Best Garage Floor Mats – Buyer’s Guide

The floor in the garage is vulnerable to different types of contaminants, spills, and water. If your floor is made from concrete, it will last a lot longer if it has some kind of covering over it. And it will also be easier to keep it clean at all times. Using a special floor covering over the floor surface will easily let you make your garage look tidier. Covering options can be of different types while the selection of materials is also very diverse. The materials of garage mats, for example, can include plastic or rubber among many others. 

It’s very easy to hide stains, cracks, and other imperfections using a good-quality floor covering so there are lots of benefits of such products. To help you keep your floor in perfect condition, it’s necessary to find the best-matching type of flooring according to your personal preferences. Luckily, with a few tips and tricks, you’ll manage to deal with this task successfully. The following recommendations will narrow down the diversity of your choices and let you pick the best-fitting variant with ease.

Types of Flooring for Garage

Most people who have a garage tend to use it not just for storing their cars. After all, a garage is a very convenient and multi-functional space that can serve the role of a warehouse, workshop or maybe even playroom if only there is enough free space in it. Nonetheless, the materials that are used in the design of the garage, particularly the floor, can play a great role in how it looks like and how long it stays in good condition.

If there are too many cracks and imperfections on the floor, it will not look very attractive or neat. This will not let you spend your time in it comfortably, particularly if you need to work on some project. Therefore, selecting garage flooring is a responsible task that requires you to keep certain things in mind. 

When making a decision, you’ll have to determine which type of covering will suit you the best and meet your preferences and budget. Here are the most widespread types available to garage owners nowadays:

Usual Paint for Garage Floor

This variant is actually preferred by the majority of garage owners who wish to change the way their garage looks – they just get it painted. This procedure can be done all by yourself if you wish to save some costs but enhance the appearance of your garage and eliminate all the blemishes on it. What’s more, standard painting adds extra protection to the floor and makes it more long-lasting. If you want to renovate the flooring, you’ll just have to apply a new paint coating, and your floor will look as good as new. 

Nonetheless, painting the floor means making it too susceptible to wear and tear as it cannot sustain too much abuse. It may also become too slippery once it dries out so it will be a suitable choice only for those whose budget is limited or those who don’t want to face any extra expenses.

Interlocking Tiles for the Floor Surface

These are also a widespread variant among garage owners. Tiles may come in various color shades and diverse designs. Most of the tiles stick to the floor on their own, and you will not even have to add any adhesives to fix them on the concrete floor. They also interlock with the floor which allows achieving a more unified look. What’s more, they are easy to customize according to your demands and wishes. What makes them a top-notch option is that they are heavy-duty and offer maximum durability and reliable performance to garage owners. They’ll last for many years regardless of how unfavorable the conditions are. 

Still, their major drawback is that they make dirt and grime too visible so you should be prepared to wash them every so often. Maintenance is a must for this kind of flooring, and they are quite hard to repair. In addition, they may end up cracking if you have a not very lightweight car. 

Epoxy Covering for Garage Floor

It is very easy to completely renew the way the floor of the garage looks if you use epoxy covering. These covers are very durable, easy to wash and are available in diverse color options and patterns. It is, however, better to ask an expert about what type of epoxy will be suitable for your garage so that you know for sure what to select. 

Basically, epoxy is the type of paint for the floor that contains a specific hardening component in it to make it resistant to contamination and ensure better durability. You also need to thoroughly wash the floor surface before applying this paint. Otherwise, it won’t look neat. It is also necessary to seal it after the work is done so that the paint doesn’t peel once you paint the floor. 

Mats for Garage Floors

If you require extra protection for your floor rather than just painting it, special mats for the floor surface will be a splendid option in such a case. Apart from just being very appealing, such mats are also very resistant to all sorts of contaminants and liquids. In this respect, the most widespread option will be polyvinyl mats as they can be fixed on the floor very easily with no need to use any adhesive tools. And whenever you need to wash the floor thoroughly and deeply, you will have to only remove the mat and clean the surface.

It’s also vital to mention that mats add a special layer of cushioning for the flooring surface. What’s more, the styles available to customers are really diverse so you’ll have all the chances to select the most suitable design for any interior with ease. The roll-out mats of this category are oriented at garages of a standard size, and their price is really attractive and suitable for any budget. 

