Anyone used Dunelm Marvel Mats on vinyl flooring?

Postik

Moved house last year. Downstairs is all Luxury Vinyl Planks (LVP) - I suspect Amtico but I'm not certain about the brand.  I bought two big door mats with a rubber backing for the front and back.  I did vaguely read something about rubber reacting with vinyl flooring but didn't think too much of it.  I checked the mats every few days for weeks and everything was fine, until one day suddenly there is a big orange mark on the floor from one of them.

I removed the mats and looked into it further and apparently it's a common issue.  The general consensus is not to use any kind of rubber backed mats which makes it very difficult to find anything suitable.  Even felt rug pads can contain PVC when you look into it which again is not considered safe.

I read Turtle Mats do not stain vinyl but I can't justify almost £200 in door mats.

In the end I opted for Dunelm Marvel Mats. The backing is supposedly natural latex and is PVC and vinyl free, and I think Turtle come in two varaties which are either natural latex and nitrile rubber.  The Dunelm ones state they are designed not to leave marks, but then have a disclaimer saying under some circumstances they can mark.  Interestingly the disclaimer they use is almost word-for-word the same as that which Turtle use for their products.

So I wondered if anyone has used Dunelm Marvel Mats on their floor and what the outcome was?

Fionargh

This is news to me regarding the rubber/vinyl reaction and I just bought a new rug so now I know to check it's not got any rubber so thanks!

You haven't said how long it took for you to notice a stain/reaction but I have LVT and have had one of the Dunelm marvel mats insitu for 3 months now and it's not caused a problem. I really like it actually.

I've also had the Practimat from there at the back door for a couple of months on/off as had to empty the room for a couple of weeks for redecorating but again, no issues.

Lots of good reviews from people using them in kitchens also where I'd assume a fair few people will have vinyl flooring?

GrubbyGirl_2

Interesting.  I've had Kardean flooring down for 14 years and a variety of rubber based door mats have sat ontop and I haven't had a single issue - I appreciate that doesn't help you but as you don't know the brand I suspect that may be the problem if they used a cheaper imitation rather than amtico or Karndean 

Postik

GrubbyGirl_2 said:

Interesting.  I've had Kardean flooring down for 14 years and a variety of rubber based door mats have sat ontop and I haven't had a single issue - I appreciate that doesn't help you but as you don't know the brand I suspect that may be the problem if they used a cheaper imitation rather than amtico or Karndean 

Does seem like bad luck, especially as we've been meticilous about looking after the floor (no shoes, sweeping every day, etc).

But both Amtico and Karndean say not to use rubber backed mats.  Amtico sell their own mats and Karndean recommend Turtle Mats.  As it happens I think they both have "rubber" backs.  I use the term rubber loosely beause I *think* the differences come about depending on whether it's natural latex, synthetic latex and/or contains vinyl or pvc.  It is a bit of a minefield!

Fionargh said:

This is news to me regarding the rubber/vinyl reaction and I just bought a new rug so now I know to check it's not got any rubber so thanks!

You haven't said how long it took for you to notice a stain/reaction but I have LVT and have had one of the Dunelm marvel mats insitu for 3 months now and it's not caused a problem. I really like it actually.

I've also had the Practimat from there at the back door for a couple of months on/off as had to empty the room for a couple of weeks for redecorating but again, no issues.

Lots of good reviews from people using them in kitchens also where I'd assume a fair few people will have vinyl flooring?

Thanks.  We actually didn't go with the larger Dunelm Marvel Mat at first because some of the reviews said it shed so bad it was blocking hoovers and making washing machines break down (it supposed to be machine washable).

The mat I got instead was from B&M.  It was really big and really nice looking actually and only cost £14.  I think we got it beginning of January and I noticed the orange stain last weekend so I would say it's taken perhaps 10-12 weeks to develop.  I did check it periodically so it either happened very, very gradually or all at once towards the end of the 10-12 weeks.  It's not that bad - I can notice it but you would probably have to point it out to someone else, but I suspect it would have gotten darker if I had left it.  I am just praying the Marvel Matt doesn't do the same thing.  The Marvel Matt does indeed shed like no tomorrow but I am hoping this slows down after being hoovered a few times.

