Over time, the protective wall padding installed throughout your athletic facilities will wear out due to age or frequent collisions. It is important to frequently check your wall pads to ensure they meet safety standards.
No matter how athletic padding wears out, it's crucial to replace the wall pads right away. Padding enhances the safety of your athletic facilities and boosts brand awareness throughout your facilities and town.
Our team of professionals at Fieldwallpads.com is here to discuss everything to know about athletic padding care, including what to look for to ensure your wall pads are still safe for competition.
How to Take Care of Your Athletic Padding
Athletic padding from Fieldwallpads.com is made to last. Our tough-as-nails products have served more stadiums and venues than we can count, and college athletes are all the safer for it. However, your wall padding also takes quite a beating. Standing up against the repeated pummelings of tough athletes is not an easy job, after all!
Fieldwallpads.com is here to remind you to take care of your sports venue padding to continue serving you and your teams for the many years it was intended to do so. Not only will periodic maintenance keep your sports padding working well, but it'll also keep it looking sharp, which is always a bonus, as those stadium lights sure shine bright!
Even if you don’t know if you've been doing maintenance, we are always willing to consult with you about our products.
If You Notice Something Broken, Fix It ASAP
It is sort of obvious that you want your athletic padding to look its best before every game, especially if it's custom-printed with sponsors. Repair any obvious missing screws or torn patches as soon as they occur.
More than looks are at stake when your wall pads need maintenance; Your athletes' safety is at risk. Athletic padding is meant to function a certain way – how it was installed.
Deviation from a pre-set installation means your facility can no longer provide the safe game that every athlete deserves. Prompt repair can mean the difference between two healthy teams and the disaster that is a lawsuit.
Schedule Regular Cleanings
Anytime the wall pads take a hit from people or projectiles, they accumulate damage and soil. Even though the padding is often durable and thick, They can come in contact with things like dirt, mud, objects, sweat, and even food or drinks from fans. Staying on top of cleaning them can help ensure the surface stays in good condition because it helps protect the original coating.
While it's always recommended to check with the manufacturer for cleaning solutions, hot water, a sponge, and mild dish soap can typically remove most residues. A specialized cleaner may be required for more stubborn stains, marks, mold, or mildew.
Use gentle brushes, sponges, and cleansers, and avoid cleaners with harsher chemicals like acetone, bleach, anything gritty, and pressurized washers because this can cause further damage to the material.
Treatment for Sunlight
One of the most important factors you need to consider when investing in outdoor wall pads is how you will keep them protected from the weather and sunlight. The sunlight, in particular, can be difficult because, unlike the weather, you can't simply cover the products to protect them from wind or hail when you're not playing.
When you have a game or event, your wall pads will be visible to everyone, and you can't protect them with a cover during a game. When you are searching for the right outdoor wall padding for your facility, you should look into products that are UV resistant and can be maintained to continually have that resistance for years.
At Fieldwallpads.com, we make outdoor wall pads with a thicker type of vinyl designed to withstand light. Additionally, they are treated for UV resistance and can continue to be treated over the years. If you don't treat your stadium wall pads, they will fade, and you will have to continually replace them, which can cost you a great deal over time.
Is It Time to Replace Your Old Wall Pads?
Are your athletic facility's wall pads getting old? If so, it may be time to replace your old wall pads with newer, sturdier ones with a more vibrant, updated design.
Part of your maintenance routine must be assessing if your athletic padding needs replacement. While our products are some of the best you can buy, nothing is immune to the passage of time.
Like anything else in your athletic gym or field, the wall padding will wear out over time. You may notice tears or rips in the fabric and less resiliency in the padding on impact. If you need newer wall pads, Fieldwallpads.com can help you custom order and deliver your new wall pads just in time for the upcoming season.
A good wall pad can last more than a decade, but you might want to opt for a replacement sooner if you have aesthetic concerns. In particular, keep an eye on areas of your athletic padding that cover sharp corners, as these corners can be particularly dangerous for athletes and referees alike.
As you inspect your wall padding, look for these signs of a worn-out product that you may need to replace.
First Impression
First, you want to make a general assessment of the padding. Step back and look at the padding from a distance.
Does it give you the impression it's worn out from top to bottom and side to side? Does it look like it's had its share of abuse? If so, that may be an indicator you should invest in new padding.
