Where to use Playground Flooring:

Commercial playgrounds, backyard playgrounds, daycare playgrounds, public playgrounds, church playgrounds, park playgrounds, school playgrounds or any other place you need fall protection from your safety surfacing flooring material.  Can be installed fully adhered in a glue down installation using SureSTICK adhesive.

Playground Tile Rubber Mats

Kid Kushion Playground Tile recycled rubber tiles are the ideal surface under and around playground equipment for schools, churches, daycares, backyards and parks.  The tiles are independently certified by the International Playground Equipment Manufacturers  Association (IPEMA) to meet the stringent requirements of ASTM F3351 for fall safety protection with a rating of up to 8 foot critical fall heights.

Play is an integral part of child development both mentally and physically.  Providing a challenging play environment with the appropriate safety precautions is critical to proper child development.  Choosing the right surfacing not only protects kids from catastrophic injury, it also contributes to the long-term appeal and performance of the play area.

These rubber playground surfacing tiles are manufactured to 24” x 24” nominal width and are available in a thickness of 2.50” or 3.50” to meet the widest range of needs for playground surface fall protection.  The thickness of the playground tile selected determines the critical fall height rating of the tile. 

• 6 foot critical fall height rating for 2.50” playground tile,
• 8 foot critical fall height rating for 3.50” playground tile

To determine the thickness needed for your playground, measure the distance from the highest accessible playground equipment deck that is designed for kids to stand on down to the ground.  This measurement determines the recommended fall height rating of the playground surfacing as defined by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Public Playground Safety Handbook.

Our rubber playground surfacing can be used both as an indoor playground tile or an outdoor playground tile.  When used outdoors the recycled rubber tiles will be exposed to direct ultra-violet light.  Recycled playground tiles have a low relative reflectivity (heat reflection) and a high emissivity (heat absorption) which can cause the tiles to get hot to the touch.  Outdoor playground design should take these physical properties into consideration to provide adequate shading whenever possible to reduce the effects of sun exposure.

Playground Tile Surfacing Installation

Kid Kushion rubber playground tiles can be installed over concrete or asphalt surfaces.  The type of substrate may affect the quality of the finished installation as well as the look of the tiles.  Playground safety surfacing substrate should drain freely and should have a smooth plane.  Any variations in the substrate plane in excess of 1/4” across a span of 10 (ten) feet should be corrected prior to installing the rubber tiles.

Recycled rubber playground tiles can be installed using a polyurethane based adhesive for a non-floating application.  The perimeter must contain the installed tiles to prevent them from moving during normal expansion and contraction that will occur.  Permanent perimeter containment made from concrete or asphalt make an excellent border especially when the play area is recessed to provide a smooth transition to the surrounding grade.  For installation over an existing hard substrate (such as concrete or asphalt), factory molded transition pieces are available.  Factory transition pieces must be glued to the substrate to create a permanent border.

In addition, EMC requires that all tiles be glued down as there is a differential expansion and contraction rate between EPDM and SBR rubber that can lead to edge curling. 

Recycled Rubber Playground Mats Expansion and Contraction

Recycled rubber playground tiles are made from crumb rubber.  The natural and beneficial properties of crumb rubber that make it an excellent and proven raw material for playground tiles (resilience and durability), also contribute to tile expansion and contraction with changes to exposure to the sun and changes in temperature.  As the playground surfacing tiles absorb heat they will naturally expand and get larger.  As the heat dissipates when the exposure to the sun is removed and as the temperature drops the tiles will naturally contract.  This normal and to be expected expansion and contraction may result in gaps between the tiles during cold weather with lower UV intensity.

The best way to minimize “gapping” between playground tiles from occurring is to condition the rubber tiles prior to their installation and to provide as much shade (natural or man made) as possible in the playground design.  Conditioning the rubber playground tiles is done by spreading all of the tiles out in an area that does not have direct sun exposure and allowing them to relax to their natural size.  Installations in high  heat, high UV exposure conditions (Summer) will be more difficult to achieve proper conditioning and may result in the need to make adjustments to the playground tile installation the following Spring.

Playground Tile Surfacing Benefits

Kid Kushion Playground Tiles are an excellent choice for creating a safe and ADA accessible protective surfacing under and around playground equipment.  The rubber playground tiles are made from recycled tire crumb rubber that is:

• Highly resilient to provide excellent head impact protection under falls in hot or cold temperatures,
• Extremely durable to provide lasting performance under extreme outdoor conditions,
• Proven safe through extensive in-the-field as well as in the laboratory testing,
• Naturally slip and skid resistant in wet or dry conditions,

Recycled rubber tiles and rubber mats made from recycled tire crumb rubber have a proven history of performance  dating back more than 25 years.  Kid Kushion Playground Tiles have been available to the public since 1996 and during the past 18 years have been installed on thousands of playgrounds around the world including in public and private schools, city and community parks, backyards and residential community playgrounds, military base housing playgrounds, fast food restaurants, daycare center play areas, church playgrounds and in many commercial and retail business offering play areas for children.

For a safe, reliable, low maintenance and easy to install playground surfacing, choose Kid Kushion Playground Tiles and create an inviting play area that kids will enjoy for years to come.