Are you looking for versatile safety surfacing for your outdoor flooring project? Rubber playground mulch is an excellent option for any purpose: from creating vibrant flooring designs to providing extra shock absorption for high-impact areas, rubber mulch is a premier flooring option.
PlaySmart offers a range of rubber playground flooring products, among them are the amazing JungleMulch and EDPM MulchSmart Rubber Mulch solutions. This guide is here to help you explore how your outdoor area can benefit from this brilliant playground surface option.
What is Rubber Mulch?
Rubber Mulch is a popular, cost-effective flooring cover made from rubber shred or crumb. Rubber is a natural, sustainable material, and playground rubber mulch often comes from recycled tyres for an even better sustainable flooring option.
The shape and structure of rubber granules give the surface a unique texture that offers slip protection and buggy or wheelchair accessibility with a long lifespan for effectiveness. Another way rubber mulch is specialised for areas that require safety and inclusivity, like playgrounds and public parks, is that it can be used to bring creativity to each site with durable, vibrant patterns with a wide range of rubber mulch colours.
The installation process is non-disruptive and often doesn’t require a sub-base. A rubber base is installed underneath a specialised, durable rubber mulch matting layer so you have a flat, secure surface ready for use with no extra installation of perimeter edging for grass.
What does Bonded Rubber Mulch Mean?
Rubber mulch is usually bonded to create a flat, secure surface unlike rubber play bark loose fill safety flooring that can lose material over time. The bonding agents used in PlaySmart’s rubber mulch options are selected to be non-toxic, eco-friendly, and resistant, using polyurethane binders or peroxide vulcanized systems depending on your choice of mulch product.
Benefits of Using Rubber Mulch
It is Easy to Maintain and Clean Rubber Mulch
The solid surface, unlike loose-fill solutions, experiences very minimal wear and tear over time, and therefore rubber mulch maintenance requirements are minimal. To clean rubber mulch, semi-regular sweeping and washing with a low-pressure hose to keep the area tidy is all you need.
Rubber mulch from PlaySmart is also given an extra maintenance-busting feature with innovative weed-suppressing membranes installed. This prevents damage to the surface from weeds while still allowing for selected vegetation growth throughout the surface life span.
Critical Fall Height Protection
On playgrounds with climbing equipment and play frames, safety surfacing solutions with appropriate protection at specific critical fall heights are required. Rubber materials are naturally shock absorbent due to their flexibility, and the internal structure of the shred or crumb of the play rubber chippings in rubber mulch only improves this fall protection.
The multi-layer system and carefully selected materials and binding process makes rubber mulch a great safety surface for any site looking to protect its users. The depth of sub base impacts the critical fall height protection, but even with a concrete base, PlaySmart’s Rubber Mulch can provide above and beyond UK standard critical fall height of 1.3 metres.
Our Top Uses for Rubber Mulch
- Around playground equipment with critical fall heights of 1.3 to 3.1 metres
- EPDM Wear pads for high impact areas
- Protective overlays on wet pour surfaces
- Embankments in need of erosion control
- Tree surrounds
- Paths and trails
What makes PlaySmart’s Rubber Mulch different?
PlaySmart offers two forms of rubber mulch variations that you can use individually or combined to create unique and multi-functional rubber playground flooring designs.
Jungle Mulch
PlaySmart is JungleMulch’s Rubber Mulch UK supplier, exclusive distributor of the premier environmentally friendly, recycled rubber playground surface. Coming in many colour variations to suit any playground design or theme, JungleMulch works well alongside your other surfacing to provide an extra level of protection to users, surfaces, and the environment as a weather-resistant, strong, sustainable flooring option.
For installation, minimal sub-base is required, saving money and reducing site disruption. No matter the material or depth of your existing surfaces, JungleMulch provides a level of critical hall height protection ranging from 1.3m to 3.1m depending on your needs as a site. For more information explore our JungleMulch brochure [pdf].
EPDM
Recommended as a children-friendly playground surface solution, EPDM MulchSmart is made from nontoxic, durable virgin rubber shred as an alternative to traditional SBR recycled rubber mulch playground surfaces. Commonly used on large scales, overlaid on wet pour, or other existing surfaces in parks and recreation grounds, EPDM is an excellent option for improved slip resistance and durability.
As a low-maintenance, cost-effective rubber surface option, EPDM is increasingly used as a maintenance and repair solution for damaged rubber surfaces. Easily installed to cover cracks, weaknesses, and potholes, the unique rubber mulch colours available can make reviving an old surface fun with amazing patterns. If you are looking for more in-depth specifications on EPDM, check out our MulchSmart brochure [pdf].