While safety is the most important issue with wall padding, you also want to make sure the padding complements your gym or field design.
New padding can give everyone the impression that you take great care of your facilities and take pride in your sports program.
Signs of Damage
One of the telltale signs that you need to replace the wall pads at your athletic facility is if they have visible damage. If there are holes in the wall pads, chunks of foam missing, or loose sections, you need to quickly order new wall pads to ensure your athletes and fans are kept safe.
If your athletes collide with damaged wall pads, their injury chances jump. Through our independent research, we have continually improved our products to reduce the chance of injuries, such as concussions and broken bones.
If any of your wall pads have obvious signs of damage, it is crucial to replace them quickly.
Corners, Beams, & Columns
Padding in the corners, beams, and columns is vulnerable to damage simply because of its location. It is easy for tiny bits of padding to escape through these areas.
As you inspect the padding along the wall, railing, or volleyball post, pay extra attention to these critical areas. If you catch some of the damage in these areas while it's minimal, you may be able to repair it without replacing the pad. This depends on the overall condition of the product.
If tears in the corners, beams, or columns are part of a larger problem, then replacement may be necessary.
Thickness & Resiliency
Part of the selling point of field wall pads is their ability to bounce right back into shape after an impact. This is due to the foam inside of the padding. The foam is designed to retain its original dimensions after an impact.
If your wall pads appear to be thinner than they once were, this is a clear sign you should get them replaced. As the products age and are subject to collisions and constant use, they will lose their thickness, which becomes increasingly dangerous for the athletes competing at your facility.
As you assess your padding, look at the overall shape. Does some of it seem to be slightly off? If so, this is an indicator that the padding is no longer resilient and that it is worn out.
The only solution is to purchase new, long-lasting wall padding you can rely on to reform after an impact.
There are many standards and mandates that are taken into account when constructing and installing wall pads, which our team of professionals takes into account during the design and construction period. If you have questions or concerns about the thickness of your wall pads, you should contact our team at Fieldwallpads.com to get them checked.
Outdated Foam
If your wall pads were installed years ago and still look safe to the naked eye, you should have an expert inspect them. Even if they look safe, that may not be the case. Research is constantly being done to enhance the safety of all wall pads.
As time passes, we use different, safer types of foam and more environmentally friendly foams. Wall pads are made from polyurethane foam, which gives them amazing durability and flexibility. It's also versatile, and it's used in many different products for:
- Shipbuilding
- Shock dampening
- Vibration absorption
- Insulation
Polyurethane is designed to absorb kinetic energy that removes some of the impact and will retain its shape even after something comes in contact with it. It has a density range of three to five pounds per cubic foot, making it exceptional for cushioning athletes.
If it has been years since you had new wall pads installed, you should contact Fieldwallpads.com to have your products inspected for safety.
You may think your wall pads are safe, but safety can always be improved, so exploring every option for your athletes and fans is crucial.
Seeking Sponsorship
Sponsors can be critical to maintaining a good athletic facility. They can give you money while you provide them with exposure, and everyone benefits. As such, sponsorships are never to be taken for granted.
One of the best ways to keep sponsors happy and engaged with your brand is to invest in wall padding that has their name on it. This maximizes sponsorship exposure thanks to the padding's large size and prominent location, making them attractive real estate.
If those wall pads are bright and well-maintained, they also serve as advertising for other sponsors, letting them know you're open to partnerships and taking them seriously.
Brand Representation
Every athletic facility has a brand – a "business and marketing concept that helps people identify a particular company, product, or individual," per Investopedia.
A brand is more than a logo or color scheme; It's the amalgamation of the results of all those marketing tools, the sum greater than the parts. When you control your brand, you control your public image, which is essential for maintaining positive attention from your fans.
Many things influence how well or poorly your brand performs. For instance, wall pads that don't match your team's color scheme send the message that you don't care about the ambiance of a given game – the exact thing you're selling to fans!
Your athletic padding needs to directly boost your brand in some way, shape, or form to be worth even having around. If yours currently doesn't, it's time for an overhaul.
Choosing Adequate Replacement Wall Padding
One of the problems that schools face when selecting wall padding is buying padding that will produce enough protection for the athletes according to the sport they engage in. Pads may feel cushiony and look nice, but they may not offer much in shock-absorbency. Therefore, if you are going to invest the money to buy wall pads, you need to make sure that what you are buying is suited to the application.
