The Best Way to Clean Mats in Your Gym

Cleaning your gym mats regularly helps you maintain a safe, sanitary, and inviting workout space for yourself and your customers. It may not be the most glamorous part of owning a gym or dojo, but it’s essential for removing the germs, bacteria, and dirt that gym mats attract over time. This post will explain the best ways to clean mats and keep your training space in pristine condition.

The Importance of Cleaning Gym Mats

When you own a gym or dojo, cleaning mats may not be at the top of your priority list, especially if your gym flooring is new. But mats don’t stay in pristine condition forever. It’s crucial to keep your mats clean for many reasons, including protecting your investment and saving hassle down the line.

Prevents Infections and Diseases

Gyms and dojos are breeding grounds for germs. Sweat and dirt can quickly build up on equipment and mats. The warm and humid environment then helps bacteria and viruses to grow and thrive. These germs can cause various skin infections and other diseases. The likelihood of contamination and disease transmission is even greater if multiple people use your training or workout space.

Gets Rid of Bad Smells

A build-up of sweat, dirt, and bacteria on your gym mats can also cause nasty smells. These smells linger and turn your workout space into somewhere people don’t want to spend time. Bad smells aren’t great for motivation or business.

Helps Mats Last Longer

Cleaning your mats helps preserve them and keep them in top condition longer. Dirt and oils can cause damage to your mats over time and lead to deterioration of quality. By cleaning your gym mats now, you’re saving time and money on repairs or replacements in the future.

Boosts Motivation and Performance

There’s nothing better than training in a clean, well-maintained gym. Unspoiled and undamaged mats help boost your workout space’s attractiveness and safety. This, in turn, boosts motivation and performance, leading to more effective training sessions.

The Best Way to Clean Mats in Your Gym

So now that you understand the importance of keeping your gym mats clean, what’s the best way to clean them? Below we’ll explain everything you need to know about cleaning gym mats.

Gather Cleaning Supplies

When preparing to clean gym mats, the first thing to do is gather your cleaning supplies. Put together a mat cleaning kit and keep it somewhere easy to access in your gym or dojo.

Mat cleaning supplies you may need are:

• Cloths
• Microfibre mop
• Bucket
• Vacuum
• Floor scrubbing machine
• Cleaning solutions and disinfectants

Cleaning Solutions and Disinfectants

Various solutions and disinfectants are available to use to clean gym mats.

The most common mat cleaning solutions and disinfectants include: 

• Disinfectant Wipes. You can use these to wipe down equipment and gym mats throughout the day.
• Peroxide or Rubbing Alcohol. Mix with water and put in a spray bottle to use on mats. Wipe with a clean cloth.
• Water and Dish Soap. A simple and easy solution for cleaning most mats. Use a cloth or mop depending on the size of the mats.
• Speciality Mat Cleaners. Speciality mat cleaners are ideal for keeping all types of gym mats in top condition.
• Carpet Shampoo. Deep clean carpet mats with carpet shampoo every few months to remove any residue deep in the fibers.

Mat Cleaning Methods

What is the best way to clean mats? You can use different methods depending on the thoroughness of cleaning you need. It’s best to use these in combination at varying intervals.

The primary gym mat cleaning methods are: 

• Disinfect. Keep disinfectant wipes or spray bottles around the gym to wipe down between sessions quickly.
• Basic Clean. A standard clean can involve running a vacuum over the mats to remove loose dirt and grit, then wiping them down with water and soap.
• Deep Clean. For a deeper clean, use specialty cleaners and give mats a good scrub down.

Cleaning Mats Based on Material

A mat’s material will govern the cleaning products you should use on them. Using the wrong cleaning solutions won’t provide effective cleaning and can cause damage to the mats.

Gym surfaces come in these main materials: 

• Tile. All you need is a mop, some hot water, and disinfectant.
• Yoga Mats. Disinfect regularly. Deep clean with hot water and dish soap.
• Tatami Mats. The best way to clean your tatami mats is to spray with a disinfectant, and then come back over the top with a damp microfiber mop head.
• Carpet Mats. Vacuum regularly. Deep clean with carpet shampoo.

Cleaning Mats Based on Size

Gym mats also come in various sizes, from small yoga mats to large rollout mats. You’ll need different supplies based on the size of your mats. 

Smaller mats are easy to clean without any special tools or machines. Just grab a cloth and some solution to give your mat a quick clean. If you have a small home gym or dojo, this is the easiest method. 

For communal gyms and larger training spaces, gym flooring will take too long to clean by hand. In this case, you’ll need a microfiber mop and possibly a floor cleaning machine.

Clean Front and Back

Don’t forget to clean the front and back when cleaning your gym mats. Moisture and bacteria can build up underneath the mat too. And you may not notice until it’s too late and your floors and mats are already moldy or damaged.

You don’t need to clean underneath your mats as often as you clean the surfaces. But it’s a good idea to lift your mats and give them a mop now and again.

Ventilate So Mats Dry Quickly

After a clean, you can dry your mats with a clean towel or leave them to air dry. If you’re using the air-dry method, make sure to ventilate your space so the mats dry quickly. Cleaning in the evening gives your mats all night to dry. You don’t want your customers using damp mats.

Hire a Professional to Clean Your Gym Mats

When it comes down to it, the best way to clean mats in your gym is to hire a professional to do it for you. Hiring someone who knows what they’re doing will save you time and energy. It will also ensure that your mats get the deep clean they need.

 

Keys to Maintaining the Cleanliness of Your Gym Mats

Maintaining clean gym mats isn’t just about scrubbing them down whenever they look dirty. You can do things to keep your mats consistently clean.

Have a Regular Cleaning Schedule

How often and how thoroughly you should clean gym mats depends on what you use them for and how often.

You should regularly clean yoga and workout mats because they come into contact with sweat or bodily oils. Wipe these mats with disinfectant after every session or at least once a day.

If your gym is a communal space with heavy footfall, vacuum and give your gym floor and mats a proper clean daily. For a smaller gym, aim for a deeper clean once per week. And for a home gym or dojo, once a month will do the job.

Set up a mat cleaning schedule and stick with it.

Say ‘No’ to Street Shoes

An easy way to keep your mats cleaner longer is to have dedicated mat shoes or ban the use of street shoes on your gym floor. Most dirt and debris come in from outside. Ask your members to bring in specific shoes for training in the gym.

Invest in Entrance Mats

An alternative to banning street shoes is to have entrance mats at the door of your gym. Rugged entrance mats trap excess dirt and soak up moisture before any shoes hit the gym mats.

Century Can Help With Your Gym Mat Needs

At Century, we help you find and maintain the perfect flooring solution for your gym or dojo. We treat our gym mats with an antimicrobial coating, so they are easy to clean with various cleaners. 

We also offer a free consultation to discuss your vision and find the ideal flooring to fit your specific space and budget. Contact Century Mat Solutions today to find out more.