When reviewing a flooring material you’ll want to learn more about the material itself and its benefits. This article is designed for homeowners that want an educational and informational review of cork flooring. After reading our article we are confident you’ll have the proper knowledge to make the right choice on it being right for your household.
Cork floors are made out of cork material cork. Interestingly, it is the bark of the cork oak tree. A thin layer of bark is removed from the tree. This thin layer is then used to make bottle stoppers and the left over bark is ground up, compressed into a 4″ mold and baked. This baked mold is then used for flooring. One of the major benefits of cork is the fact that it’s a sustainable, natural, renewable resource. The process of harvesting bark from the cork oak tree doesn’t harm the tree. This means the same cork oak tree can be harvested over and over again without it being cut down. Generally its life span is about 200 years, which maturity in the first 10-15 and harvest rates about every 9 years after maturity. So, with this flooring solution you know you’re getting a green product.
As we mentioned above not only do you want to learn about the flooring products material, but also it’s benefits. Cork flooring has many benefits that will make the homeowners investment well worth it. First and foremost cork is a very durable material. It can survive heavy impacts and absorb shock. Properly cared for floors can literally last a life time. Along with corks durability it’s also very comfortable, providing cushiony support to joints and feet. Both the durability and comfort are due to corks cellular structure which is made up of millions up millions of tiny gas filled honeycomb cells.
Cork flooring is also resistant to quite a few things including moisture, mold, mildew, bacteria and allergens. These resistant properties make cork utilizable in nearly every room of your household. You can even use cork in the bathroom, kitchen and basement. However, it’s recommended that you use cork tiles and not laminate cork in those three rooms. Since cork is hypoallergenic anyone in your household will benefit from cork during allergy season. This flooring solution is also very easy to clean and maintain. So, if you’re the one in the household cleaning up all the time you won’t have to worry about extra work with this floor.
If you think cork flooring might be right from you than you should do more research into this flooring solution. Below is an excellent resource to further your knowledge on cork as a flooring product. We hope this article was useful and recommend you also view some of our other articles on cork used as a flooring product.