This type of covering is the simplest solution to getting the floor protected, and you will not find it difficult to maintain it in perfect order. The sizes of mats can also vary so that you will easily find the one that matches the parameters of your garage the most. Even if not, you can use trimmers or just a knife to easily cut off the redundant portion of the mat. In addition, installation will not require too much of your effort, and it’s very fast to fix it to the floor. It also protects the flooring from all sorts of pollutants like debris, oil, water, snow or dirt.

Nonetheless, mats also have their downsides just like any product out there. Some of them may be really costly, particularly if you need to get a wide area covered. It may also be hard to fit them into narrow rooms so you may need to customize them but the result might not always be very accurate if only you do not ask someone for professional help. Still, these drawbacks are not very significant so floor mats are still the most preferable and convenient way to secure your garage floor. 

Major Merits of Mats for Garage Floors

Garage mats have lots of positive points in terms of their performance and overall design. They come in a vast diversity of colors and patterns while the materials they are made from are of very impressive quality. So, let’s examine the list of major benefits of this type of covering. 

• Snow, rain, and debris are kept away from the garage;
• Mats create a seamless and flawless appearance of the garage;
• The amount of mud and dirt is reduced so that the garage stays clean and tidy;
• Extremely simple installation with no adhesive substances needed;
• Mats prevent the surface of the floor from deteriorating too easily;
• No need to prepare the surface in contrast to the use of epoxy paints;
• Mats allow hiding the stains, blemishes or cracks on the worn-out floor surface;
• Mats add cushioning to make the floor more comfortable for work and walking around.

As you can see, there is a myriad of important benefits that every garage owner can enjoy if they choose to buy a roll-out floor mat. As the name suggests, they can be rolled out over the surface very easily, and it is also not hard to move them around the place and adjust their positioning according to your personal preferences. For instance, if you wish to transfer the covering to engage in some really messy work, you can accomplish this task with great simplicity so that all the mess stays away from it. But even if not, mats are very easy to wash so you will be able to easily clean all the mess after the job is done. And after you clean them, you’ll just need to wait until they dry and put them back on the floor surface. Fortunately, these kinds of mats dry really fast. 

The best thing about such mats is that they are a very functional accessory as they do not allow debris, liquids or dirt to penetrate them which means that your floor will not get damaged over time, and there will be no stains or blemishes on it. Cleaning the dirt from the mat’s surface is surprisingly easy so that no pollutants will remain inside your garage. 

Selecting the Best-Fitting Mat for Your Garage

When looking out for the ideal type of flooring for the garage, lots of issues need to be considered, and it is worth reading the reviews on different products to guarantee that you make the most successful choice. When selecting the particular variant, you should consider only your personal needs and preferences because what is effective for someone else may not be suitable for you. In this respect, floor mats are always a great option to have around as they offer the necessary level of functionality and versatility. They allow preventing the dirt from penetrating the floor surface, and they are incredibly easy to wash apart from being really long-lasting. 

So, what to look for when picking the best-matching floor mat? Although it may seem that such mats look simply like some sort of rug, the fabrics they are made from are really strong and tough as opposed to the mats for leisure activities. The key properties to search for before shopping for your future floor cover are the following:

• Resistance to spills and leaks of oil or chemicals;
• Non-slippery properties to make them more secure;
• Extra cushioning to mitigate fatigue that you may feel when standing on the floor or moving around the garage;
• Presence of extra texture to easily clear off water or mud;
• Ease of washing and cleaning the fabrics of the mat;
• Ability to endure the weight of heavy vehicles;
• The mat’s weight should be enough not to make it slide or move around;
• Flat, even and smooth surface for greater convenience.

What’s more, it’s also necessary to take note of how thick the mat covering is. As a rule, the mat’s thickness is equal to around ½-inches but especially durable ones may be ¾ inch thick. The latter ones are usually available at a higher price but they also provide top-notch performance if you have plans to use them for not very light-duty tasks.

With such great properties and the ability to keep pollutants away from your garage in any weather, it comes as no surprise that such coverings for garage floor have gained incredible popularity with garage owners. In order to pick the best-matching one, you need to determine which option will work best in your particular situation. In general, all variants work well for all kinds of garage settings. What you need to figure out is what kind of mat will suit the size and parameters of your garage the most. Then you will need to pick the suitable color option and, of course, you should not forget about the price as the cost of a floor mat may vary from case to case.

After you consider all the merits and drawbacks, you’ll be able to pick the right variant for your individual needs. But if you still have some concerns, it may be worth consulting a professional so that you are absolutely sure what will suit your garage dimensions and budget the most.