Proper installation of rubber tee pads

[ScottW]

I think this is a suitable enough topic for this thread. I am just curious if anyone has any good step-by-step pointers on how to properly install rubber tee pads so they sit flush with the ground, warp minimally, and need minimal maintenance to maintain their flatness. I have heard talk of crushed gravel and wood frames underneath and am curious to hear more from players who have experience in installing them well and properly. The North Idaho Disc Gold Club will be doing some extensive work at Cherry Hill Park DGC in Coeur d'Alene, ID, this spring and I would like to have some ideas to present at our upcoming club meeting. Any information would be greatly appreciated.

[Bruce]

Save yourself the headache and pour cement!

[JMan]

Bruce said it plainly enough...I'll add, don't waste your money, pour cement. A local park here in Hillsboro originally installed top of the line rubber. Wood frames, quarter minus with covering, then the rubber pad...tic off six months and they were ripped, rescrewed too many times, and really a liability to the local park. When it was put in those terms, that unsafe pads are a legal liability to the owner of the property, cement was poured post haste. I lived in spokane, and I would shy away from rubber pads because of winter temps. Heck those things can be slipery when wet, down right dangerous when frozen. Avoid the law suit...go concrete.

[ScottW]

Thanks for the insight, and I completely agree, but there are already rubber pads on all 18 holes and they aren't going away anytime soon. I, too, much prefer cement but looking at this realistically I know we will be sticking with the rubber at least for the short term. So, other than changing the surface from which we will be throwing does anyone have any recommendations for how to best install rubber tee pads so they sit flush with the ground and require minimal maintenance - i.e. wood frame & crushed gravel underneath, etc?

[TreeLove]

Dig it out so there is no loose material, at least 3" deep. Frame it with 4x4" PT wood, such the top of the rubber will lie flush (on flat ground) to the earth, build up and retain the low side/s, slope out the high sides, install drainage as required. Make your frame so that your screw can go in 1.75" from the edge of the rubber, and land in the center of the 4x4. Pretty much, you are just building it like you would a concrete pad, with a beefier, permanent form.

If you dig 4" or deeper, fill with 1'"-minus gravel (drain rock OK for wet locations, or crushed) to 3" deep. Tamp with hand or power tamper. Then fill with 1/4" minus crushed gravel.
Tamp again thoroughly with hand or power tamper.

Crown the tee slightly so water will drain off. Pay attention to the corners. Re-tamp. Remember, no matter how well you build it; it will sink, so crown it up plenty. I will settle out, and you don't want low spots to form; they'll collect water, even with "porous" rubber.

Slip a fender washer onto the a screw, coat under the washer with with goo (below), and screw down a corner. Use 3" long, strong screws, stainless if you can afford them. The bigger the fender washer (stainless, if you can afford it) you can find, within reason, say up to 2", the better they will hold down the rubber and resist tearing. Install rubber, screw down like lug-nuts: criss-cross, and don't tighten them all until all the screws are started into the wood. Screw each corner, and at least every foot along all 4 edges. I like to coat the contact side of the fender washer with Marine Goop or you favorite amazing solvent-based Shoe-Goo type adhesive, for further reinforcement of the screw points.

Go ahead and tighten the screws until the fender washers suck down in to the rubber. We will tolerate these small, sealed low spots as opposed to having the washers high enough to slip on. I like to install them so that your shoe won't touch the washer, but will get a slight bit of traction on the screw head, without catching on it.

You can patch broken tees, too. First you need to fix the torn-up gravel. Tamp it back, adding new gravel as needed, to match the original crowned shape. Re-tamp. Then, clean up edges of the tear with solvent cleaner, and glue with solvent adhesive. Keep off tee for 24 hours. Cut out heavily damaged areas, trim up a replacement "patch" of spare rubber, clean edges, and glue into place.

Sorry for the unstructured reply, just streamed it out there, let me know if I can clarify anything.

[olydiscgolf]

I like the 4x4 treated frame and the 3/4" minus crushed rock base. But, I would do a layer of paver sand install brick pavers on top of that. It would be almost as solid as a concrete base.



The bottom line is the better your foundation is, the better the tee pads are going to hold up.


