Corkis most wide known as a mathematical product used to preserve the timber of wine in bottles . It can also be fashioned as a board to brand note or monitor in an post . Yet , one of cork ’s most unparalleled covering may leave you feeling like you are walking on airwave : bob flooring .
Cork floor is n’t a new conception . Cork floors have been used in the United States since around the turn of the twentieth hundred [ source : Tolli ] . " It gives you sound control because it absorbs foot falls and noise , " sound out Ann Wicander , Chief Executive of WE Cork . " Traditionally , it ’s been used in library and church , but now you see it everywhere . "
The entreaty of greenish or environmentally favorable product has prompted a renewed stake in bob flooring for the home plate . Many people choose sustainable flooring pick such as cork floors .
In this clause , we ’ll look at how bob flooring is created and instal along with its reward and drawbacks as a flooring option . We ’ll start out at the root with a discourse on how bob flooring is made .
How Is Cork Flooring Made?
The legal age ofcorkused for knock down , as well as wine - bottle corks , actually fall from the barque of the cork oak tree tree diagram orQuercus suber , native to the Mediterranean [ informant : World Wildlife Fund ] . The bark is mitt - harvested every nine year , leaving a protective inner layer of bark that allows the tree to continue to develop and reform new bark . In fact , a cork tree can live to be 250 class sometime [ sources : WE Cork ] .
After stripping the bark with a special hatchet and drying it in the forest for several months , the bark is transmit to a factory , where vino feeding bottle corks are plug out of the bark . The leftover material , or post - industrial waste , is boiled and ground up , then compressed using adhesive resins . This priming - up Cartesian product can be cut and used as a final flooring man or for some unique figure , such as pieces of shave bark used as a veneer with the soil - up fabric serving as the mount [ generator : Wicander ] . Some cork flooring plank admit a gamy - density fiberboard within them as well .
bob floor get in a across-the-board variety of styles offering a range of design possibilities . There are as many as 40 different colouring available and shapes ranging from squares and rectangles to hexagon [ seed : Biscoe ] .
The quality of cork and the elaborateness of the formula both work the price of bobber shock . Yet , the mean cost stove for cork ball over is about$5 to $ 12 per straightforward foot(0.09 square cadence ) , including piece and labor . But a lot of the cost of a cork storey depends on the quality and flair . equate to other floor , bottle cork flooring is cheaper than hardwood floor and about the same as bamboo [ sources : Smith , Floor Critics ] .
The type of flooring you pick out can act upon how it needs to be installed . get ’s look at the two major installation methods .
How Is Cork Flooring Installed?
There are two chief type of induction process for cork flooring . The more traditional induction method acting , unremarkably used for phellem floor in tile mannequin , is adhesive link . First , the flooring tiles need to be acclimated to the environs inside the installation room . Then , the subfloor , such as cement board or plyboard , must be prepped to insure that it ’s even , neat and free of moisture . " The adhesive lotion is either verbatim glue - down or contact method in orderliness to fully fasten the roofing tile as it has a disposition to curl at its edge if not properly bonded , " said Steven Tolli , possessor of S / L Certified Inspection Services and flooring manufacture veteran from New York .
The float floor installation process is preferred in residential configurations for its ease and versatility . This form of installation starts with bottle cork flooring that ’s specially created to provide a lingua - and - groove joining that snaps together . Unlike the exact spec needed for the subfloor in the adhesive method acting , drift floor instalment provide for the bottle cork floor to be establish on top of existing surfaces such as wood , ceramic tile or vinyl floor . It can also be easily get rid of and replaced as flair preference change .
It ’s important to notice that bob flooring will respond to humidness changes so you want to leave room for expansion when install . " It ’s a forest ware ; though it ’s a bouncy Ellen Price Wood ware , " said Wicander . " It will expand and abbreviate . "
Either way you select to put in a cork base , you could wait certain welfare from the product . We ’ll explore the advantage of a cork story next .
Why Choose Cork Flooring?
Cork floor has been heralded as a unripe flooring choice . " It ’s definitely more popular as people are looking for more environmentally well-disposed flooring , " say Jennifer Biscoe , now CEO at Globus Cork .
Its environmentally friendly nature pop out with the actual product and production process that are used to create a cork floor . As we said earlier , only the barque of the cork oak tree is harvested and the tree continues to flourish after the intersection is bump off , which cause phellem a renewable resource . Cork flooring can also be considered to be made from recycled depicted object . Instead of ending up in alandfill , the waste from the production of bottle cork is transform into cork flooring . Finally , many companies are utilizing adhesive that are categorized as no- or low - VOC ( volatile organic compound ) [ source : Biscoe ] . fickle constitutional compounds are gun that are pass off from sealed product which can adversely dissemble theair quality within a room[source : U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ] .
Along with eco - favorable benefits , a bobber floor has other qualities that might tempt homeowner . Several of the benefits stanch from the unique structure of the cork intersection . " Cork , by nature , has 200 million unsympathetic tune cells per three-dimensional column inch , " said Wicander . Envision a wine - bottle bobfloat . you may squeeze it , and it will condense under the pressure , but then it will bounce back to the original shape . This give the flooring a buffer essence under understructure . The air cadre within the cork also help to ensnare hotness acting like an dielectric for the floors . There is less heat loss than with hardwood floor or ceramic tiles . The air cells also make cork floors levelheaded - insubordinate , absorbing vibrations . Cork flooring also has a degree of flak resistivity . Due to a naturally occurring wax call Suberin within bobber , the product is insect - resistant and anti - allergen[source : Globus Cork ] .
Cork is a durable choice for flooring , but timbre and maintenance can affect its lifetime . " For the glue - down , the Classic Collection , we have had it out in the marketplace for over 100 year , " said Wicander . " We have jobs that are still in service where it ’s been in manipulation for over 100 years . "
Now , countenance ’s take a smell at the drawback to cork floors .
Cork Flooring Drawbacks
While bobber floor does have many benefits , it ’s always important to understand its restriction before making a decision for your home . First , cork floor is not durable . " Regardless of what you listen , it will rub and show indentations , specifically from high - heeled shoes , " say Tolli . For this reason , it ’s recommended to fit article of furniture feet with soft digs or coaster . Pet toenails can also be very shrill and damaging to cork floors ; be certain to keep toenails dress . Adding a coat of polyurethane and recoating every year will facilitate to protect the bobber flooring .
Another drawback to cork flooring is the potentiality for fading . " Unlike hardwood floors , cork have lighter with exposure to luminosity , " said Wicander . window with ultraviolet - protective finishing or window coverings can assist with the potential for fading .
As observe antecedently , bobber floor can be affected by humidity levels . This can get the mathematical product to swell or warp with changes in wet . It ’s recommend to keep the humidity levels between 30 and 60 percentage to keep a bottle cork floor looking its best [ source : The Flooring Store ] .
at long last , bobfloat floor does have a monetary value associated with it that might be a drawback for some homeowners . If cost is a major concern , on average , phellem would be more expensive than some varieties of carpeting and vinyl tiles that can be bought for$2 - 3a solid infantry .
While cork floor does have a few drawbacks , if you ’re looking for a character of green floor with a wide range of plan possibilities and unique benefit , a bob story is sure as shooting an option to consider .
