Finish Line Absorb-It Mat

Finish Line's Absorb-It Mat does what the name suggests, absorbing liquid and stopping it from working through to the surface underneath. It comes in two sizes – the one on test is just the right length for a bike (or three, side by side) – but it can be cut with a pair of scissors to fit on a workbench, under a turbo trainer to catch sweat, in the back of a car...

To test its absorbency, I poured about half a pint of water slowly in one place, with a sheet of kitchen roll under the mat. The water soaked in, then I lifted the mat to find that the kitchen roll was bone dry. I then dribbled some oil on, and that soaked in immediately. It'll absorb up to 2.5 litres apparently – which is quite a lot of overspray and dribblings, I'd say. (It doesn't 'seal' it in, à la sanitary towel, so put anything down where the oil is and it'll get oily.)

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There's not a huge amount more to say, really. I've used it to cover the floor under the two bikes we regularly use for commuting, both of which tend to need a good hose-down after the ride home. It certainly looks neater than the various dog towels I used to put down before (and neater than the dog towels still on the floor next to it).

The biggest problem using it indoors like this is that its slightly fluffy texture isn't that easy to vacuum – unless that's just my vacuum cleaner. I've used a dustpan and brush to remove bits of grit and dirt, but it's so light it would be easy to pick it up and give it a shake outdoors – if it didn't have three bikes parked on top.

Although it absorbs liquid, if you were going to use it in a workshop I'd suggest putting some newspaper on top to catch oil or grease, just to keep it cleaner for longer and more pleasant to use again. If you think that defeats the object, just go ahead without.

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It's very thin, so doesn't have the cushioning of a quality turbo mat (you'd probably need to use it on carpet if you wanted that), but it doesn't have the price tag that they come with either.

As someone who's considered buying a Turtle Mat at half the size for £80-odd (it had very nice stripes and promised to trap all dirt from dog paws), I reckon £20 is pretty good value.

Verdict

Does what it promises to, absorbing liquid and protecting surfaces underneath, and very good value