Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: What Flooring To Install In A Digital Projection Booth?

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Posted by Richard Orsak (Member # 4472) on 12-11-2012, 02:28 AM:

I currently have a commercial type indoor outdoor carpet that is very flat in my film booth.

I was told by a few that static electricity could be an issue possibly, and damaging to the Digital Equipment.

I was thinking about installing the commercial carpet square tiles, but would that not be the right way to go?

Thanks!

Posted by Frank Cox (Member # 6258) on 12-11-2012, 09:58 AM:

Static is very bad for any electronic equipment.

My projection room has a painted plywood floor.

Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 12-11-2012, 11:28 AM:

SDT ("Static Dissipative Tile") is used in computer rooms and similar facilities. It's probably overkill for a projection booth, but you could do worse than that for a floor surface.

Posted by Marcel Birgelen (Member # 6801) on 12-12-2012, 09:35 AM:

quote: Richard Orsak
I was told by a few that static electricity could be an issue possibly, and damaging to the Digital Equipment.

Are you worried to blow up your computer or notebook with an Electrostatic Discharge anytime you use it? All your equipment is properly grounded, isn't it?

Well, this argument is only valid if you regularly work with open, unshielded and ungrounded equipment. You're not a repair shop, are you?

If you are replacing any sensitive electric components anyways, you should always check if you're properly grounded yourself, no matter what kind of flooring you have.

Posted by Richard May (Member # 2627) on 12-12-2012, 09:47 AM:

Yeah but why take a chance??

Posted by Marcel Birgelen (Member # 6801) on 12-12-2012, 10:13 AM:

quote: Richard May
Yeah but why take a chance??

Because you can better spend your time and money on stuff that really matters? [Smile]

In a new booth or a complete renovation, maybe? In an existing situation? Why bother?

If you want to protect your equipment, try to protect it from real dangers: invest in proper surge protection.

A local power company SNAFU or a lightning strike is more dangerous than any ESD you will ever encounter (the latter one actually being very powerful version of an ESD [Smile]

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 12-12-2012, 11:29 AM:

Commercial carpet squares are great. Then again any dense, low pile commercial grade carpet is ideal.

Many people will disagree without anything specific to compare it to, but the booths with carpet are giving us less trouble than the booths with tile and cement floors. Do I think that is the cause? Not necessarily, but it does easily debunk the whole fear of carpet.

Posted by Marcel Birgelen (Member # 6801) on 12-12-2012, 11:54 AM:

Maybe your equipment prefers the warm feel of carpet [Wink]

.

I would probably prefer carpet above some hard type of flooring, it also helps with soundproofing.

Posted by Richard Orsak (Member # 4472) on 12-12-2012, 11:23 PM:

Thanks Guys for the feedback...I appreciatr all the comments and suggestions,

Richard

Posted by Gavin Lewarne (Member # 5397) on 12-13-2012, 05:31 AM:

Our floor is vinyl floor tiles on 2 Inch think ply , suspended above a cinderblock foundation by massive wooden beams.

The vinyl tiles are extremely easy to clean, and being self adhesive if one gets damaged its a simple case of peel it off and stick another one down. Cost effective and very hardwearing

Posted by Paul H. Rayton (Member # 1817) on 12-14-2012, 04:42 PM:

I should think that carpeted flooring would be somewhat frowned upon in today's projection rooms with a lot of electronics that require ventilation. It's another source of dust, which can obstruct ventilation ports. So other options would seem desirable. Carpeting does help in noise reduction, but there are fewer and fewer places that need to soften the noise of 24fps film going through sprockets...

In our case, we installed some vinyl floor mat material from McMaster-Carr Co. They are a nationwide (LA, NJ, Atlanta, Chi., Cleve.) sales outfit of diverse materials & supplies, with a vast catalog -- dare I say it, rather like Grainger Co. -- so may be available locally, or it can be ordered. The stuff we used was called "Raised-Disc Antislip Traction Mats"; the following is their catalog listing page for it: http://www.mcmaster.com/#runner-mats/=kldipb , and that's to page 2092(!) of their catalog.

The "raised disc" refers to a slight "bump" pattern that exists across the surface, in order that you don't slip on it if something wet gets on it. It comes as 3' x 4' pieces, or 50' length rolls that must be cut to fit. Note that there are two colors available: black and gray. I strongly suggest the gray, which is rather light, NOT the black, as the black is very user-unfriendly when some small part gets accidentally dropped on it...

It should be sufficiently anti-static, and is definitely cleaner (in terms of dust) than cement or carpeted flooring, and is softer (and quieter) than plain tile.

Installation is done with a separately-sold epoxy, so a bit of skill is required to cut and fit the pieces properly, and then it has to dry, but once in place, I've been OK with it. Better than plain ol' cement floor, and far less dust than carpeting. And easy to clean any spills.

Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 12-14-2012, 05:12 PM:

I haven't got a problem with carpet as long as it is a good grade of commercial carpet. It can be anti-static treated and, if I'm not mistaken, some brands are intrinsically anti-static. Aren't they?

Regardless, what about splitting the difference?
Carpet in the main walking areas and tile in the areas around the projectors?

The best of both worlds. No?
Anti-static where it counts plus comfort and noise reduction where you want it most.