Now that you have decided to take the plunge and go for green flooring n your new home, you have various options to consider. You need to decide exactly which sort of green flooring is the right green flooring for you. There is after all, more than one kind!
Here is a brief list of some of the basic green flooring options available to you for the floor covering in you new green home:
- Cork
- Stone
- Hardwood
- Ceramic
- Linoleum
- Carpet
- Bamboo
Cork is a fabulous green flooring option. Cork is made from the bark of the cork oak tree which is a completely renewable material! Cork flooring is often made up of previously recycled cork and is of course completely recyclable itself!
Stone is a completely natural material. It is recyclable, renewable and has absolutely no end life, so lasts forever. It has also recently been proven, over a three year study, that stone quarrying and prepping in fact, and despite impressions to the contrary is low on water and energy consumption, and utilises almost no VOCs.
Hardwood is a natural, renewable and recyclable resource. But just because it is hardwood doesn’t make it automatically green! Whether the hardwood you choose is green will depend on what kind of wood it is and where it was taken from. With hardwood it is always best to look for local wood, or if you absolutely have your heart set on something from elsewhere, ensure through your supplier that the wood is certified and green before purchase.
Ceramic tile is made from mostly if not all natural materials. It is very durable and long lasting and super easy to clean. An added benefit is that nowadays many ceramic tiles are made using recycled materials such as glass.
Linoleum is a one hundred percent renewable, biodegradable and recyclable product. It is made up of entirely natural products which are very abundant. It is easy to install, utilises absiloutely no VOC’s and only needs occasional waxing.
Carpet – has not always been green, but nowadays much of the carpet we use is made up of previously recycled products like plastic bottles, or is recyclable itself. Naturally made carpets using wool or silk have a natural end life and are biodegradable or are heirlooms in which case you need to take care of them!
Bamboo is made from the most rapidly growing plant on earth which makes it very renewable. If nothing else this would make it green, but it is also farmed, produced and transported in very green ways making bamboo probably the best green flooring option available!
