Do You like Those Foam Floor Squares?

Love them for preventing "bumps and bruises", but would not use them for heavy physical activity. They are not designed to 'stay put' that way, nor are they designed to absorb that level of impact. Play area? Cool. Work out zone? Not so much.

Get them!

I used to wash them with a mop and vinegar. You can use a wet Swiffer, too!

We used them in the game room area when our daughter (now 18) was younger. They helped because the carpet in that area stayed cleaner, etc.

I either took them outside to hose off with soap or used my shower to clean them.

As for exercise... (tumbling, martial arts, etc) ... I say no because they are not made for resistance. My daughter is a black belt and Varsity Cheer Captain and I would never allow her to use the foam squares as a safety measure. She only did active workouts at the cheer or martial arts gym.

I like them - but I use them as a cushion for kids/babies on our hardwood floor. I don't know if I would use them for workout because I don't know if that is really what they are made for or if they would hold up well for that? They would be fine for doing yoga or cruches, etc. Not sure about martial arts.

We have a dog and the plastic foam seems to attract the dog hair so I swiffer vac them almost daily. Otherwise, in the summer, I take them outside, spray them with a cleaner (fantastik/lysol type) and then hose them off well. In the winter, I use a damp rag and just wipe them down...same as you would clean a floor, probably.

I think they would work if you are getting the other mats for the hard throws and falls.

Sounds cool--and like a STEAL!

I would imagine you could just wipe them down with a vinegar/water solution and a clean cloth/mop.

I don't have any myself (my kids do martial arts, though). But husband has some of the black ones in the garage for his dumbbells. He puts them down heavy sometimes (drops them). They are 75 lb dumbbells....

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Your intention is basically for use as a floor covering, right? Not to protect against impact. An unfinished basement basically has concrete. That's it. So, it would serve as insulation over that part of the floor as well. And cheaper than carpet/carpet padding. And removable for cleaning. Sounds great to me.

Price sounds great. Ours have served our needs (in lieu of carpeting in the living room to cushion DS's play nd to save my downstairs neighbor's sanity.

Mine have a textured finish (picture really tiny herringbone). This makes them a devil to keep clean. dirt and grime just settle into the ridges. The whole thing has to be taken apart, and hosed off outside every so often.

Good luck to you and yours,
F. B.

I use them in my basement over our very thin and crappy carpet to make a workout area and place for the kids to practice karate and sparring. Mine are very lightweight, and the edges interlock to make one big mat. I'd esimate they are an inch thick. They've held up really well, even to dog claws walking over them.

When I say "workout" or "practice karate" they obviously aren't in a full blown routine like they would be at the studio. Though the mats do provide a lot more cushion than our studio floor does. Because of the small area we have, it's more practices kicks, forms, stances, and sparring for fun and technique. I do all my jumping jacks, cardio, mountain climbers etc on the mat. Better than the thin carpet alone and they've held up well even under my heavy load!

If yours are the same as what I have, I think the price sounds great. $.50 per sq/foot. Mine were about $.50 to $.60 a sq ft at Menards.

I like them, but we had to give ours away. They smelled SO badly like chemicals, that I was getting headaches. If I were you, I'd set them outside for quite a while to off gas.

When we lived in our old house, we had hardwood floors....which is great, except for the fact that my kids like to jump and play with a lot of toys that make noise when dumped on the floor. So I bought some dark gray foam squares off Amazon.com. Got a great deal on them and they worked perfectly for what we wanted. Sweep and occasionally mop for clean up...a breeze. It made their floor much quieter, protected the hardwoods, and protected the kids when they were playing.

For the smell...just open them up and set them out to air for a few days. The smell goes away.

I've had a set for about 5 years now. When I was in my apartment, I had them on the carpet where my son played. Now that I am in my house with concrete floors in the living room and hallway, I use them as a runner in the hallway. I have 8 of them interlocked and it provides some cushion while walking.

I use a wet Swiffer mop to clean them. They're pretty indestructible.

It's nice if you have a drain in the bottom of the basement somewhere but if it's finished it's probably closed or non-existant. If you had one you could just hose the tiles off. That makes them easy to clean. We also had some in my child care center that sort of snaped/fit together like a puzzle and they could be picked up and taken to the car wash if they got muddy or something.

I liked them, they're not as thick as actual padding so the kids still need to be careful but they are so much better than a hard solid concrete floor.

We love them. I use them for our 162# fuzzy bumps bed. Saves the floor from dog paws! They are easy to clean (vinegar or swifter.) I let them air dry outside (even we cold out.) I also use them under my feet for cooking and washing dishes. Harbor Freight always has them on sale.

I had them for awhile. Truthfully, I hated them and was happy to pitch them out. Unless these are the REALLY thick, heavy duty ones, not the kid prinary color pnes with letters & nimbers tupe (ones you see in clear bagged sets) I'd pass.

I love them. They make it so much more comfortable than sitting on the wood floors we have. We have thicker, nicer ones though and I do believe it makes a difference. Some of them can be very thin and not too comfortable to sit on for a long period of time.

I have had mine for five and a half years and they are still in perfect condition (except for a few teeth marks). We have 36 total squares (26 letters + 10 numbers) for a total of 6' x 6' of coverage. Here are the ones we have:

http://www.onestepahead.com/product/26-Piece-Puzzle-Mat-L...

I highly, high recommend them. The quality is excellent.