Mark2019

Postik said:

GrubbyGirl_2 said:

Interesting.  I've had Kardean flooring down for 14 years and a variety of rubber based door mats have sat ontop and I haven't had a single issue - I appreciate that doesn't help you but as you don't know the brand I suspect that may be the problem if they used a cheaper imitation rather than amtico or Karndean 

Does seem like bad luck, especially as we've been meticilous about looking after the floor (no shoes, sweeping every day, etc).

But both Amtico and Karndean say not to use rubber backed mats.  Amtico sell their own mats and Karndean recommend Turtle Mats.  As it happens I think they both have "rubber" backs.  I use the term rubber loosely beause I *think* the differences come about depending on whether it's natural latex, synthetic latex and/or contains vinyl or pvc.  It is a bit of a minefield!

Fionargh said:

This is news to me regarding the rubber/vinyl reaction and I just bought a new rug so now I know to check it's not got any rubber so thanks!

You haven't said how long it took for you to notice a stain/reaction but I have LVT and have had one of the Dunelm marvel mats insitu for 3 months now and it's not caused a problem. I really like it actually.

I've also had the Practimat from there at the back door for a couple of months on/off as had to empty the room for a couple of weeks for redecorating but again, no issues.

Lots of good reviews from people using them in kitchens also where I'd assume a fair few people will have vinyl flooring?

Thanks.  We actually didn't go with the larger Dunelm Marvel Mat at first because some of the reviews said it shed so bad it was blocking hoovers and making washing machines break down (it supposed to be machine washable).

The mat I got instead was from B&M.  It was really big and really nice looking actually and only cost £14.  I think we got it beginning of January and I noticed the orange stain last weekend so I would say it's taken perhaps 10-12 weeks to develop.  I did check it periodically so it either happened very, very gradually or all at once towards the end of the 10-12 weeks.  It's not that bad - I can notice it but you would probably have to point it out to someone else, but I suspect it would have gotten darker if I had left it.  I am just praying the Marvel Matt doesn't do the same thing.  The Marvel Matt does indeed shed like no tomorrow but I am hoping this slows down after being hoovered a few times.

Any update on this? We’ve just got Karndean flooring and I’m having this very debate. Really not sure what to get other than having to go to the expense of Turtle Mats… thanks in advance 

pinkteapot

We've had Dunelm Marvel Mats on our similar flooring for four years with no ill effect. I'd never heard of this before! 

We have a few of the mats and I've only washed one, once. It did leave a lot of fluff in the washing machine which, despite a drum clean cycle, appeared on clothing for a while. Decided not to bother washing them! We shake out dust/dry dirt then hoover the hard floor - we don't try to hoover the mat itself. 

Postik

I'm pleased to say that 5 months on I haven't noticed any marks left by the Dunelm Marvel Mats.  I only wish I had purchased these mats in the first instance before the cheaper mat left a mark on the vinyl flooring - although I caught it early so it could have been worse.

A hell of a lot of loose fibres come off the mat when you first hoover it.  It advises you to hoover it first before washing it, but it takes several weeks of hoovering before it stops shedding.  As Pinkteapot said above, they don't really need washing.  I suspect the backing might also not fare too well if crumpled up in the washing machine.

If I wash mine in the future I think I will just do it by hand using some detergent and the hosepipe in the garden.

I strongly suspect these mats are manufactured using the same process and materials as the Turtle Mats.  I did see a brand of mat in ASDA which was made by the same supplier and I managed to track the supplier down, but I stopped short of attempting to interrogate them via email about the science behind rubbing backing and vinyl flooring!

Information on the internet suggests that rubber backing - either artificial or natural - is not safe for vinyl flooring.  However I think as usual, the same information is just parroted across multiple websites without any real understanding.  I suspect these mats use natural rubber (from a plant) rather than synthetic rubber (made from oil), hence they cost more but also don't react with the vinyl flooring which is probably an oil based product itself.

Mark2019

Thanks very much both! I think I’ll go with Marvel Mats in that instance.

Postik

Mark2019 said:

Thanks very much both! I think I’ll go with Marvel Mats in that instance.

I would add that I hoover mine, roll it up and put it under the stairs maybe once a week to let the floor air underneath. I suspect any mat will leave some form of mark if it's left in the same place for years on end.