RESILIENT TILE: RUBBER FLOORS

Rubber floors are made chiefly of synthetic rubber, fillers and mineral pigments. They vary widely in form and properties and are available in both tile and sheet goods with many degrees of harness and flexibility.  Rubber floors are fairly non-porous and resist warping and buckling.  They are resistant to acids, mild alkalies and many stains.  Due to their inability to resist solvents they must be maintained with water emulsion products.

CAUTIONS

• Avoid oils and solvents.  Oils and solvents, such as lubricating oil, mineral oil, vegetable oil, grease, gasoline, kerosene, naptha, turpentine, solvent waxes, solvent cleaners and oil type sweeping compounds will attack the rubber binder and cause softening and/or color bleeding.
• Protect from ultra violet rays.  Rubber flooring may discolor from exposure to ultra-violet rays (sunlight and florescent lighting).  To minimize this condition, keep a rubber floor well coated with water emulsion wax or polymer floor finish.
• Avoid use of abrasives.  Rubber flooring can be permanently damaged by sand, grit, abrasive cleaners and coarse floor pads.
• Avoid stripping.  Highly alkaline and solvent containing strippers damage rubber tile.  A good maintenance program extends routine maintenance and reduces stripping frequency. 
• Avoid extremes of hot or cold.  Rubber tile is a thermoplastic material which becomes brittle and can crack when subjected to cold or indent under loads when heated.  Using cool to warm water for routine maintenance will extend the life of any applied coatings and the rubber tile itself.