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Mat vs creeper

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gfd_703

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Apr 22, 2010
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west tennessee
Bad knees has me using kneeling pads from Home Depot often. I like the 1 1/2 inch thick semi soft foam they are made from. Is there a creeper sized pad or larger available in this type foam? Getting where getting on and off a creeper is getting more difficult and I want a good working pad that is easy on knees and hips. Bonus points for storability. I see some that look like tool box foam, more rigid I guess, how are they?
 
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dscheidt

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I've used a piece of closed cell foam from a box something big came in. It's like 24"x36", and about 1 or 1.5' thick. Works as a kneeling bad, a seat, or to lie on. Also very reasonably priced.
 
Z

Zewnten

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Matco had one it was about 4 by 2 but it was open cell foam and doesn't seem to hold up very well. I like'd using kiazen? closed cell foam, it came in a window crate so not sure exactly what it was but it didn't absorb oil or break down fast like the matco one did.
 
F

finn

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The UP, God's country
You need something with a low coefficient of friction so you can slide your body without sticking to the pad.

That leads you to closed cell foam. Relatively ridgid, and foldable would be best.

Frankly, I went through this a few years ago, and determined cardboard worked better than the pads I tried. Carpet foam was about the worst, followed by carpeting.

The best is the four post lift.
 
W

WWheeler

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The box our 65" tv came in is super thick folded flat (~2" or more) and I've been using it for several years now in lieu of either of my creepers that hang on the wall in the garage. The box is reinforced to protect the screen, super strong, and super soft, and lets me slide under and out from a vehicle much more comfortably and with much less effort than using a creeper, and it's got a plastic-like sealed surface where small oil spills wipe up easily from it instead of soaking in like normal cardboard. I've used it several dozens of times now and still looks like it did the day we got the TV. When not in use it slides behind my tool chest, out of site, out of mind.
 
X

xjfish

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Feb 22, 2014
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Zewnten said:
Matco had one it was about 4 by 2 but it was open cell foam and doesn't seem to hold up very well. I like'd using kiazen? closed cell foam, it came in a window crate so not sure exactly what it was but it didn't absorb oil or break down fast like the matco one did.
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I have the big Matco one and I like it. If my coworker stops borrowing it, maybe it will hold up for awhile longer.
 
S

Signing off

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Jun 16, 2022
Messages
111
Grabbing what is around is all I have done. But mats are always preferred vs creeper.
A fender cover has done a lot for me and my other pad is a square of exercise floor. Neither help me slide much but serve the purpose.
 
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RoninB4

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Under My House
For the last few years I've been using the horse stall rubber mats. They're washable, can interlock to create the size you want, are soft enough for my bad knees, and offer a bit of insulation against the cold concrete floor.
 
M

MattGarage

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Mar 14, 2023
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So Cal
Go no further than your local wally world, or even TJ Max/Marshalls ilk - buy a yoga mat. Find a nice thick one that has a relatively stiff structure for support. I have a creeper but it is an act of acrobatics and gymnastics to get on it without flying across the room and crashing into a wall or running out into the street.
 
E

emeraldcoupe

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spring hill, florida
N

Nutria

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Jun 23, 2015
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Eastern Sierra
MJK said:
I have an -anti-fatigue floor mat near my work bench. I'll occasionally drag that over for longer work sessions, otherwise cardboard is the norm.
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I have three, and I'll throw all three of them under the car. That works out great, because I usually end up somewhere that I didn't anticipate. So, I can just slide around wherever.
 
T

tester19

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Apr 25, 2021
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chigago
I just got the $25 Harbor Freight work mat as posted above. I have used cardboard, creepers and various bits of other mats and carpets. This mat from HF really works well. It has some things that the other mats don't think about.

The bottom is slick and shiny so it does not soak up fluids like most of those other things do. Next the surface you lay on is covered when stored because this mat folds in half with Velcro holding the two parts together and has loops to you can hang it on the wall. Since it folds if just kneeling you can use a single or double layer of the mat.

Unknown is how it will hold up under time and use?
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R

rpcraft

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Aug 14, 2014
Messages
1,057
Location
Waco
All I really ever need a cushion for is leaning on my knees due to a bone spur or sitting on my **** on concrete, especially if I am wiggling around or taking loose suspension stuff. Laying on my back in a driveway or whatever on concrete is fine with me. I just use actual hard knee pads I got at home depot when I am going to be doing kneeling and walking back and forth type activities.

For sitting stuff I used to work at a Semi Conductor manufacturer some years ago and some of the equipment came in crates where they had cellulose foam mats that were about 2 inches thick and I have one piece I cut and keep in the truck for if I need to change a tire on the road or something and then another one that is about 3 x 3 when I want to sit on my **** and wrench on stuff in the driveway. Not sure where else you can find them but if anyone happens to be in the Austin area I can send you to a place and if you dash in and grab the stuff they'll never miss it or know you did.
 
F

finn

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Location
The UP, God's country
WWheeler said:
The box our 65" tv came in is super thick folded flat (~2" or more) and I've been using it for several years now in lieu of either of my creepers that hang on the wall in the garage. The box is reinforced to protect the screen, super strong, and super soft, and lets me slide under and out from a vehicle much more comfortably and with much less effort than using a creeper, and it's got a plastic-like sealed surface where small oil spills wipe up easily from it instead of soaking in like normal cardboard. I've used it several dozens of times now and still looks like it did the day we got the TV. When not in use it slides behind my tool chest, out of site, out of mind.
Click to expand...
The TV boxes have a nice, slithery coating on the outside that doesn’t absorb minor spills. They last a long time if you take care of th.
 
J

jpaw

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Dec 23, 2018
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Location
Michigan
The plastic style cardboard that is used on lawn signs and such is perfect if you can find it in a large enough sheet.
 
W

WWheeler

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Jun 23, 2015
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Location
Middleofnowhere USA
finn said:
The TV boxes have a nice, slithery coating on the outside that doesn’t absorb minor spills. They last a long time if you take care of th.
Click to expand...
This is my fave GJ answer. Instead of spending $100 on a creeper, you come home with a $1000 75" TV armed with the (im)perfectly valid argument that you did so because you needed the box to change the oil in the wife's car.
 
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