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Caster Floor Protection Assessment

Rate the risk of marking or damaging a floor from caster traffic, then get the tread material and wheel size that fit the risk level and a protection measure when the traffic cannot stop.

Floor damage from caster traffic is a combination of wheel load, tread material, wheel size, floor finish, and contamination, and it is cheaper to assess than to repair. Enter those conditions and the calculator returns a risk band with the tread material and wheel size that suit it, plus a protection measure where the traffic has to continue.

The score is a screening judgement rather than a prediction: the same score can mean different things on two floors of the same nominal type, and the tool does not compute contact pressure. Where a specific coating has an allowable pressure, use the tread width selector to compare.

Inputs

Wheel, floor, and traffic

Range: 10–40,000 lbf

Contamination cuts the contact patch down and concentrates pressure, which is what actually gouges a coating rather than the wheel weight alone.

Result

Risk band (1 low, 2 moderate, 3 high)
3
Risk score
9
Assessment
High risk of marking or gouging. Change the wheel first: a soft polyurethane tread on a 6 in or larger wheel spreads the load and stops the coating being cut. If the traffic cannot stop, lay a floor protection mat on the route rather than trying to make the caster do more.
Recommended tread
Use a non-marking soft or polyurethane tread. On a coated or tiled floor, the coating is softer than the wheel, so the wheel is what marks it.

What to check

  • Describe the actual floor finish, not the general floor type.
  • Answer the contamination question honestly; grit is a major contributor to marking.
  • Treat the recommendation as a shortlist and confirm against the floor supplier's advice.

Related calculators

A screening score, not a prediction of damage. It does not compute contact pressure, ignores wheel diameter in the score itself, and does not consider the cleaning regime, any protective coating, or floor mats elsewhere on the route. A dry, level floor is assumed; standing water changes the picture entirely.