Most padding consists of two types of filler foam:
Open Cell
Open-cell foam allows air to pass when compressed from one tiny cell to another.
Closed Cell
In closed-cell foam, each cell acts like a balloon, with encapsulated air absorbing the brunt of compression.
What is the difference?
The chance that an athlete would feel the hard surface behind the pad is much greater with an open-cell foam. So, if you go with an open cell pad, you either need to get a thicker pad or purchase a pad with some type of durable vinyl covering. The covering provides abuse protection and also traps the air in there. You get better cushioning because that air doesn't escape quickly.
What To Do If Your Padding Has Been Damaged Mid-Season
Having wall pads and other safety features in your athletic facilities is a great idea, but not if they're in poor condition. Though you should inspect and ensure your wall pads are in good condition before every season, you also need to ensure they are repaired quickly if an accident happens so your athletes and fans have safe surroundings to play in and watch the games.
Let's discuss the steps you should take when your wall padding solutions have been damaged during the sports season – when time is of the essence.
Assess the Damage
After every game, event, or practice, you should inspect your wall pads and other safety equipment, especially if at least one hard collision is involved.
Typically, you won't immediately notice damage to the wall pads unless a hole is prominent or the collision is so severe that the padding is knocked off the wall or other surface. If you notice damage of any kind, even if the wall pads are slightly off-center or look like they need to be touched up, you should contact a professional, and we're the perfect one for the job.
When you contact our experts, we quickly diagnose any issues and work to remedy them. Whether you need a simple patch or an entirely new wall pad, we will work quickly and efficiently to get you up and running.
Try a Temporary Fix
Not all repairs can be made in one day. If this is the case for you, it's important you keep athletes away from the damaged area(s) to keep them safe.
If you are set to host a sporting event before your wall padding or other safety features are repaired, set up additional safety barriers in case of a collision.
Many schools have additional pads stored away for gym classes and other needs. If your school or program has these extra tools, you should consider strapping these products on top of the damaged areas in a pinch.
How Does Broken Padding Affect Your School's Brand?
Once your athletes and their safety have been taken care of, you can investigate the less-obvious consequences of broken stadium wall padding: those that reflect on your brand.
Your brand is essentially the image you put forth to your audience, athletes, and sponsors.
As for why it matters in the context of your athletic facility, DigitalSport puts it this way: "Great branding is a must. Your brand influences how people see your company or team. It helps you to forge connections with your target audience and increases recognition."
Connection and recognition are two things that are important for building a fan following for any team! A broken piece of gym wall padding makes achieving the connection part of that portion impossible. Its mere presence suggests that you don't care about the safety of your athletes, even if the exact opposite is true and you're keeping them far away from it!
When seeking the temporary solutions outlined above, it's critical that they look good as much as they accomplish your safety-related goals. Though you can't have perfection until repairs are complete, at least make sure that your quick fixes don't look sloppy or unsafe.
Consider Logistical Shuffling
If you're in a larger facility, you may simply have the option of closing down the gym space with the broken pad until repairs are completed. Then, you'll hardly need to worry about negative brand repercussions.
The keyword here, though, is hardly. Taking this route requires extensive communication between all the teams and athletes that use your facility to make sure everyone gets where they need to be on time and that spectators are satisfied.
Certain smaller facilities, like rec centers, can also use this tactic. Communication will simply need to occur via social media or signage posted near the facility's entrance – any way you can minimize unpleasant surprises.
Find the Highest Quality Products
Well, you can check this step off the list!
Fieldwallpads.com is proud to provide top-notch gym pads and more for teams nationwide. Since opening for business over three decades ago, we have been conducting studies to further enhance our products and their safety features; we're the real deal.
Our products are proven to reduce the chance of injuries while enhancing your athletic facilities' brand awareness and visual appearance. If you're in need of new wall pads, we've got you more than covered.
Fieldwallpads.com Offers Wall Padding Design
If you are looking for a team to help you enhance the safety and appearance of your athletic facilities, Fieldwallpads.com can help your college or professional team establish your brand through our amazing wall padding products. We happily work with you to ensure your athletes and fans are kept safe at all times.
To learn more about our services or to request a quote, give our Clarion office a call at 800-257-6405 or message us on our contact page today.