The flooring material you choose for your home will impact your family’s lifestyle for years. It needs to be comfortable, durable and easy to maintain. Why not select a green flooring material that fits your lifestyle and provides a safe, chemical-free environment for your family?
Why Choose A Green Flooring Material?
Since your flooring occupies more surface area that any other material in your home, it has a big impact on indoor air quality. Many types of flooring are made with raw materials, glues, adhesives and protective finishes that contain toxic chemicals. As the flooring wears down with everyday use, these toxic chemicals can be emitted into your home’s atmosphere for many years. By choosing a green, eco-friendly flooring material, you can keep your family healthy in a safe, chemical-free environment.
Green Flooring Materials
Carpet
Green carpets and area rugs are made from natural fibers like wool, cotton, silk and jute or recycled synthetic fibers. They are low-emitting products that don’t release toxic fumes into the air. Natural fibers create comfortable, durable, easy to clean carpets that can easily be recycled back into the environment or into other products when replaced. To maintain your eco-friendly carpets, choose a carpet cleaning company that offers biodegradable, non-toxic cleaning services.
Tip: Look for carpets and rugs with The Carpet and Rug Institute’s Green Label Plus certification.
Wood
Real wood flooring is a natural material that creates a warm, inviting interior for any home. It’s comfortable and resilient under your feet, easy to clean, and durable enough to last a lifetime with proper care and maintenance. To protect your green wood flooring, choose eco-friendly cleaners and sealers that don’t contain chemicals. Although engineered, laminate wood floors looks great, they often contain toxic chemicals like formaldehyde in the backing and sublayers.
Tip: Look for wood flooring made from reclaimed or salvaged wood or flooring that’s certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.
Stone
Natural stones like granite, marble, travertine, limestone and slate are great options for hard surface flooring. They are extremely durable and easy to clean and maintain. Since natural stones are mined from the earth, they produce beautiful color variations that can’t be duplicated by most man-made materials. Most stone flooring requires a sealer for protection, so choose a low-VOC product without harsh chemicals and toxic fumes.
Tip: Look for stones that are domestically mined and fabricated to reduce transporting energy costs.
Thank you for this information abut natural flooring . My younger son has been interested in redoing some of his flooring and I shall pass on this info. I personally love the look of stone.
I need new flooring in my living room and my kitchen. I will definitely look into green Flooring for the Kitchen. My living room has natural wood flooring under the Carpeting. I am considering refinishing the natural wood.. I have to see what kind of condition it is first before I make up my mind..The Carpet was already laid when we bought the home..Thankyou for posting the informative article. Happy New Year!!
I’ve seen some kitchen floors recently done in stone that remind me of old-time kitchen floors that I used to see in movies from the 40s or 50s. I love that look.