Extreme Wash Process

Current Problem

Mat manufacturers and laundries test mat to see if the mats will perform. The main reason for testing is ripples and less adhesion of the carpet to the rubber.

The standard test method will 100x washing in their current wash process. Mats are washed together with other mats and this can take up to 3 month before any result can be seem. some mat manufacturers will also test 200 washes and this can be done to test wash fastness for logo mat colours. For standard mats mainly solutions dyed, fastness of color is no problem anymore.

The problem is that 100 wash cycles are typically 3-4 years in service.
From several laundries we spoke to we hear that when washed 100x in 3 month mats show no sign of ripples.
In real life mats can show their first small ripple after 40-60 washes.
Why ?

The reason is very simple. When washed 100x in 3-4 years the rubber also ages.
When washed 100 times in 3 month the rubber doesn’t age at the same as in 3-4 years.

One laundry gave us a good example. for mat well typically a extra/double thick rubber is used. This rubber being around 3mm thick is able to withstand the shrink forces of the carpet. Extra think rubber backed mats show less shrinkage. but he observed that after around 3.5 years these mats would all of a sudden shrink a few cm, why. This is probably the point where aging kick in and the rubber becomes weaker when aged, not being able to withstand the shrink force of the carpet.

So when washing mats 100x no conclusions can be drawn regarding ripple issues. 100x washing can give an idea on the fastness of printed colors and if there are any adhesion problems between yarn and rubber. But even for this aging of the rubber plays a big role.

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