Garage floor tiles - PVC or rubber?

[CarbonV12V]

Got the mallet - great fun - only opened a few boxes and ....



Full clean and all the cuts/skirting at the weekend if time permits.

[RIB27]

Wow great to see the garage thread inspiring people to actually step up and "pimp" their own garages. Well done that man!

[Ordy]

I'm hoping this thread isn't dead by now, or ancient history.
I went the Mototile route based on my own research and on the reviews on this thread.
On Saturday, I laid the tiles in my double garage. The floor is level concrete with an old paint finish. I fitted Mototile ramping at the entrance and left a quarter inch gap at the edges.
Next morning: Disaster.
I reversed the Aston out and on very gentle lock, the tiles lifted, spun and were displaced.
The car had been parked with cold tyres and the lock I used was much less than I normally use when 2 cars are in the garage.
So, on Sunday, I re-laid the tiles on top of that 1mm insulation mentioned earlier in the thread, thinking that the tiles were slipping on the old matt paint finish. Same problem.
The interlocking mechanism of the tiles appears weak to me and I refuse to bond the tiles down, so don't really know where I go next.
Has anyone else had similar issues?
Cheers.

[Ordy]

The second time, on insulation, I only laid 60% of the tiles just to see if they stayed put.
No dice.

[brakedwell]

Thanks for the real world warning! I will stick with my green painted floor.

[Retman]

That's not good Nigel, the tiles themselves don't even look flat from the picture. I understand your reluctance to bond the tiles to the floor, my only suggestion, and it will be time consuming, is to glue the tiles to each other along their edges as you lay them. Good luck

[Mako V12V]

What does the supplier say?

Was thinking of going down this route too so will see your result before going any further.

[bogie]

ask the supplier - not had that issue at all with Dynotile and theyve been down a few years now, with traffic most days

[offshorematt2]

That's not good! I've had mototile down for nine months hard use in all weathers and no movement at all.



Only issue I've had is that when they get in direct sunshine, they rise a little along the joins which isn't ideal but mostly they drop back when they cool. To be fair, Mototile warned me of that when I bought but I assumed it would only happen on really hot days when in fact it seems to happen in any sunlight. Anyway at the price, I think they're unbeatable.

Can't think why yours would be tearing apart when you turn the wheels? All the joints in the picture look a little dodgy - are they hammered down flush when you leave them? Perhaps it's a bad batch

[mikey k]

Good timing
I have been contemplating these for my new garage
I had some concerns over them staying put with tyres moving and trolley jacks.
I was also concerned they would not bond to the floor paint especially in this temperature.
I think I will just stick with repainting it.

[George29]

mikey k said:

Good timing
I have been contemplating these for my new garage
I had some concerns over them staying put with tyres moving and trolley jacks.
I was also concerned they would not bond to the floor paint especially in this temperature.
I think I will just stick with repainting it.

Have you considered polishing the concrete? I saw it on this thread and it looks great imo.

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=17&...

[mikey k]

Would have done but I "inherited" a painted floor with studs sticking out

[CarbonV12V]

I like the polished concrete but I had a pretty uneven concrete raft laid for the garage (and wasn't aware of it!). I had tried paint but that could not cover the defects in the surface and flaked a lot which meant is looked even more untidy and paint flakes went everywhere.

As can be seen from the above I too went for the tile option and have had the Mototiles down now since April and not one has moved (see below). Now I don't really turn in the garage as it's more of a drive in/reverse out system. However they are well locked together when they have been hit a few times with the rubber mallet. I did damage a few when I originally laid the floor by hitting them before they were aligned. Only change since the above photo is a piece of chequer plate under the engine and the downpipes/cats as after a long run they provided enough heat that they could temporarily deform the tiles.

However got to agree that the joins don't look very good in the photo so assume something is not right - hopefully a bad batch and they will replace.

As I mentioned to Ordy they have great customer service - just call and ask to speak to Paul. He sorted the chequer plate for me.

Edited by CarbonV12V on Monday 7th January 15:49

[DaveB101]

I've not ordered PVC tiles for my garage floor yet, but asked for samples from a number of manufacturers so I could compare them.

I was extremely unimpressed by Mototile; thin, too flexible, and didn't appear to lock together properly, so I'm not surprised to hear of these issues. The best quality I've seen by far was from Ecotile (no affiliation) - it was the 7mm version I asked for a sample of; much more substantial feeling that Mototile and a very secure interference fit between the tiles.

I'd advise anyone thinking of laying these sort of tiles to do the same, and ask for a number of samples from different manufacturers/distributors - there really is a big difference in quality....

As you may expect the Ecotile route isn't cheap; nearly £30 per square meter, but it seems money well spent to me. I'm planning to order my tiles in the next few weeks - will post pictures when fitted.

[laracer]

I think you have to decide how much abuse your tiles are going to take before committing - We have used all sorts of temporary floor covers when racing (laid on tarmac) and the best is a good hard plastic interlocking tile such as this (don't buy the cheaper "string vest" style) - they are not cheap but they stand an awful lot of abuse - the only failings are the breaking of lugs due to constant breaking down and rebuilding of pit floors (not a problem for a once only fitting)- the big advantage over soft tiles for the domestic user is the fact that you can use a jack on them with no damage, reasonably chemical resistant and they will "breathe" if your original floor is damp.
If you go to the Auto Sport Show this month at the NEC there are usually a few manufacturers/suppliers and maybe some offers.....

[mikey k]

laracer said:

I think you have to decide how much abuse your tiles are going to take before committing - We have used all sorts of temporary floor covers when racing (laid on tarmac) and the best is a good hard plastic interlocking tile such as this (don't buy the cheaper "string vest" style) - they are not cheap but they stand an awful lot of abuse - the only failings are the breaking of lugs due to constant breaking down and rebuilding of pit floors (not a problem for a once only fitting)- the big advantage over soft tiles for the domestic user is the fact that you can use a jack on them with no damage, reasonably chemical resistant and they will "breathe" if your original floor is damp.
If you go to the Auto Sport Show this month at the NEC there are usually a few manufacturers/suppliers and maybe some offers.....

that looks good!

[Lunablack]

I used the MotoFloor Tile from Costco.... Been down now for about 5 years.... Apart from the white ones getting dirty they've been spot on

I laid mine on top of that weed suppressing stuff you get on a roll from garden centres..

Edited by Lunablack on Monday 7th January 19:36

[mikey k]

Did you get Jockman's help laying the boxes out

[Lunablack]

mikey k said:

Did you get Jockman's help laying the boxes out

No.... I needed someone whom could actually help. ... Took me and the Mrs 2 full days to complete... Not bad considering the amount of stuff we had to move from one side to the other.

I used CAD to work out the pattern

[Ordy]

I was exhausted yesterday, after a weekend of laying, removing, re-laying and finally removing the Mototiles. I was on the verge of giving it up as a bad job frankly.
However, a new day, a new dawn.....
I have to say that getting a few samples before committing is vital: Too late for me unfortunately, always wise after the event, doh!
As you can see, the tiles are thin and flimsy. The interlocking mechanism is weak and the tangs don't have positive barbs to keep them in place. My floor isn't perfectly flat but as you can see in the photo, it's not unreasonable.
The tiles can be joined with light thumb pressure, the rubber mallet makes no improvement to the joint security or appearance.
Thanks for your responses; I'll call the supplier to discuss this week.
I'd really just like to send them all back and ask for a refund as 'unfit for purpose.'
On the upside, it got the Aston out over the weekend so both days ended on a high.
Cheers, I'll post progress.

Edited by Ordy on Wednesday 9th January 11:31