Anti-fatigue mats

[Phisherman]

Woodcraft has a sale on 2x5' anti-fatigue mats, 3 for $30 until

12/11/04. Has anyone tried these and do they work?

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Nah, you still get tired after a few hours.

I do have on in front of my bench, They are good for the money. Industrial mats can easily be $25 to $60. If I get to Woodcraft this week I'll pick up a couple at that price.

Ed

[woodgrinder]

It depends on what you mean by "work."

On concrete, I'd say they are a minimum for what works. I've been thinking about building a platform of 2x4s and topping it with T&G subfloor. Then the mats would REALLY work. :-)

[Nigel Burnett]

I've had a pair of Lee Valley's in my darkroom for years - I don't know the physics but they definetly work - that and really good shoes. That's looks like a great price although these are slightly bigger?

[Richard Clements]

you can buy basicly the same thing at Walmart or shucks/checker/krager for $10

Edw>

[Ba r r y]

I have a bunch of 4x8's, they were $22 at a local farm supplier. They're used for lining livestock trailers, and they're HEAVY!

Barry

[Prometheus]

We've got "anti-fatigue" mats at work, and they sort of work, depending on what you're expecting them to do! If you're going to be standing in one place for quite some time, they do help quite a bit with knee strain, and they're also good for keeping your feet a little warmer if you're on a concrete floor in a cold shop. If you walk around a lot in your shop, the benefits are greatly reduced, and they can be a trip hazard, especially if the corner gets folded up. For ten bucks apiece, it's probably work trying them out and seeing if they work for you. If they don't do what you'd like them to, you can always place them under machines to dampen vibration a little or use them for laying under your car when you've got to work on it. (If you're like me, this gets done in the driveway, because the shop owns the garage!)

Aut inveniam viam aut faciam

[rcook5]

No comments on the Woodcraft models, but anti-fatigue mats in general make a _big_ difference if you've been standing on concrete.

--RC You can tell a really good idea by the enemies it makes

[John]

You get what you pay for, and $10 per mat is giving them away. I personally like either industrial or Horse Trailer mats, the run about $40-$80+ per mat, and last and last and last

John

[Richard Cline]

A few years ago we were tearing carpet out of the house. It showed a little wear in some places but mostly my wife didn't like the color. I decided that it would make a decent cover for my shop floor. It was free. It works great aside from the fact that it is hard to locate a small screw dropped on the floor.

Dick

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Finding a screw is easy if you know how. Take a just finished project all nice and shiny. Put it on the carpet for just a second or two. Slowly tilt the wood up and the screw will be embedded into the wood for easy removal. Ed

[Charles Spitzer]

walk around with bare feet.

[Lobby Dosser]

If you use the House Vacuum, it will puncture the hose. You can then run your hand over the hose to find the screw.

[Australopithecus scobis]

Coupla borgs around here have a chipboard-on-plastic, 2 foot square, T&G for $5 a piece. Supposed to not need a platform.

Myself, I have a $5 carpet runner from the grocery store. When I can't sleep 'cause my legs ache, I wander downstairs in my moccasin slippers and putter around in the shop. Hmmm.

[Whyidont]

We've been buying our mats online from Classic flooring their prices include shipping right to our door. To get to their website which is called Classiccarpetmills.com here's the link

we've been very happy with their products which include custom entrance mats with our logo, anti-static mats, safety mats and many other types of floor coverings and mats.

[WC]

I use an interlocking system of mats around my main workbench that definitely reduce the strain of working on a plain concrete floor. I found them several years ago in a Sams Wholesale store at about $7.00 per package of four. Each mat is approximately 2' x 2'. They even came with matching, interlocking edge pieces to eliminate the jagged interlocking toothed edges. The only problem was that each package contained one each of the four primary colors of red, green, blue and yellow - a bit loud for my tastes.

Since then, I have seen similar packages of four mats, the same size, at Home Depot. Only there they were over $20 per package. They were a nice, neutral gray color, but for that much savings, I can squint. Once they get a bit of wear on them, who cares?

Good luck.

Wade [e-mail]