It’s a best practice to lay your mulch down when the soil has warmed up from the winter season. We advise laying mulch down during mid to late spring. Mulching too early can slow down the warming process and negatively affect plant life for seasons to come.
Spring is also the best time to check for debris from the winter such as dead plants and weeds. Be sure to clean out this area before laying down a new layer of mulch.
Not sure how much recycled rubber mulch you need for your project? Try our coverage calculator.
Prior to installing rubber mulch the area must be cleared of all grass, wood chips, rocks, stumps, gravel, or any other type of debris.
The amount of rubber mulch used per square foot is dependent upon on the required fall height rating of the playground equipment. Rubber mulch is IPEMA certified to provide up to 14’ of fall height protection per ASTM F1292-19. To achieve a maximum fall heights when installed in fall zones of a playground, the following depths and ratios must be followed:
| Fall Height Protection per ASTM F1292-13 | Un-Compacted Depth | Final Compacted Depth |
| Up To 16 FT. | 7″ | 6″ |
| Up To 12 FT. | 6″ | 5″ |
| Up To 10 FT. | 5″ | 4″ |
Proper compaction can be achieved by using a lawn roller. Once the rubber mulch is raked and leveled into place, the lawn roller can be pulled directly over the surface. It is recommended to roll the roller across the surface in multiple directions. If low or high spots develop while compacting the surface, material can be added into the low areas and/or raked away from the high areas and compacted again.
To reduce maintenance of your rubber mulch in high use areas where critical fall height protection is not required, rubber mats may be used. Mats can be placed under or on top of the rubber mulch.
No, GroundSmart® Rubber Mulch comes with a 12 year color-lock guarantee. GroundSmart® Rubber Mulch looks great 365 days a year, year after year, and it’s more durable, cost-effective, maintenance free and eco-friendly than wood mulch, stone and other common landscape groundcover materials.
Yes, unlike wood mulch that recommends avoiding use near foundations and wood structures, GroundSmart® Rubber Mulch can be used directly against a home or building foundation and wood structures. That’s because GroundSmart® Rubber Mulch does not attract termites, carpenter ants and other harmful wood destroying insects like wood mulch can.
Need a higher fall height? Contact us for a bulk rubber mulch quote with our commercial team.
- New or Existing Landscapes:
- Landscape areas should be graded for proper drainage and comprised of a soil conducive for growing and maintaining healthy plant material.
- Landscape surface areas must be cleared of all grass, wood chips, rocks, stumps, gravel, or any other type of debris.
- Installing a landscape weed fabric is recommended under GroundSmart® Rubber Mulch. Landscape fabric should be properly secure and all seams should overlap a minimum of three inches
GroundSmart® Rubber Mulch should be installed and maintained at a depth of 1.5” to 2” throughout the installed landscape areas.
Yes, GroundSmart® Rubber Mulch helps prevent weeds. Weeds can’t germinate and grow in rubber mulch like they can in wood mulch. For maximum weed protection, we recommend installing a landscape weed fabric under GroundSmart® Rubber Mulch or any groundcover material for that matter.
The area where GroundSmart® Rubber Mulch will be installed must be graded for proper drainage with a substrate that is compacted to provide a firm, even base.
Installation of a commercial grade geotextile landscape fabric is recommended under GroundSmart® Rubber Mulch. Seam overlap needs to be a minimum of three inches and all seams need to be properly secured to prevent dirt or other substrate material from mixing with the safety surfacing. Additionally, the landscape fabric needs to be properly secured at the perimeter and around all installed equipment posts or polls. If stone or other material is used as part of a drainage system then the use of landscape fabric is also recommended in order to ensure that the materials do not mix.
Prior to installing GroundSmart® Rubber Mulch the area must be cleared of all grass, wood chips, rocks, stumps, gravel, or any other type of debris.