Safe trailer bedding on plywood??

[Greentchr]

I have had to re-floor my (borrowed) trailer. The rubber mats have not come yet, and need to move the horses in a few days. I need suggestions to give the (3/4") plywood a less slippery footing. I have not oiled the wood yet, so that is not an issue. I tried shavings, but as it is an open stock-trailer, the shavings blew everywhere.

Is straw a good footing? if so, how deep should it be?

Any other suggestions? It had a rug in it which actually worked great, but was the cause of reflooring as it had trapped moisture...

Need a quick (temporary) solution!

Edited to add: the plywood is just a top layer, on top of the regular flooring as a 'just-in case' . The bottom layer seems solid, and is fairly new.

[Kanuma]

straw isnt particularly good for traveling as it can become slippy when wet. Could you not use the rug for the one trip and take it up immediately after the trip?

[Greentchr]

Unfortunately, the rug is history:rolleyes: . It was rotting so I tossed it out.

[lisae]

How about several packages of those peel and stick bathtub footing things? There are also bigger similar products that you put on stairs that are in strips May be too pricey or labor intensive.... but they could stay on there under the rubber mats when they arrive.

[DITZ]

to be honest I used to put straw down in my old trailer and never had a slipping problem. My trailer had a partition down the middle so he was well supported either side. I guess it could be a problem if there was no partition.

[smaggi]

I would not use just straw or shavings over plywood. We used rubber mats with shavings on top in a stock trailer when we went to pick up 2 horses for a friend. They had never trailered before and were older and untrained. We stopped to check on them after about 15 minutes of driving and they had the mats curled up in ball in the back. Their legs were spread wide apart trying to maintain their balance on the shavings over the plywood. It was way to slippery. We had never had a problem with the mats before with other horses.

This may sound strange, but could you tack down some sandpaper or something like that. It probably wouldn't work because they would probably tear it. What about tacking down indoor/outdoor carpet?

[DITZ]

my floor was hardwood - is there a difference?:confused:

[smaggi]

It probably depends on the way it was finished, but I would think there would be more traction on hardwood. I know that a piece of plywood is smoother than a 2x4 piece of wood.

[DITZ]

maybe, my floor was planks too which were bevelled so had a ridge about every 4-5". I even travelled without straw sometimes too, just bare floor which never caused slipping either.

[Greentchr]

How about several packages of those peel and stick bathtub footing things?There are also bigger similar products that you put on stairs that are in strips
That is a good thought. The bathtub ones would not stay on, I am afraid, but the stair ones might be a good option, especially if I can tack them down! I will check the stores today.

What about tacking down indoor/outdoor carpet?

If I cannot find rubber mats, I think I will try to find a bit of carpet that I can tack down. That is what was in it before I removed it because of wetness, but if I make it easy to take up, perhaps it would work.

I was hoping to put down something easily removeable as a temporary measure, but what I am hearing from you all is that it will add to the slippery problem rather than alliviate it.

Thanks for your thoughts!

[Greentchr]

Final results:

Bought two 6x8 ft. outdoor carpets, tacked them down on each end the trailer (14x 6 ft trailer) and overlapped them in the middle. When I was done trailering (took them to vets today), I just swept them off and rolled each of them up from the middle (without un-tacking the ends) to allow the floor to breathe.

I tacked a rubber piece on the exit end to be sure no hooves get caught up in it, and it worked quite well.

Thanks for your help!

[smaggi]

I'm glad it worked for you. I'll have to remember that idea in case we ever don't have mats.