because it does not flow easily. It is very important to mix it exactly, which he did. It sets up quickly. So the next batch does not exactly “flo”, mix with the earlier applied that has and or is setting up. You can and do end up with “seams” and color variances. He was NOT a happy camper with the end results.

I am sure it probably works/looks fine in a milk parlor where “looks” aren’t exactly a high priority. There are positive reviews from DIY but from what I read these were all small projects.

This is a link to some reviews. All have the same the same “theme” going on.

It is not cheap, hard to find out how many sq feet a 40lb bag will cover. The question was asked but the company did not answer.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/SAKRETE-…0019/100671663

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#20

you can sander smooth concrete to roughen the surface (also known as profiling)

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