Majjie's Blog

Here's our second Guest Blog (I'll probably stop counting at some point). I've had lots of requests for guest blogs, since the first one was published last October ... but our standards here are high. We're not interested in pure advertising or link exchanges. We only want blogs that might be useful to kitchen buyers.

This one fits the bill. It's from Flooring Supplies who specialise in wooden flooring (but also supply laminates and vinyl). Like most big suppliers, only some of their products are eco-friendly but they're working to increase that - and if you want an eco-friendly wooden floor for your kitchen they're worth a look.

 How can you be sure your kitchen floor is truly eco?

When it comes to choosing a material for your new kitchen floor, more and more people are choosing an eco option to limit their impact on the environment. Eco flooring, or sustainable flooring as it also known, is flooring produced from sustainable materials. This includes certain types of wood, bamboo, cork and other materials such as linoleum and rubber.

If you’re thinking about kitting out your kitchen with a new floor you can reduce your impact on the environment by choosing an eco material. But how do you know you’re buying a truly eco product, what are the pros and cons of each and how can you maintain it in an eco-friendly way? With that in mind we’ll run you through what you need to think about.

Wood

As a material itself, wood is inherently green in comparison to non-renewables like steel and concrete. These materials require water and certainly damage the environment through carbon dioxide emissions. Unlike these manufactured materials, wooden flooring is non-toxic and energy-efficient to grow and manufacture – however it needs to be responsibly sourced and come from well-managed forests or plantations to be truly considered “eco”.

Truly eco wooden flooring is made from recycled wood and reclaimed and salvaged wood. For the ultimate peace of mind that you are buying truly eco flooring, the only way you can tell is if it comes with a stamp of approval from the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). This is the only forest certification system endorsed by the majority of environmental groups like Greenpeace.

Choose your timber floor carefully - this is a Kahrs engineered oak floor with FSC certification

Bamboo

Bamboo is an eco material because it’s grown from a renewable timber. Not only is it extremely durable, it makes for a great floor as it’s attractive and readily available in solid, woven and engineered versions. It’s easy to install too – but although it’s generally cheaper than hardwood flooring, it’s more expensive than laminate flooring. If you choose bamboo as your next flooring choice, the three most common bamboo flooring products on the market are solid, woven (strand) and engineered bamboo flooring.

Cork

Cork flooring is made by stripping the bark of the cork oak tree without harming the tree itself. It has excellent insulation properties, and this ensures minimal heat loss and a comfortable and warm walking surface. It’s an ideal flooring product for upstairs rooms because it muffles out the sound of people walking around – but you wouldn’t want a cork floor in your kitchen, simply because it absorbs moisture.

Linoleum

Linoleum is considered an eco material because it’s made from dried flax seeds and mixed with pine resins and ground cork – completely natural materials. It makes for a great floor for your kitchen because it’s anti static and repels dirt and dust and it very easy to clean with a mop and bucket – it’s a great floor if you’ve got allergies.

Rubber

Rubber flooring is eco because it’s made from a rubber tree, which is a completely renewable resource. Not only is it easy to install and maintain, like linoleum it’s anti- static and resistant to fading. For everyday kitchen spills this material is perfect. You can buy rubber flooring in a whole range of different styles and colours too, which is probably why it’s one of the most popular flooring options.

Installation and care…

Once you’ve chosen your flooring material and it’s arrived at your home, you then need to think about the installation method and how eco-friendly that is. Regardless of the flooring material you’ve chosen there’s likely to be underlays, glues and accessories used which may not be as eco-friendly as you imagine, so do be sure to ask.

And finally, when it comes to the cleaning and maintenance of your eco-floor, you may want to choose products which won’t harm the environment. Steer clear of corrosive or irritating substances and stick to natural-based cleaners. There are many products on the marketplace, so choose something which is naturally-derived and biodegradable.

Flooring Supplies is the UK’s largest online flooring company. We’ve been supplying flooring since 1935 and we pride ourselves on having a vast range of knowledge and experience. An accredited Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) member, we have been granted chain-of-custody certification by SGS, which provides certification & verification services to ensure that products, services & systems meet quality, safety & performance standards.