Synthetic Ice

[Panteras]

So I’m moving to GA by the summer so I’m trying to get as much ice time where I currently live. Unfortunately no ice rinks within 2-3 hour drive where I’ll be moving to. So, I’ve been thinking of getting synthetic ice for when I’m there. Anyone have any experience with this? Any recommendations, tips, advise etc?

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[cowboy82nd]

Where in Georgia are you moving to?

 

[Filthy Dangles]

So I’m moving to GA by the summer so I’m trying to get as much ice time where I currently live. Unfortunately no ice rinks within 2-3 hour drive where I’ll be moving to. So, I’ve been thinking of getting synthetic ice for when I’m there. Anyone have any experience with this? Any recommendations, tips, advise etc?

If you're looking for the best quality and a reliable product, I'd say HockeyShot tiles are your best option. I skated on them once a few years ago. Guys like Jeremy from How to Hockey and Pavel Barber use them among others.

Revolution Tiles
Synthetic Ice Tiles

They come in a 'Regular' and 'Premium' option starting at $15.99 and $18.99 per tile. The premium tiles are a little thicker and should last at least a couple more years.

Other things to keep in mind are, there will be a lot of plastic shavings you will need to sweep/vacuum away every few hours. While it does a solid job, it's not gonna feel like ice 100%, of course. You will not glide nearly as much and you will "slide" more when you stop instead of stopping on a dime like on ice. This is the case for all synthetic ice.

You might find some cheaper options out there but i'd question the quality of those.

 

[Mr Jiggyfly]

If you're looking for the best quality and a reliable product, I'd say HockeyShot tiles are your best option. I skated on them once a few years ago. Guys like Jeremy from How to Hockey and Pavel Barber use them among others.

Revolution Tiles
Synthetic Ice Tiles

They come in a 'Regular' and 'Premium' option starting at $15.99 and $18.99 per tile. The premium tiles are a little thicker and should last at least a couple more years.

Other things to keep in mind are, there will be a lot of plastic shavings you will need to sweep/vacuum away every few hours. While it does a solid job, it's not gonna feel like ice 100%, of course. You will not glide nearly as much and you will "slide" more when you stop instead of stopping on a dime like on ice. This is the case for all synthetic ice.

You might find some cheaper options out there but i'd question the quality of those.

I have the revolution tiles... OP should stay away from them.

I made a 16x18 rink in my basement for my daughter using these and I regretted it like hell.

I wish I had spent an extra $6-700 and gotten the high end synthetic ice.

The revolution tiles are decent and you can skate on them, but you get very little glide... my daughter and I are really good skaters, but you will find yourself stumbling a lot when your runners get stuck in the “mud”.

We just use her rink as a very expensive shooting/stick handling area now.

Hockeyshot and other companies have high end synthetic ice and that is where I suggest the OP considers if the budget allows.

If not, don’t waste your money on the revolution tiles.

 

[Panteras]

Where in Georgia are you moving to?

Savannah

 

[Filthy Dangles]

I have the revolution tiles... OP should stay away from them.

I made a 16x18 rink in my basement for my daughter using these and I regretted it like hell.

I wish I had spent an extra $6-700 and gotten the high end synthetic ice.

The revolution tiles are decent and you can skate on them, but you get very little glide... my daughter and I are really good skaters, but you will find yourself stumbling a lot when your runners get stuck in the “mud”.

We just use her rink as a very expensive shooting/stick handling area now.

Hockeyshot and other companies have high end synthetic ice and that is where I suggest the OP considers if the budget allows.

If not, don’t waste your money on the revolution tiles.

That's good advice for the OP then, i haven't skated on them since that one time a few years ago. I knew they didn't glide nearly as well as ice but i don't remember it being that bad like the stuck in mud.

The only other option I see from HockeyShot on their site are the 'Extreme Glide' panels which are $141.99 which is really a prohibitive price for a lot of people.

But I guess you get what you pay for....

Synthetic Ice

 

[Panteras]

If you're looking for the best quality and a reliable product, I'd say HockeyShot tiles are your best option. I skated on them once a few years ago. Guys like Jeremy from How to Hockey and Pavel Barber use them among others.

Revolution Tiles
Synthetic Ice Tiles

They come in a 'Regular' and 'Premium' option starting at $15.99 and $18.99 per tile. The premium tiles are a little thicker and should last at least a couple more years.

Other things to keep in mind are, there will be a lot of plastic shavings you will need to sweep/vacuum away every few hours. While it does a solid job, it's not gonna feel like ice 100%, of course. You will not glide nearly as much and you will "slide" more when you stop instead of stopping on a dime like on ice. This is the case for all synthetic ice.

