My flatmate, Norbi brought attention to the ugly knocks and cracks on the wooden floor in my room. We were discussing what the cause could have been when he said
“Woman’s high heels!” – said Norbi seriously
I laughed at the idea stating how unlikely it sounds that a woman’s high heeled shoes could cause such injuries to the flooring… But it turned out that he was right! The floor boards are very vulnerable to the sharp edges of the heels! Somewhat similar to pushing a needle through a strong fabric.
The physics
The pressure objects exert to the ground depends on their surface and weight.
The standard unit of this is called Pascal. (Newton/square meter)
According to an article, a 2 ton lorry exerts 195-205 kilo-Pascal pressure to the earth.
A grown elephant presses the grounds of mother nature with roughly 350-700 kilo-Pascal.
A 57 kg girl, on the other hand can exert nearly 14.000 kilo-Pascal pressure to the dance floor with each step taken.
Incredible numbers!!
What should I do?
If you wear high heels to dance, I recommend inspecting the flooring. Especially if you practice at home! Can you see any signs of damage? It could be from your shoes!
These are your options:
1. Ignore the problem and ruin the flooring.
2. Start using practice shoes.
3. Stop practicing at the given place (i.e. at home)
4. Learn how to polish and finish the flooring. …Just kidding :) Although it costs a fortune to get it done by experts (around 4.000 huf/square meter!!)
5. Look for an other solution. But what??
Heel protectors!!!
This is a cap-shaped, transparent piece of plastic or silicon. Placed over the heel of your shoe, it will protect the shoe on un-even surfaces from wearing off.
VERY USEFUL on open-air milongas and rocky surfaces for example!
As well as protecting your shoe, it is a perfect way of protecting the flooring!
They come in different sizes and colors. I buy mine at Taylor dance accessory but all other dance shoe shops sell them in Budapest. (see the list of dance shoe shops).
You can also order them online from web-shops. I tried the ones from Aliexpress.
An important note: other objects can damage your flooring.
Tiny rocks stuck under your shoes can cause ugly scratches, ruining the otherwise expensive floor. To avoid this, try to keep your flooring free of dirt & debris.
Other articles talk about shoe-related issues such as the ideal height of them and where to repair them
Now it’s time for you to find the shoes & heel protectors of your dreams! :)
Heel protectors
