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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 464
 
| I've got a 24' aluminum stock trailer. It has a diamond plate aluminum floor. long story short, it's not practical to put mats in it. Any harm ( to the horse) if you haul him on the bare aluminum floor, with no mat? |
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  Neat Freak
Posts: 11216
 
Location: Wonderful Wyoming | people do it all the time around my area, but I do prefer some cushion. I would put them just in the front where you usually haul unless you always fill it. ours is 22ft and we used rubber belting from some kind of huge conveyer belt. Call around and check construction places. Cheap and does the job.
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Married to a Louie Lover
Posts: 3303
| We haul on just the aluminu floor of ours with a good layer of shavings. I wouldn't call ours diamond plate though, it's ridged so it does provide some traction. I'd be worried about the diamond plate being slick.
If it's not practical to mat the whole thing what about just 1 or 2 in the front if you're just hauling a couple head?
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 464
| OhMax - 2017-03-13 8:41 PM
We haul on just the aluminu floor of ours with a good layer of shavings. I wouldn't call ours diamond plate though, it's ridged so it does provide some traction. I'd be worried about the diamond plate being slick.
If it's not practical to mat the whole thing what about just 1 or 2 in the front if you're just hauling a couple head?
It has 3 ribs running the length of it, that would prohibit the mats from laying flat. Can't post a picture, but that would help. |
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Meanest Teacher!!!
Posts: 8552
Location: sunny california | I think i would just use those soft rides boots |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 865
| I haul all he time in my stock trailer with just shavings. Not long hauls though. A few hours or less |
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Married to a Louie Lover
Posts: 3303
| Bigfoot - 2017-03-13 8:48 PM
OhMax - 2017-03-13 8:41 PM
We haul on just the aluminu floor of ours with a good layer of shavings. I wouldn't call ours diamond plate though, it's ridged so it does provide some traction. I'd be worried about the diamond plate being slick.
If it's not practical to mat the whole thing what about just 1 or 2 in the front if you're just hauling a couple head?
It has 3 ribs running the length of it, that would prohibit the mats from laying flat. Can't post a picture, but that would help.
Hm, my concern is more from a traction standpoint so if you think they'd have enough traction with just shavings to keep balance then no issues for shorter hauls IMO. We haul an hour to 2 hours in ours, never had an issue or felt they came off the trailer worse for wear.
Softrides would be an option if the money was there and you felt like they needed them.
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Expert
Posts: 1567
Location: Fairfield, IA | It has to be safer that this, which I unfortunately saw 1st hand over the weekend.
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 Expert
Posts: 3815
Location: The best kept secret in TX | I have the same type of trailer. We cut our mats to fit in between the rails that run the length of the floor. We then cover it with shavings. Never had a problem. Mine got sore opn the bare floor. Very easily. |
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 Experienced Mouse Trapper
Posts: 3106
Location: North Dakota | IRunOnFaith - 2017-03-14 8:35 AM I have the same type of trailer. We cut our mats to fit in between the rails that run the length of the floor. We then cover it with shavings. Never had a problem. Mine got sore opn the bare floor. Very easily. I think this is good advice-I would be very worried about having to hit the brakes and the horses skidding all over-cutting the mats would be good-I've also seen someone use a "polylast" floor (I think that's what its called) that adheres and stays.....not sure poly cast is the right word-but I would think if you google trailer flooring you would find something.
Edited by LMS 2017-03-14 8:48 AM
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Expert
Posts: 3815
Location: The best kept secret in TX | LMS - 2017-03-14 8:41 AM IRunOnFaith - 2017-03-14 8:35 AM I have the same type of trailer. We cut our mats to fit in between the rails that run the length of the floor. We then cover it with shavings. Never had a problem. Mine got sore opn the bare floor. Very easily. I think this is good advice-I would be very worried about having to hit the brakes and the horses skidding all over-cutting the mats would be good-I've also seen someone use a "polylast" floor (I think that's what its called) that adheres and stays.....not sure poly cast is the right word-but I would think if you google trailer flooring you would find something.
