Cork Flooring – Nature’s Awesome Floor Choice!

Chris Moline, LEED AP, the green building guy here. And, in case you heard that I’d eaten a small piece of Marmoleum, it’s true. “What’s true?” you say. Well, organic pigments, ground cork, wood flour, pine rosin, limestone and jute make Marmoleum Click so natural you can eat it. And, even though we have no double-blind studies to back it up, it had no adverse effect… on me. And I did it to illustrate a point – there are some great natural flooring products out there!
That’s what leads us to this post about another natural floor – cork.
I’ve had cork flooring in my sunroom and kitchen for almost two years now. What’s the verdict? Well, my wife and I, along with our children ages 7, 8 and 11… and our 75-lb German shepherd… absolutely love it.
Here is what it looks like:

We’re active (to say the least) and there is so much about this type of flooring that goes with our lifestyle. Part of what I do every day is help people find a green floor that can take what their lifestyle throws at it.
Some new introductions to flooring take awhile to catch on. Though cork is not new, its re-introduction has caught on quite rapidly. In fact, cork has been used for flooring since the mid-1800’s. Stop by some of Frank Lloyd Wright’s homes and you’ll see cork everywhere from the kitchen to the bathrooms.
Cork is well-suited to commercial applications, too. Chicago’s First Congregational Church, the Library of Congress in Washington, DC, and Lafayette College in Easton, PA, are just a few of the places you’ll find it.
Here are some great reasons to look into cork for your flooring choice:
It’s warm
Our 300 s.f. sunroom is built over a crawl space. It’s also got a 12-foot cathedral ceiling and I didn’t want to run ductwork for heat so we could keep it aesthetically clean. So, I installed R-45 insulation, radiant subfloor heat, an extra layer of reflective foil under the insulation, and the floating cork floor on top. We do not have a problem staying warm, even though the three sides of the sunroom are all glass (triple-pane, Low-E).
It’s quiet
Cork is the most efficient insulating material. Humans have tried, and failed, to make something better. But cork’s bajillion-cell-per-cubic-inch structure (ok, so I’m not a numbers guy, but it’s a huge number) insulates wonderfully well against the sound of 3 kids and a dog when the adults are trying to relax.
It hides spots until we get around to cleaning!
Ever notice how hotels and restaurants always have patterned carpet and other types of flooring? It’s really quite simple to explain. Every floor will get dirty, but if you can’t see it, the time-lag to cleaning doesn’t bother you as much. Cork definitely offers that hands-down.
The natural appearance of cork is very, well, varied. Heaven forbid that I drop something small on the floor… it’ll be hard to find! And that, my friend, is just what I need given our hectic lifestyle.
But even though it’s great for hiding spills and other household ills, it also cleans up very easily. Personally, I use Windex for spot-cleaning, and Alba, our cleaning person, for weekly cleaning. Alba, however, uses Mr. Clean for hardwood floors. Cork, after all, is made from the bark of the Cork Oak tree.
It’s resilient
It bounces back under pressure. Plus, and don’t tell anyone I said this, I dropped a knife and it stuck straight up from the floor. I thought I was going to have to make a patch, but when I removed the knife, I couldn’t find the spot! That’s right, it closed up so tightly I couldn’t find it. I’ve got material to use for a patch, but after more than 12 months since that happened, and plenty of cleaning and damp mopping, nothing adverse has happened. That’s my kind of floor!
Cork is very green
Cork comes from the bark of the cork oak tree. It is a renewable and sustainable resource with a very small carbon footprint. In cork oak plantations the first cork bark is not harvested from a tree until it is 25-30 years old. The process of stripping off the bark in sections is traditionally done by hand, the way it’s been done for hundreds of years. The tree is not damaged and the bark regrows completely. The bark is harvested every nine years and a cork oak can live for 150-200 years, so it can be safely harvested up to 20 times during its life cycle.
According to Natural Cork, “Cork’s structure is very similar to that of a honeycomb: each square centimeter is composed of 40 million cells (a more accurate figure than a bajillion). These cells, as well as the spaces between them, are filled with a gaseous mixture similar to air. That is what makes cork so remarkable. The unique structure of cork creates the three most important characteristics in its application as flooring: Thermal Insulation, Sound Reduction and Elasticity.”
That’s why you can place a grand piano on your cork floor and it will bounce back when you move it. Also, if you do happen to gouge it, repairs are much easier to conceal since the finish is so varied in color and texture.
Go ahead, take your shoes off!
Chris

Chris Moline, LEED AP
USPA Member & Licensed Skydiver…
& Mid-Atlantic Territory Builder Manager
for Aker by Maax.
Email
Web – http://www.maax.com

301-404-5462