Absorbent floor mat

A limited life, low cost protective mat consisting essentially of,

• (a) a microfiber inner layer having a basis weight in the range of from about 150 to 250 grams per square meter and comprising an admixture with 0 to 80% of other fibers selected from the group consisting of wood pulp fibers and staple fibers and mixtures containing wood pulp and staple fibers, said mat component having an absorbency capacity in the range of from about 300 to 500 g/sq. ft. and absorbency rate in the range of up to about 0.5 sec.,
• (b) on one side of said inner layer a wear surface comprising a nonwoven of chemically bonded continuous nylon filaments having a basis weight in the range of from about 1.5 to 2.0 oz/yds.sup.2, abrasion resistance of at least about 5 hours, and porosity in the range of from about 140 to 500 cubic feet per minute, and
• (c) on the side of said inner layer opposite said wear surface an impervious surface comprising a synthetic polymer film having a thickness of about 0.75 to 1.5 mils,
• said inner layer, wear surface, and film being combined by a pattern of bond areas occupying up to about 10% of the surface area and the combination further including means selected from the group consisting of holders and pressure sensitive adhesives for maintaining the mat in position and having a wicking rate in the range of at least about 100 quarter-inch squares.