Sports Floor Maintenance - Hardwood and Synthetic Flooring Care

Whether it’s a private gym, a public fitness center, or a school gymnasium, sports flooring plays an essential role in everyone’s enjoyment of exercise. Providing athletes of all ages with safe, high-quality indoor gyms takes skill and knowledge for the installation and consistent cleaning/care for proper upkeep.

If you’ve recently had beautiful hardwood flooring or synthetic composite sports flooring installed for your home gym, basketball court, or something of the like, this blog will provide insight on sports floor maintenance and how to keep your flooring looking and performing at its best.

Hardwood Sports Floors

Hardwood is common for gymnasiums and basketball court flooring, as it’s durable, lasts for decades, and has a timeless presence and allure. Although they’re more of an initial investment, hardwood sports floors are an excellent choice for homeowners or commercial spaces that want a premium gym. However, hardwood flooring isn’t great for areas that constantly receive hard surface impact from exercise equipment like dumbells or weight plates.

Cleaning Hardwood Sports Flooring – The Process

Keep your gym’s humidity at a low 35-40% for hardwood to avoid having the wood warp from humidity changes. If you can’t control the humidity of your space, consider installing ventilation to help regulate airflow.

Hardwood Sports Floor Maintenance – What You’ll Need

An industrial dry-mopping device
A wet tacking machine with
A pH-neutral floor cleaner

At the end of each day, you’ll want to first dry mop the floor to remove any loose dust and dirt particles from the surface. Then, using your floor cleaner, go over the floors again using a wet-tack cloth. For hardwood floors especially, avoid using a mop and bucket to clean. Water left behind by the mop can accumulate in the wood cracks, warping it and causing damage.

Once a year, contact your local hardwood flooring installation company to reseal your floors-refinishing will further extend the wood’s lifespan. Click to learn more about the dustless floor refinishing process.

Synthetic Sports Floors

Synthetic sports floors are often made of rubber composite materials, and Ecore sports flooring is a great example of these flooring composites. These synthetic floors are easier to install and cheaper than hardwood sports floors; their care needs are a bit different.

Cleaning Synthetic Sports Flooring – The Process

Unlike hardwood sports floors, synthetic ones can take more of a beating when you clean them. At the end of each day, dry mop the surface and apply disinfectant using the wet-tack method. Unlike wood floors, rubber floors create their own waxy surface, so you’ll want to use a disinfectant or cleaner that won’t break down the floor’s natural wax.