How to Lay Outdoor Rubber Flooring on a Patio

Outdoor rubber flooring can be a useful surface for protecting children from falls. It is also hard wearing and long lasting. Many playgrounds use rubber flooring to keep kids safe if they fall off the swings or other structures, and if you intend to use rubber flooring on your own patio, it can have many benefits. Laying outdoor rubber flooring is not difficult, but you must ensure the correct preparation is done beforehand for a better result. How you lay it also depends on the type of flooring you buy, such as whether it is in plank or tile form.

Step 1 – Preparation

Prepare the patio carefully by sanding or cleaning it. How you prepare it depends largely on the type of patio you have. If it is concrete, sweep it with a brush and scrub it down with a cleaning solution. Let it dry, and level it with extra concrete filler if needed. If the patio is wooden decking, hammer down any loose nails or tighten any raised screws to make sure you don’t end up with bumps in the rubber flooring.

Step 2 – Marking the Dry Run

Measure the width and length of the patio area you intend to cover with the outdoor rubber flooring. If you are using tile flooring, mark the center of the patio area, and use a square edge to create a plus sign shape from the center outward. Set the first four tiles against the plus sign so they touch the lines. Leave no gaps between the rubber tiles. Lay the next tiles touching the previous ones until you reach the outer edge and are left with either room for a whole tile or part of a tile.

Step 3 – Half Tiles

Measure and cut the half tiles needed for the edges using a utility knife. You may have to cut odd shapes to match the outline of the edge of your patio area. Mark these lines, and cut the shapes either by eye or by using a template.

Step 4 – Numbering the Tiles

Pull up the tiles after you have marked the dry run. It is a good idea to mark each tile with a number so that you can lay them down in the exact same order you laid them in the dry run. Remember to mark the patio with the corresponding numbers in chalk.

Step 5 – Adhesive

Load the serrated trowel with adhesive, and spread just enough to cover the first four tiles. This part of the project can be weather dependent in that if it is very hot and sunny, the adhesive will react too quickly. If the weather is cooler, you will have a little more time to set the tiles correctly. Lay the first four tiles in the same way you did for the dry run.

Step 6 – Setting the Rest

Lay the next tiles alongside the first four according to the number you have given them. Once you reach the edges, lay the cut tiles to fit into the outer edge to complete the project.