Bumper plates

Why are bumper plates necessary? I did some power cleans today with 225lb normal plates and dropped it (onto rubber tiled floor). Aside from making a loud noise when dropping it, whats wrong with using normal gym equipment for olympic lifts? Can this actually crack the weights or damage the floor (beneath the rubber)?

It will likely warp the bar in the long run.

A well made bar will not bend if the weights hit the floor first. Cheap bars will bed with considerably less effort. Dropping a bar onto a bench or a narrow power rack is much more common a cause.

The loud noise you hear from droping your weight is annoying to most gym users and management in your typical commercial gym and will generally result in you being told to stop doing what you’re doing. Yes, it can damage the floor, too. I could care less about the noise, myself, but I’ve learned to unrack weight without it hitting the floor.

No David. Dropping weights is good for the floor. I suggest you do it more often, especially in your own house.

Use the right equipment for the training you do. It’s pretty much common sense that dropping 225 lbs of iron onto a floor will cause some damage. Also, unless you’re doing real, competition olympic lifting then you have no place lifting a weight you can’t control on the way down. Common sense, man, common sense.

As a gym owner I would look upon it as you were being lazy,and showing disrespect to the Club.
I know that from time to time it happens,usually on the deadlift,but that is when guys are trying to pull over 500 and fail half way.
For 225 on a Power Clean I would expect you to be able to remain in control at all times.

You can snap the plates, and as most gyms have cheap bars, they will bend.

Dropping a 225lb clean will do a lot more damage to the floor than a 500lb dead.