While renovating or building a home, it is important to consider eco-friendly alternatives, not only in design but in décor. Thanks to the efforts of non-profit groups like: the Forest Stewardship Council, the U.S. Green Building Council, the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) and many forwarding thinking manufacturers there are now several flooring alternatives to choose from that are sustainably-harvested, recycled, non-toxic, and made from rapidly renewable materials or recycled materials as well as beautiful and healthy for your home and family.
Bamboo Flooring Choices
Bamboo is a woody grass that is quickly renewable. Bamboo grows back in approximately 5 years, as opposed to the 30-100 years that natural woods may require. It requires minimal fertilizers and pesticides. Bamboo flooring is durable, long lasting and attractive. It blends well with many different décor styles. It is available in natural or caramelized colors. This is created by heating the wood until the natural sugars in the wood caramelize and create beautiful one of a kind designs and shading. However, heated treated bamboo can be less durable, than natural.
Marmoleum Flooring Choices
A type of linoleum, made from wood flour (made from wood waste) linseed oil, jute, and pine rosin marmoleum is easy to produce and biodegrades easily. It is anti static and very clean, providing a healthier environment for those with allergies as there is no place for dust mites to hide. It is durable and comes in several different colors and designs. Installing this flooring with a low-VOC (volatile organic compound) adhesive makes it an even more environmentally sound choice.
Linoleum Flooring Choices
Linoleum is usually thought of as not environmentally friendly. However linoleum made from flax seed oil is very eco friendly, durable and good for those with allergies. It is perfect for use in bathrooms, halls, kitchens and entryways and has several different beautiful designs and colors to choose from to fit any room's décor. It is easy to clean, making your home more environmentally friendly also.
Carpet and Area Rugs Flooring Choices
Traditionally carpet and rugs are seen as very environmentally un-friendly. The majority of it is made with petroleum products and is not biodegradable. However, new innovations in carpet and rug manufacturing made carpets and rugs an environmentally friendly product choice. Carpet tiles for example, allow you to replace only the piece of carpet that needs replacing. Several manufacturers are trying to use more earth friendly products to create carpets and rugs such as those made with fibers like coconut, jute, sisal or even wool. They are easy to keep clean, durable, and environmentally sound carpet and rug flooring alternatives. Other carpet alternatives include the recycling of plastic bottles.
Cork Flooring Choices
Cork flooring acts as a natural thermal and acoustic insulator. It cannot be damaged by water; it is a natural insect repellent and antimicrobial agent. The harvesting of cork is actually an environmentally friendly process and necessary to the trees life cycle. "The bark has to be stripped about every eight years or the tree will die," said Lisa Maher, design and sales consultant with Carlson's Fine Rugs and Floorcoverings in Geneva, Ill. She said cork trees keep producing to age 200 or older.
Wood Flooring Choices
There are two types of environmentally friendly wood flooring options available. The first is hardwood and laminate flooring that are produced using environmentally friendly practices such as replanting, careful harvesting and that use earth friendly growing practices. When considering these types of woods look for those that use non-toxic finishes and adhesives.
Eco-friendly hardwoods and laminates don't have to cost more nor are we limited in our choices, you can choose from among some of the most popular décor choices of white and red oak, cherry, maple, red birch, hickory, even exotics like teak, rosewood, and kumara at a cost equal to what you would pay for non earth friendly flooring.
Another alternative is engineered wood, which is wood layers joined together with low-toxicity glue and topped with a hardwood veneer, making more use of the wood available and cutting down on harvesting.
Reclaimed Wood
Reclaimed wood comes from buildings and other areas that have been demolished and the materials are considered waste. In some instances reclaimed wood comes from the bottom of lakes. Another source of reclaimed wood comes from Asia and were harvested some time ago then cast aside, unused. Use of these woods can cut down on the amount of wood used from the earth's forest. No matter where this wood comes from, it often requires a great deal of processing in order to use it.
How can you know if your hardwood flooring is eco-friendly?
Take all the guess work out of knowing if your wood flooring manufacturer is environmentally friendly. There are organizations that certify environmentally friendly planting, harvesting, and manufacturing practices from harvest to store. Look for woods with the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) stamp of approval. This international non-profit organization promotes responsible forest management and in order for hardwoods to be certified they must meet 57 criteria. Once met, it will be marked as certified, allowing consumers to know which woods have been provided to them in an environmentally friendly manner. "Environmental concerns are starting to have a very real effect on the wood marketplace, and it's about time," says Dan Harrington, EcoTimber's director of architectural sales and marketing." Currently there are over 15 million acres of protected FSC woodlands and over 135 million acres internationally.
The certification process "allows the consumer to differentiate between good forestry practices and bad forestry practices in their purchase," said Karen Steer, a representative of FSC US in Minnesota. "When you select (an FSC-certified product), you are choosing forestry that promotes habitat protection, clean air and water, climate change mitigation and protection of local communities and indigenous rights."
Other flooring options include recycled rubber, leather tile, and plant fibers from Coconut, Agave Sisalana Plant, and tropical sea grasses. The benefits of recycled rubber include: low environmental impact, low costs, many colors to choose from, available in roll or tile, durable, accommodated temperature changed and good for both indoor and outdoor use. Leather tile benefits include a unique and exotic appearance, soft and quiet underfoot, long lasting, patina from use changes the appearance and it can be removed and reinstalled. Flooring made from plant fibers benefits are: a natural and neutral color pallet good for many different interior designs, woven construction for durability, stain resistant, non toxic, odor resistant and eliminated the growth of bacteria.
The benefits of renovating, decorating or building your new home or office using environmentally friendly flooring products are many. It is no more expensive in some cases than products produced through less than perfect environmental standards. It allows for conservation and responsible management of the earth's resources and in many cases created a healthier environment eliminating dust, mold, mildew and other allergy causing agents. These flooring choices are beautiful, varied and create a unique opportunity to decorate your home or office in "green."
