Cork Flooring

Cork is one of the neatest products to hit the flooring industry in decades.  It’s so relevant, in so many ways.

Do your kids have allergies?  Cork is hypo-allergenic.

Are you trying for a greener lifestyle?  Cork is natural, but no trees sacrifice their lives to make a cork floor.

Do you have a super-cool, James Bondesque office or media room?  Cork is anti-static.

Are you a foodie?  If you do a lot of cooking (i.e. standing in the kitchen), cork is soft and resilient; easier on the knees and legs.  Great news for all of you aspiring chefs out there.

Worried about wee beasties such as dust mites and mold?  Yeah, they hate cork.

But what about style?  It doesn’t matter because cork comes in so many different colors, textures and styles that it will be at home in any décor.

Oh, by the way, cork is also warm and insulating, which will help with that pesky heating bill, and cork absorbs sound.  Just imagine a quieter household.  **sigh**

OK, so what exactly is cork?  It’s tree bark!  The bark is peeled from the cork oak tree, ground and pressed and then fired into flooring.  Most cork oak trees are grown in Southern Europe, and it only takes nine years for the harvested bark to regrow.

Cork is available for both glue-down and floating installations.  For a glue-down installation, use the adhesive recommended by the manufacturer.  Proper subfloor preparation is vital; cork likes a clean, dry, even surface.

Floating installations are easier, especially for the do-it-yourselfer.  The subfloor needs to be structurally sound, smooth and level.

You can install a floating cork floor over just about any existing surface except for carpet.  If you’re putting cork on a cement slab or below grade, as in a basement, a moisture barrier is needed.

Most of today’s cork products come pre-finished, with a polyurethane wear layer, although unfinished cork is also available.

It’s easy to keep your cork floor looking great.  Just sweep regularly and damp mop with a mild detergent.  Wipe up accidental spills as soon as you can, as it is possible to stain the floor’s finish.

Cork is such a neat product, and let me tell you:  my next floor is going to be cork.