Stylish GREEN Flooring Options

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One of the reasons people decide to go GREEN is to make their home a healthier one. If you’re working to make your home an allergy-friendly home then you may want to consider changing out your carpets with a hypoallergenic floor. Here are a few examples of ‘healthy floors’.

Bamboo

The green alternative to hardwood, bamboo is growing in popularity and dropping in price. Bamboo, only takes three years to mature – most hardwood takes between 50 and 100 years – and it flourishes with few pesticides!

Be careful when choosing your bamboo since some brands are made using formaldehyde, and other brands may emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Check with your installer if using an adhesive to make sure there is no off-gassing. Be sure to ask a supplier for an emission-free bamboo: it is available and beautiful!

Cork

This is another great and green alternative! Bark from the cork oak tree is harvested carefully (Portugal is a major exporter) and there isn’t much damage to the trees themselves. Some of the trees are hundreds of years old! The bark is then fashioned into tiles that are moisture resistant, making it a good choice, even in the kitchen.

Cork comes in a variety of colours and patterns, and it feels soft underfoot and is very attractive!

Natural Linoleum

Natural linoleum doesn’t refer to the vinyl flooring popular in 1950s kitchens. Today, the word has been reclaimed and is used to describe floors created from organic materials that are stylish and allergy-friendly.

Natural linoleum, also known by the brand name Marmoleum, is made from wood flour and bound together with flax and linseed oils to produce an anti-microbial barrier. Marmoleum comes in a variety of patterns and colours. It is durable, lasting about 30 years.

Tiles

There are lots of varieties of tiles including: ceramic, porcelain, slate, glass, even recycled rubber.

Tiles are easily mopped or wiped clean and are very durable. Once consideration is, when installing tiles, it’s important to use a VOC-free silicone sealer on the grout to ensure that it won’t absorb mildew, mould or dirt.