For stalls with bare dirt or clay floors you will need enough gravel crushed rock sized 3 8 to 5 8 to fill the stall area up to about 1 below the desired level.
How to level gravel enough for stall mats.
Do not use pea gravel or sand as it won t compact.
My favorite stall is one that has those plastic stall grid things in it.
For cement floors skip this step and begin at step 6 below.
This is the most important step for getting the most out of your stall mats.
Sometimes called limestone dust this material if installed properly can be a comfortable safe stall flooring.
It must be well packed and level when it is put in.
It s also a non slip surface.
Compact the gravel with the hand compactor.
Shaped as mats interlocking tiles or modular materials these safety surfaces provide a level cushion.
The compacted gravel should be about 1 below the desired finish line.
Fill the trench with small stone or large gravel to enhance water movement.
The stall floor may be sloped to the exterior wall of the stall where a sloping gutter drain is provided along the inside of that wall.
I ve got one stall that has never had to be fixed neat freak horse in the 11 years it s been in use but generally we ll re level a stall every couple few years.
Provide a small trench 2 inches wide extending from the top stall flooring material down to the gravel subfloor layer to collect runoff.
For stalls with bare dirt or clay floors you will need enough gravel crushed rock size 3 8 to 5 8 to fill the stall area up to about 1 below the desired level.
If you have a concrete asphalt or wood floor in your stall skip to step 8.
Use a long pry bar or metal t post to carry the mats to the stall area.
Stall mats enough to cover the entire stall.
The benefit of crushed limestone is that it provides good drainage if properly installed with several inches over a bed of sand.
Rubber mats are a popular choice in many new and existing barns.
Use the 6 to 8 long 2 x 4 board and carpenter s level to move the gravel around until it s level throughout the entire stall.