You might find some cheaper options out there but i'd question the quality of those.

Nice thanks. Bit expensive but I guess that’s the case with any quality product. How do they maintain stuck to a flat surface like a driveway or something? They don’t slide? While it’s not 100% ice would you recommend this as the best way to maintain your skating instead of Marsblades? Thing is I don’t think there’s even roller rinks around. I’d have to go some tennis courts or something.

 

[ChuckLefley]

My son does some training at a place that has a synthetic surface and a skating treadmill. They have top of the line synthetic tiles and you definitely have to push harder to skate as the glide is not the same. As others have said you have a lot of “dust” and shavings to clean up each time and, depending on the humidity in the room , that stuff can be tough to clean up. You also need to sharpen your skates after every session as it dulls the blades a lot faster than ice.

 

[Mr Jiggyfly]

Nice thanks. Bit expensive but I guess that’s the case with any quality product. How do they maintain stuck to a flat surface like a driveway or something? They don’t slide? While it’s not 100% ice would you recommend this as the best way to maintain your skating instead of Marsblades? Thing is I don’t think there’s even roller rinks around. I’d have to go some tennis courts or something.

I have Marsblades also and they are good for practicing crossovers and backwards skating, but they are basically more challenging rollerblades TBTH.

That's good advice for the OP then, i haven't skated on them since that one time a few years ago. I knew they didn't glide nearly as well as ice but i don't remember it being that bad like the stuck in mud.

The only other option I see from HockeyShot on their site are the 'Extreme Glide' panels which are $141.99 which is really a prohibitive price for a lot of people.

But I guess you get what you pay for....

Synthetic Ice

The rink you skated on, was it big or small?

You can practice stops and such on our rink, but unless you can afford to build a sizable rink, the revolution tiles are too sticky.

It’s hard to explain, but you need a lot of room to build up momentum on these tiles or else you will constantly get stuck... and going into transitions is dangerous because there is no glide.

You get points when you buy their products and I was able to add a few extra square feet to our rink for free this way.

But when I ran the numbers it would have only cost me like $600 more at the time to build the same size rink with their high end synthetic ice.

Still pisses me off that I didn’t just do it and I don’t want to see the OP waste his money like I did.

 

[Panteras]

I have Marsblades also and they are good for practicing crossovers and backwards skating, but they are basically more challenging rollerblades TBTH.



The rink you skated on, was it big or small?

You can practice stops and such on our rink, but unless you can afford to build a sizable rink, the revolution tiles are too sticky.

It’s hard to explain, but you need a lot of room to build up momentum on these tiles or else you will constantly get stuck... and going into transitions is dangerous because there is no glide.

You get points when you buy their products and I was able to add a few extra square feet to our rink for free this way.

But when I ran the numbers it would have only cost me like $600 more at the time to build the same size rink with their high end synthetic ice.

Still pisses me off that I didn’t just do it and I don’t want to see the OP waste his money like I did.

yeah I def. prefer spending extra for something that I’m actually going to be happy with and will last. I’m average size 6’ 175 lbs, how much footage would you recommend where I’m feeling like I’m getting a nice skating workout and not feel like I’d need more space after my first skate? 12x12 or so?

 

[Mr Jiggyfly]

yeah I def. prefer spending extra for something that I’m actually going to be happy with and will last. I’m average size 6’ 175 lbs, how much footage would you recommend where I’m feeling like I’m getting a nice skating workout and not feel like I’d need more space after my first skate? 12x12 or so?

If you have synthetic ice that glides well, you can definitely get a good workout in a 12x12 area.

If you watch this video from How to Hockey at 3:45 you will see how far he can glide on one push on the Extreme Glide ice (the ice I should have shelled out for).



On the Revolution Tiles when you push off and try to glide, you barely move a couple feet before you stop.

It’s f***ing annoying as hell and makes it really difficult to do any kind of edge work or transition without having to pray for your life.



Now this is the Revolution Tiles... watch at 5:30 how his feet are moving in a jerky manner and he has to keep kicking out to move... and you will see him stumble a few times as his skates stick.

At 5:46 he tries to one foot glide and barely moves - this is exactly what I’m talking about.

This is also a pretty big surface so... imagine skating on a smaller one where you can’t build much momentum with barely any glide to help you maintain your movements.

 

[Filthy Dangles]

If you have synthetic ice that glides well, you can definitely get a good workout in a 12x12 area.

If you watch this video from How to Hockey at 3:45 you will see how far he can glide on one push on the Extreme Glide ice (the ice I should have shelled out for).



On the Revolution Tiles when you push off and try to glide, you barely move a couple feet before you stop.

It’s f***ing annoying as hell and makes it really difficult to do any kind of edge work or transition without having to pray for your life.