This is a good idea as well however, our trailer floor has grooves all along the floor. The flooring would adhere to the top of the groove and dirt, urine, and poop would get in between the flooring and lower groove. You can't clean it very well.
We cut the mats, placed them on the floor, covered them with shavings and pull the mats often to clean.  |
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 Too Skinny
Posts: 8009
Location: LA Lower Alabama | If you tie your horse then you only need mats right where the horse would be and you could easily remove them when done for the day. |
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 A Somebody to Everybody
Posts: 41354
Location: Under The Big Sky Of Texas | I would never haul my horses in any type of trailer without a good set of rubber mats, I cant see it being good for a horse standing on a bare floor, would be bad for legs standing on a hard surface while traveling, I would want something to help with shock absorbing, and I would worry about it being slick once the pee and poop hit that floor. Just seems very dangerous for the horse loading and unloading and just standing there if they lose their footing they cant help themselves on a slick floor. Just my thoughts on this, so being the odd man out here 
Why is it not practical to put mats in this trailer?
Edit to add here, now I have hauled my horses in our cattle trailer that had wooden floors back in the day, but a aluminum trailer with aluminum floors never without good thick mats.
Edited by Southtxponygirl 2017-03-14 12:07 PM
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Member
Posts: 31
| My horses are barefoot and I haul occasionally in our stock trailer with no mats (haul cattle in it mainly and I don't plan far enough ahead to move mats in and out). Get along just fine. Usually aren't going to far and usually tie horses close enough together they can't move much. Hate to put shavings down because I'm afraid it could make it too slick. If we do have horses with shoes we put the mats down where they will be standing. The thing you have to be concerned about is stopping and not throwing them down. Ours sounds just like your minus the ribs but we have two cut gates. |
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 Owner of a ratting catting machine
Posts: 2258
| I would never ever haul my horses on diamond plate without mats. It's too slick, even if barefoot, not to mention the vibration and noise.
Why can't you cut the mats to fit? Or put Soft Rides on all four at the least, with shavings down?. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 464
| Been out of pocket all day. Sorry. Saw where some people had questions:
The mats would need to be ripped, and laid. Probably ripped in to 3 segments. The trailer is many time used 5 days a week hauling cattle. They would slide them here there and yonder. My LQ trailer is an option, but only hauls 4 horses. I now have reason to haul 5 horses. Its the only trailer I have, that will accommodate 5 head. It wouldn't be practical to just lay one where a horse is standing, they will be almost from one end to the other. Plus, those things are heavy. Too heavy to be hauling in and out. |
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 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 378
Location: Saskatchewan | Usually if you take your stall dividers out of the LQ trailers you can squeeze another horse in. That's what we did with ours! We also strategically load our horses cause we have one that loves being trailered so much she will stuff everyone else in so she can fit haha
Edited by QHriderKE 2017-03-14 2:37 PM
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 My Heart Be Happy
Posts: 9159
Location: Arkansas | Jeff Vorhies - 2017-03-14 7:16 AM
It has to be safer that this, which I unfortunately saw 1st hand over the weekend.
Oh my goodness. . . . |
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 Ms. Marine
Posts: 4627
Location: Texas | I haul my mares in a stock trailer with mats cut to lay flat on the floor. |
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 Sock eating dog owner
Posts: 4553
Location: Where the pavement ends and the West begins Utah | I have a four horse that I can haul 5 in with comfort. What I did was have new slant latches welded so the horses were a little tighter. The last 2 horses were my largest and smallest horses and they had the last stall together and balanced off each other. I wouldn't risk hauling on the diamond plate. Hauling horses on something slick is a disaster waiting to unfold. They can put a leg through side of the trailer, then you spend hours cutting them out and the expense and heart ache is so not worth it. Get the mats or do something else. take care. |
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