Most people have the idea that gym floors are exclusively for sporting events and games. But nowadays, that’s simply not the case. Your average gymnasium in a school or facility is used as a multi-purpose room. Not just the location for sporting events, gym floors see a ton of other activity. From pep rallies to drama productions and conferences, today’s gym floors work much harder than their predecessors. You can expect to use a gym floor for up to 16 hours per day. That’s a lot of wear-and-tear. Do you have a game plan for maintaining your gym floor? Here’s a few pointers to help extend the life of your gym floor in the years to come.
What are the most common types of gym floor damage?
It’s common sense that you’d want to keep your gym floor in good condition and well-maintained. But to do this, facility managers have to know what causes gym floor damage in the first place. Excess moisture and infrequent maintenance are some of the most common types of damage that your gym floor will need protecting against. Luckily, you have a lot of control here and can easily prevent damage to the sports floor.
In the tri-state area, we see humid summers, rain, and also have to deal with the freeze/thaw cycle come wintertime. These environmental issues can do a number on wood structures, and by extension, a hardwood gym floor. If you see buckling or cupping in the floorboards, excess moisture either in the atmosphere above the floor or below it is probably to blame. Flooding will also cause extreme changes in the structural integrity and appearance of the floor. In these cases, a professional gym floor installer in New Jersey can restore your wood floor to its original condition. Also, keep in mind that maintaining a gym floor is vital to the appearance but critical to ensuring the safety of athletes’ & patrons using your floors.
Everyday Wear-and-Tear on a Gym Floor
A new gym floor has multiple coats of polyurethane giving the floor that beautiful, shiny appearance. In addition to appearance the finish serves a safety purpose by providing traction so athletes don’t slip. However the finish coats won’t last forever.
Some parts of the gym floor are prone to more wear than other areas. Mainly, those high-risk areas are the ones that see the most foot-traffic. So, entrances and exits, where the net is placed for volleyball, and over near the basketball hoops will wear out more quickly — all that sliding, jumping, starting, and stopping wears away at the finish. And the more events you hold in the gym, the quicker the finish will disappear. It’s true that the floor can be damaged from dragging gym equipment around. But mostly, wear and tear on the gym floor is to be expected.
Do you have high standards for your gym floor? Many facility managers want their floor to look as pristine and sharp as a professional basketball court for the NBA. We can make that happen. However, professional gymnasiums don’t see as much damage as the high-traffic gym floors in a school. But don’t stress about it. With regular and high-quality gym floor maintenance, you can extend the look and structural integrity of the floor. How? With screening and recoating.
Gym Floor Maintenance New Jersey: Screen and Recoating
When the finish on a gym floor wears over time, the floor looses traction. The finish protects the wood underneath for damage, and it also keeps athletes from slipping. Fortunately, you can restore the tacky finish to a floor with a screen and recoating.
How do screening and recoating work?
The first step in the process is to abrade the floor with an abrasive screening disk. Abrading the floor allows the new finish to stick to the wood. There are two different ways a floor can be abraded. The most popular method is to use a 100-grit screen, called a dry screen. Some gym floor repair companies will use a scrubber-vac to scuff up the floor before applying the new coat of finish. This method is referred to as a wet-screen. After scuffing up the floor, it’s cleaned before the new finish is applied.
Once the new coat of finish is applied, the floor will have to be clear of foot traffic for at least 48 hours. In some cases, you may need to keep the gym floor clear for three to five days after the new coating is applied. Oil or water-based finishes all have different cure times. But for a standard screening and recoating job, you can have the fresh coat of finish applied Friday afternoon, and the gym floor is good to go for any sporting events for the next week.
Screening and recoating is one of the most critical types of gym floor maintenance you can perform.
With screening and recoating, you’ll:
- Restore the floor to its original luster and shine
- Keep the wood floorboards protected from damage
- Prevent athletes from slipping
- Remove scuff marks from the floor
- Protect paint and graphics on the sports floor
At a minimum, you’ll need to have the gym floor screened and recoated once per year. But in some cases, you will want to screen and recoat the floor more frequently. Gymnasiums that see a lot of foot traffic may need screening and recoating done every six months.
Regular maintenance of a gym floor in New Jersey will not only keep people safe from trips and falls, but it will also extend the life of the facility. Is your gym floor due for routine maintenance? At J&J Gym Floors, we’ve been restoring and repairing gym floors in New Jersey for more than fifteen years. Contact us today at (973) 370-4118 to see what we can do for your sports facility.