Household Flooring

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Bamboo Flooring
Hardwood Flooring
Laminate Flooring
Cork Flooring

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Bamboo flooring is made from quick growing bamboo stalks, found throughout most of southeast Asia. Bamboo grows to a height of 60 feet within the first several months of growth!!! The bamboo stalks, which are really a species of grass, are harvested every 5-6 years. It is cut into strips, and then laminated into flooring planks. Bamboo floors offer tremendous interior design flexibility. Bamboo is unique and beautiful, and a great alternative to other hardwoods.

Bamboo flooring is becoming increasingly popular for many reasons. Bamboo provides a unique grain and distinctive coloring, at less than the cost of a traditional hardwood floor. Bamboo floors install just like traditional hardwood but are more stable and harder than most hardwood species. This beautiful product work well in any decor or room setting. Bamboo now comes in over 30 colors, complimenting any interior design

During the manufacturing process, bamboo is treated to prevent insect and mildew damage and to conform to both residential and commercial fire prevention standards. Most manufacturers produce this product prefinished, ready for installation whether nail down or glued directly to a concrete surface, as it is a laminated (engineered) product. Maintenance for this product is the same as most prefinished flooring products, light damp mop on occasion, with frequent sweeping and/or vacuuming.

Hardwood floors are considered by most to be the most beautiful flooring material a home can have. As a matter of fact, a national survey of real estate agents said that homes with wood floors sold quicker, and for higher prices than ones without!

Finished or Unfinished hardwood flooring?

Hardwood floors come in two basic formats - pre-finished, and unfinished. Each have their own advantages. Pre-finished hardwood flooring has been sanded and finished at the mill. The coatings are applied in very controlled, dust free environments. Today, many of the leading pre-finished mills are using very high-tech processes and coatings to ensure beautiful durable finishes. Unfinished wood flooring gives the homeowner complete control over the end result. Typically, most people prefer the first option for the ease of installation.

Why choose pre-finished hardwood flooring? The whole installation process, start to finish, is much faster with a lot less dust and smell. Pre-finished hardwood still has all the benefits of a solid wood floor that can be refinished, offering lifetimes of solid beautiful quality. For this reason pre-finished wood floors are a rapidly growing part of the market.

Laminate flooring is a tongue and groove interlocking flooring system that rests on top of the existing substrate. It attaches directly to plywood, concrete, sheet vinyl flooring, hardwood flooring, or virtually any other flat hard surface, aside from carpeting This versatility makes installation of laminate flooring very DIY friendly. Visually, the most common designs for laminate flooring are wood-grained, marble, or stone. The flooring sections typically come in planks of length, but less often can be found in square tiles.

Laminate floors come in two brands - glued and glueless. Glueless floor planks interlock with a simple joint lock, usually made of aluminum or fiberboard. With the newest "preglued" products, the tongue is wiped with water and the planks click together. The water activates the glue, which acts as the joint lock.

Glued laminates are joined with a special, water-resistant glue placed between the tongue and groove. Most manufacturer's carry their own preferred glue product. The amount of glue used varies also. In some instances, a small dab in a specific location is all that is needed. In others, the entire groove is filled an the excess glue that oozes out is wiped away.

Cork flooring is made from the bark of an oak tree, known botanically as QUERCUS SUBER. 75% of all cork is grown in Portugal and Spain. With increased concern for the environment, cork remains the only tree which can regenerate itself after each harvest. A thin layer of protective inner bark gives the cork oak its unique ability to survive and regenerate itself after the debarking process.

The Benefits of Cork Flooring

Due to cork's unique cellular makeup, it contains millions of tiny, air-filled cells per cubic inch giving its such characteristics as:

• comfort under foot due to it's compression and recovery
• thermal insulation acoustics
• noise and vibration reduction
• resistance to mold, mildew, rot, and insects fire retardance.

Cork flooring also has anti-microbial properties, making it an ideal choice for infants' and toddlers' play areas and kitchens. Renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright - known for his preference of natural materials - used cork flooring for some areas in the famed Falling Water home.

Additionally, maintenance on cork floors is very minimal. Simply sweep and mop regularly, lightly sand every few years and re-coat with urethane (which makes cork a bathroom friendly flooring also). Read more by visiting our sponsers cork floor maintenance page.

- More Cork Floor benefits
- Cork Flooring Maintenance
- The Harvesting Process of Cork