Sustainable Flooring Materials
 Quick Links In no other part of the home renovation industry has the materials gone through such a transformation as flooring, and especially in sustainable flooring. This means that the floor materials are being manufactured with products that are constantly being replenished or do not come from endangered trees. Sustainable floors can also be thought of as those manufactured on the continent, or even locally, so that fossil fuels are not being expended to ship them half-way across the world.
VOC's: (Volatile Organic Compounds)
One of the biggest innovations in flooring was in the late 1800's with the invention of linoleum. This gave homeowners that chance to add sparkle to their old wood floors without having to expend a lot of money for a carpet. Linoleum was surpassed by vinyl. This made floors that were even cheaper but could be made in thousands of designs and colours. In addition, wall-to-wall carpet provided a beautiful covering for the floor that was very warm during the cold Canadian winter.
However, the vinyl and carpet are made with plastics in processes that emit toxic gases called volatile organic compounds, or VOC's. These gases are not only harmful to environment they stay with the vinyl floors and carpeting for many months after the flooring has been installed in the home. VOC's can affect people with allergies or who suffer from environmental diseases. Not only that, every year across the country hundreds of thousands of tons of old carpet and vinyl products are dumped in landfills. This shortens the lifespans of these landfills by causing them to fill up years ahead of time.
Sustainable Flooring Materials
Many Canadian flooring manufacturers, as well as flooring installers, have responded to the concerns for sustainable flooring by opting for new materials, ones that do not encourage the clear-cutting of the world's forests. In addition, to be classed as sustainable these products should be able to reach the market without the excess burning of fossil fuels in ocean-going freight ships.
1. Canadian and American Hardwood
In Canada and the U.S. maple, oak and birch are very popular wood species for making flooring but for many years forests suffered the wholesale cutting of trees to reach the choice parts. However, during the past twenty years sensible harvesting practices and replanting programs have produced a sustainable hardwood industry. However, oak and maple can be grown overseas so it is best to check the labels to get wood grown in sustainable methods.
2. Cork
One of the more popular choices for sustainable flooring is a natural material found more commonly in a wine bottle. Cork is the bark of trees and is harvested in hundreds of colors and textures that, when processed, produces a beautiful and durable floor. The cork tree is never harmed when the bark is stripped away as it is dead wood and the new bark will grow to maturity in ten to twelve years. Then it can be harvested again. Cork is made into engineered flooring planks that are either glued or can be snapped together. Although it comes from overseas it is very lightweight so leaves a small carbon footprint.
3. Bamboo Flooring
A product that is grown in the southern U.S. has been making inroads in sustainable flooring. Bamboo is not a wood but a grass, one that matures for harvesting in two years. Bamboo is sliced and glued to form planks that can be installed just like hardwood flooring. It as hard as many oak products contains a natural anti-bacterial agent that resists mould. Bamboo can also be fused to form engineered flooring that can be snapped together or glued. Bamboo thrives all over the world in warm places but not all of it is grown in sustainable forests and the manufacturing may contain formaldehyde compounds so it is wise to check the labels.
4. Durable Wool Carpet
Wool has been used as a flooring covering since the dawn of man in places like Arabian tents and Scottish castles. It is more expensive than most flooring coverings but it has many better qualities than the best man-made products. Because fo its natural oils wool is stain resistant and has water repelling agents. Most wool carpet companies use only natural dyes and natural backings like jute.
5. Natural Linoleum
Linoleum was discovered when a skim of rubbery substance was found on the surface of a bucket of linseed oil. Very durable linoleum still reigns supreme in places where the threat of VOC's cannot be tolerated: old-age homes, hospitals, day care centres.
6. Recycled Leather Tiles
Old leather seats from cars, sofas and jackets has found a home as a recycled product for flooring. The old leather is ground up, dyed with natural pigments, rolled with a natural adhesive and cut into flooring tiles. This beautiful floor can be glued down with natural glues.
7. Grass Fibers
Jute, hemp, cotton, jute, or sisal and other fibers have been covering floors for thousands of years. These carpets are durable ad come in many natural colours so they require no dyes. Like bamboo, these products are grass and so are very sustainable.
6. Ceramic Tile and Natural Rock Flooring
Clay-based tiles and natural rock as a flooring product have been around for as long as wool and natural grasses. Because the supplies of clay, granite and marble are endless the only drawback for them in order to be sustainable is their weight and the cost of transportation. However, there are many rock and tile manufacturers on the continent.
For more information on sustainable flooring products consult our Contractor Directory or simply post your project online.
Choosing the Right Hardwood Flooring for your Home
Wood floors not only look great, but they add value to your home if you decide to sell in the future. There are three major installation processes for hardwood flooring. If you want an expensive, stylish look, parquet flooring creates a geometrical design with the grain of the wood. You can also choose strip wood flooring, which has long, thin strips usually less than four inches wide. The third choice is plank flooring, which is linear, but uses pieces of woods that are much wider than strip wood floors. No matter which process you use to install the floor, there are many wood choices, as well as multiple finished you could use to make the floor look beautiful.
Which style is right for you? Explore all of your options before you make a choice.
Oak: Oak is one of the most common woods used for flooring. There are two types – red and white. Red oak has a slightly more pronounced grain, but both are fairly warm, easy-to-use flooring choices. With red oak, you’ll get a strong grain pattern if you use a colored stain, because of it’s porous characteristic. This species of wood is great for areas of the home that get high volumes of traffic, since the surface is fairly durable.
Maple: Maple floors are extremely durable – this is the type of wood most commonly used for bowling alleys. It has a very subtle grain pattern, but doesn’t stain uniformly easily. It is also cat to cut, since it is so dense and durable. Maple floors are best left to professionals for installation and refinishing.
White Ash: Ash is fairly average when it comes to durability, but this type of wood is very easy to staining and board as easy to install, making it a great product for homeowners interested in DIY flooring project. Ash is sometimes harder to find that other wood products, so you might have to dig deeper into your wallet to install this type of floor in your home.
Mesquite: If you want a darker wood floor, mesquite is a good option to consider. This floor is strong, but can split easily during the nailing process if you aren’t careful. Mesquite has a lot of character and ages well with little maintenance.
Birch: Birch ranges in color from pale white to dark reddish-brown. It’s fairly easy to install, and holds up well in areas with heavy traffic. Most people choose birch because of the unique grain patterns, which can be wavy and curly in some boards, looking almost textured.
Bamboo: Interested in a sustainable option? Bamboo is a good choice because this plant grows very quickly, so harvesting the wood isn’t hard on the ecosystem. Bamboo is light, but takes stain well, and some companies even sell colored bamboo plants for flooring.
Cork: Like bamboo, cork is a great option if you want sustainable flooring. Cork is actually a type of bark, so it isn’t a traditional “hard” wood, but it doesn’t kill the tree when it is harvested, so it’s a great renewable resource.
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