Many people look forward to building a basketball court at home. After all, having one makes it convenient for you to play whenever you feel like it or have fun with your loved ones. However, basketball court tiles also need maintenance – even if they are placed in an outdoor space.
If you want to learn how to clean basketball court tiles, you have come to the right place. We will explain the essentials of basketball court tile maintenance and how you should properly take care of them, depending on the material they are made of.
What are basketball court tiles?
Basketball court tiles are typically made from hard plastic. There are other materials available for basketball court flooring, like vinyl and wood, but those are available in the form of planks.
Hard plastic flooring is characterized by being extremely resistant to harsh conditions and extreme use. It is shock-absorbent and provides athletes with a good surface where they can perform different actions, such as jump shots, that can be especially stressful on the joints.
How to clean basketball court tiles
You can clean your basketball court tiles easily. The process will not take you the whole day, as the tiles were optimized for better water drainage. Thus, you will only need a water broom to clean the whole basketball court. Mopping or any other “extensive” physical work to get them clean will not be necessary.
Here is what you will need to clean your basketball court tiles in easy steps.
First, you should clean your outdoor sports court with a water broom or an air blower if necessary. A broom can also help you remove superficial debris and keep it clean now and then. You can do this once per week or as you consider necessary, depending on how much debris the surface has accumulated.
You can remove the debris with clean water whenever you feel it necessary. Again, you can do this once or twice per week depending on the severity of the contamination. If you’ve used water, you can wait for a while until the waiter dries off (if the tiles are optimized for water drainage, it should not take too long) so you can enjoy your basketball court soon.
As you can see, it is fairly easy to maintain outdoor basketball court tiles. You do not need too many cleaning agents or complicated tools to keep this space clean. It is important to keep the surface clean so you and your friends can have the best time while playing basketball together.
How to get rid of mold or tree/plant contamination in outdoor basketball courts
Outdoor basketball courts are quite vulnerable to different problems. If there are overhanging trees surrounding the area, they should be controlled to prevent the sports court from accumulating excessive contamination. Trees not only give off leaves, but they may also produce staining.
On the other hand, it is possible for mold to build up in different areas of plant or leaf contamination has occurred. If that is the case, here is what you need to do:
Hose off all the foreign debris. You can use a bristle broom to make the job easier.
- Make sure to saturate the whole surface with clean water.
- You can utilize liquid pool chlorine (sodium hypochlorite). The rate depends on how severe the mold growth is.
- Now, broom the solution around the mold area and then let it sit for about 15 minutes. Do NOT let it dry.
- Hose off the surface thoroughly to remove all the residues from the surface. Make sure to wear protective clothing and to keep animals and children away from the area.
- You may have to provide extra treatment if the area is too contaminated. You can choose to provide high-pressure water blasting and further sodium hypochlorite application. You may also explore other algaecides depending on what you consider convenient in your case.
Mold growth in outdoor basketball tiles is quite common. However, it is easy to remove if you follow the right steps.
How to remove food and drink contamination
If the problem is not mold but food and drink spillages instead, there are a few things you can do. First, make sure to wash the surface as soon as the accident happens to prevent the situation from escalating. However, if the stain has already happened, you can recur to the same methods described above – using sodium hypochlorite.
Recommendations
Accidents happen all the time, and your basketball court tile may get dirty from different sources. What’s recommended whenever an event like the ones mentioned above happens is to take action as soon as possible to prevent the tiles from receiving further damage.
In addition, you should not use scouring products like Ajax powder or solvent-based products to clean your basketball court tiles. These products may cause irreversible damage to your sports court flooring.
You should also make sure to read the recommendations provided by the manufacturer. It is very common for fabricants to provide details about the maintenance of their products to ensure their durability in the long term. If you cannot find anything related to such information, you can always get in touch with the company and ask the necessary questions.
Outdoor court flooring has been designed to be as durable as possible, but that does not mean it does not require maintenance. It is important to keep it clean, so you can enjoy its surface as much as possible while you are playing basketball.
How often should you clean basketball court tiles?
As mentioned, it is recommended to clean your basketball court tiles at least once per week. However, that is not necessarily a routine you have to follow. You can clean your sports court depending on how much you use it and the debris it has accumulated throughout time. Remember that outdoor basketball court tiles are more prone to accumulating dust, dirt, leaves, and other debris than indoor applications.
Therefore, if you want to make sure you have the best performance while playing, it would be best if you made sure that the surface is as clean as possible.
It is also recommended to sweep the floor with a dust mop or broom before you start playing to prevent potential accidents from happening while the game is ongoing.
Conclusion
Basketball court tiles are mainly made from hard plastic. This material is designed to be as durable as possible because it is meant to be used in outdoor applications. If this is your first time owning an outdoor basketball court, it can be complicated to know how to take proper care of it.
Still, all you will likely need in most cases is water to clean it. Some of the tools that could be useful include water brooms and air blowers, depending on the situation.
Overall, providing maintenance for a basketball court is fairly easy. After all, the hard plastic utilized for the production of basketball court tiles is extremely resistant, and if with proper care, it can be of better use. Whenever have dust or debris, make sure to clean them thoroughly to preserve the life of your sports court flooring in the long run.