Now this is the Revolution Tiles... watch at 5:30 how his feet are moving in a jerky manner and he has to keep kicking out to move... and you will see him stumble a few times as his skates stick.

At 5:46 he tries to one foot glide and barely moves - this is exactly what I’m talking about.

This is also a pretty big surface so... imagine skating on a smaller one where you can’t build much momentum with barely any glide to help you maintain your movements.

What about lubricants, have you tried those? Do they help?

I see there are lubricants specifically for synthetic ice

 

[Mr Jiggyfly]

What about lubricants, have you tried those? Do they help?

I see there are lubricants specifically for synthetic ice

Can’t use them on the revolution tiles. It’s self-lubricating.

 

[LeifUK]

I’ve tried Glice, high end tiles, I hated them. You have to warm up your blades by skating for a few minutes which makes them glide better. I was not a good skater when I tried them, and better skaters were able to skate on them, to be honest I was like Bambi on them. Find an outdoor sports court with a smooth surface, and get some inlines. And lobby to get an ice arena built.

 

[Panteras]

Except there isn’t a nice roller rink in the area. I’m sure there’s gonna be some getting use to with synthetic, but can’t get discouraged. From what I hear it’s the closest thing to ice which roller can’t provide, so I rather give it a try and get used to them and be ready to hop on the ice when I do like I didn’t miss a step. I’ve done roller and back to ice before and you pick up so many bad habits. That’s basically why I prefer trying synthetic at this point. Also not just for skating but much better resemblance for stick handling and puck movement.

 

[lorwood]

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I built this for my grandson at the beginning of the lock down. The synthetic ice was a disappointment to say the least and while I will not mention the company we did not skimp out on the cost. We no longer skate on it, we use the rink for stick work, shooting etc. My advice is that your money will be better spent at the local rink.

 

[Panteras]

Damn that’s a heck of a set up. Do you at least live somewhere that gets cold enough to fill that with water during winter?

Are these self lubricating tiles?
Why was it a disappointment?

I’m starting to see mixed reviews overall on synthetic. I’m not easily deterred by them, I already know skating is going to be something to get used to but I just figure it’ll be like a tad worse than really bad ice?

seems like sweet set up for stick handling and shooting.
Well, where I’m moving the closest ice rink is 2hrs away otherwise this wouldn’t be an option for me, that’s how desperate it’ll be in around 2 months when I finally get to Georgia.

 

[lorwood]

Damn that’s a heck of a set up. Do you at least live somewhere that gets cold enough to fill that with water during winter?

Are these self lubricating tiles?
Why was it a disappointment?

I’m starting to see mixed reviews overall on synthetic. I’m not easily deterred by them, I already know skating is going to be something to get used to but I just figure it’ll be like a tad worse than really bad ice?

seems like sweet set up for stick handling and shooting.
Well, where I’m moving the closest ice rink is 2hrs away otherwise this wouldn’t be an option for me, that’s how desperate it’ll be in around 2 months when I finally get to Georgia.

Truthfully I would not call what can be done on the synthetic ice skating. Yes you can put on skates and yes you can push really hard to make yourself "glide" (not really) but IMO it in no way replicates being on an ice rink. Your skate blades will also go dull very quickly and eventually get pretty chewed up. If you insist on going this route use only an old pair. The surface itself gets chewed up pretty quickly with lots on nicks and cuts from the blades but this only seems to effect the appearance which gets ratty looking quickly.

The other thing you need to be aware of is that whatever subsurface you are going to use has to be level within micro tolerances. I am a builder and we installed a wooden platform supported by wooden framing on concrete piers. I knew that the surface needed to be pretty close to flat and kept everything within about 1/8" to less than 3/16" and still had to go back and micro shim some areas to get the seams flat.

The boards setup was great. Bought from a different company and have no complaints.

Spent about 6K for the entire project. Would I do it again? No way. 6K worth of local rink time would have been a better investment.

My strong advice is to forget the entire idea and don't fall into what I did by romanticizing going out for a skate in your own yard.

 

[Mr Jiggyfly]

My strong advice is to forget the entire idea and don't fall into what I did by romanticizing going out for a skate in your own yard.

Going for a skate in your own backyard is amazing and I did that for years in my 20s when I built my own backyard rink.

Can’t do it now with my kids playground, pool and trampoline (plus the weather where I live is too unpredictable anyway).

But ya, trying to replicate that with synthetic ice I’ve found out the hard way as well - isn’t worth the investment.

I should have just made a shooting/stickhandling rink and saved a couple grand.

That’s basically what we have in my basement now... once in awhile my daughter rollerblades on it, but we haven’t used our ice skates in a few years down there, unfortunately.