One more thing, don't spend the money on stainless, use galvanized screws and washers. They will last just as long, and they are way less expensive.

[ScottW]

That information seems pretty awesome, thank you! I will take it with me to our next club meeting. We want to make sure we get these rubber tee pads laid down properly.

[hyzerbomb]

I have injured myself on rubber teepads and really think they are worse than compacted gravel. Compacted gravel with a 1 inch mix of mortar mix mixed with some 1/4minus with fines on the top layer should be very concrete like. 3 inches of well compacted 1/4 minus as a base and 1 inch of mortar/minus in a pressure treated wood frame equals way safer footing. rake surface for grippy texture with a coarse brush or broom.

[hyzerbomb]

Also keep the teepad level front to back and have a slight taper so water doesn't sit in pools on the tee.

[ScottW]

We are still sticking with rubber pads. That's what we have and that's what we have permission to use at the park. I like cement better myself, as most do, but it wasn't the question to change surface types but rather how to make what we have the best it can be without change.

[overstable, underthrown]

How 'bout the wood frame described, but with plywood 3/4" or 1" thick on top, to make a "subfloor". Then you can prep the site with gravel and sand, but the tee should be easier to get level as corner adjustments could be made without removing the rubber surface. Also some strong adhesive glue of some sort could be spread evenly before installing the rubber on top of the subfloor...traditional edge attachment as previously suggested with the washers/screws, etc.

[Getty]

I'm hoping to install horse mats out here at the local course. These are designed to be placed in barn stalls to make mucking much easier. They are heavy-duty rubber an inch thick with a textured surface on one side and smooth on the other. They run $35-$40 apiece. I have many in my barn and they've taken a beating from horses and sheep. I've never had to replace a single one. Has anyone else tried this?

The parks guy here doesn't want me to pour concrete or do any raised-level tees for mowing purposes, so this thread has been very helpful.

[General Scales]

Originally Posted by overstable, underthrown

How 'bout the wood frame described, but with plywood 3/4" or 1" thick on top, to make a "subfloor". Then you can prep the site with gravel and sand, but the tee should be easier to get level as corner adjustments could be made without removing the rubber surface. Also some strong adhesive glue of some sort could be spread evenly before installing the rubber on top of the subfloor...traditional edge attachment as previously suggested with the washers/screws, etc.

I see that as a good idea if you are going to use a pressure treated wood that won't rot in a year or two of northwestern weather. The only other issue I see with this is if you don't lay the sub floor down right, it's going to be squishy in some places.

[ScottW]

Originally Posted by overstable, underthrown

How 'bout the wood frame described, but with plywood 3/4" or 1" thick on top, to make a "subfloor". Then you can prep the site with gravel and sand, but the tee should be easier to get level as corner adjustments could be made without removing the rubber surface. Also some strong adhesive glue of some sort could be spread evenly before installing the rubber on top of the subfloor...traditional edge attachment as previously suggested with the washers/screws, etc.

A treated sub-floor of some sort is an interesting idea but it certainly would need to hold up to the elements well over time. Not sure on the horse mats sounds interesting also. We already have the rubber pads at Cherry Hill, they just need to be installed better.

[3 Fingers]

at Two Rivers Park we have the same layers drainage as listed in many of the above .. but they put concrete board on top of that and then the rubber mat .. have picture in my album if you want to look at it

[Rapid Fire Jack]

Thanks for the detailed input. What method have you used for anchoring the 4x4's? I'm thinking rebar stakes, possibly 12" in length. How about fastening the corners together? Inside corner braces? As for the crown for drainage - would a 1" crown be about right to start with, and allow some settling?

[TreeLove]

Haven't had much need to anchor the frames, if they are "buried" well, they should not move, but I like the idea of staking them down. As far as attaching the corners, sure some L-brackets would work great, inside or outside (outside will be underground and not visible anyway). I think I just used very long screws (Timb-R-Locks, IIRC). Once the frame is "buried, filled, covered, and back-filled, it won't go anywhere, as long as you retain the low side. As far as how high to crown it, I would say about 2 inches, and make sure the whole thing is rounded, ours have tended to sink in the corners making some low spots.