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Green Environmentally Friendly Choices For Kitchen Flooring |
Although there is some debate still on whether linoleum is really fully bio-degradable or not it probably still beats vinyl flooring when it comes to eco-friendliness. Linoleum does take less energy to manufacture than vinyl flooring and it is mostly made from less synthetic materials like wood, plant oil and resins from trees. That is not the only thing that makes it more natural though. It can also be glued down using adhesives that don’t contain any harsh solvents. Different manufactures make linoleum using different processes and different materials and hence one brand may be more green than another brand.
When lino is made using green materials and processes it also becomes more antiallergenic. This is big plus for those with chemical like sensitivities. Some linoleum is surfaced with an acrylic material that is basically a type of plastic made from petroleum products. This obviously does not qualify as a eco-friendly material. If you are truly looking for a green linoleum floor check out www.greenfloors.com where they make big efforts to take the green thing as far as possible with flooring.
Bamboo flooring has been growing in popularity for a green choice for flooring in the past few years. One of the main reasons is because bamboo’s growth rate or renewal rate is very high. The stuff grows like a weed! It also has a new sleek but natural appearance of wood. One thing to watch for though is the use of formaldehyde in the adhesives when it is manufactured. Some of the less expensive stuff uses formaldehyde in the manufacturing process and so the flooring will emit this toxic substance in your home!
Engineered wood floors can also be made from forest products which come from ‘well managed forests’. No clear cutting or things like that… Only some of the engineered wood floors are made this way so you will have to check to see if your retailer or supplier carries such brands.
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