Green Building, Flooring

18 years ago

One of the fastest-growing trends in building green energy-efficient homes begins with the flooring used. The initial cost of using environmentally friendly materials translates into products that endure time and are easily maintained, all of which translates into cost savings over the years for the wise homebuilder. Some of the most popular green flooring, which means the products are made from natural or recycled products, includes carpet tiles, cork floors, bamboo floors, natural linoleum, and leather floor tiles.

Understanding the cost of materials, installation, and added value that green materials provide is one reason that customers trust J. E. Futch Custom Homes, Inc. to construct this important investment. Each green material must meet certain standards, such as those issued by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. This official agency spells out the life expectancy of materials used for residences. For instance: bamboo flooring can last 30-50 years, while natural linoleum should last at least 40.

Even carpet, which is only expected to last an average 10 years, can be green if composed of recycled nylon and backing, Carpets identified as having fewer volatile organic compounds (VOCs) by the carpet and rug industry, will actually improve indoor air quality.

Cork flooring is environmentally sustainable, thermally insulating, and non-toxic, as well as being available in a host of attractive colors. Harvested every nine years from the same tree, cork is a renewable source that is finding its way into the most luxurious homes.

Similarly, Bamboo, a member of the grass family, matures in three to five years, regenerates without need for replanting and requires minimal fertilization or pesticides. The careful custom builder can advise which bamboo flooring contains virtually no formaldehyde, a necessity when going green. Water resistant, anti-microbial, bamboo is actually a bit less expensive than hardwood floors, but has many more applications in the home, from cutting boards to counter-tops to wall coverings. Because of the durability of bamboo flooring, there is less replacement and therefore, less waste, both of which create overall savings to the homeowner and the environment.

Natural linoleum is composed of many natural materials, including linseed oil, tree rosin, wood flour, cork flour, limestone, and jute... none of which consumes much energy when extracted. Much less costly than hardwood flooring, linoleum is appropriate for many of the same applications as bamboo, such as counter-tops, wall, as well as flooring that resists dust, bacterial and household mites.

Recycled leather tile products provide the beauty of leather, without the high price tag. Made from 100 percent recycled leather, these tiles add elegance to a floor or can be employed as decorative devices on the walls.

http://www.jefutchcustomhomes.com

Featured Answer

Conanc

18 years ago

Thank you. We are still trying to decide between higher-end laminate vs. lower-end solid hardwood such as Bruce at Lowes or the Exdura sold at iFLOOR.

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Comments (13)

floorguy
18 years ago
By the time they pollute the air manufacturing it, and then the fuel it takes to get it here, your better off buying North American hardwood. Yes, it is a green product.
Conanc
18 years ago
Hi floorguy,
Any opinion or knowledge on Exdura solid hardwood sold at iFLOOR? Thanks.

Here is a link that might be useful: Exdura
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floorguy
18 years ago
I have never played with it
Conanc
18 years ago
Thanks.
We were looking at laminate and we saw the Exdura at iFLOOR. It looked nice and a good price but we are newbies so I thought I'd ask since there's not much out there about it.

jefutch -- Wasn't trying to hijack your thread. I found it interesting. Exdura Hardwood is considered "Appalachian sustainable hardwood".
al_horses
18 years ago
I THINK Exdura is a private label product for Ifloors. My searches keep wraping back around to ifloors. Could be manufactured by anyone.
Conanc
18 years ago
Thanks. I emailed our local ifLOOR store and it is a private label made for iFLOOR grown in the Appalachian Mountains and milled and finished in the United States. That's all the info they had (or will give). I guess they are keeping it a secret as to who manufactures it. :)

We saw it in the store and it looks nice but we are still learning. It all looks nice to us at this point. :) I was hoping somebody might have had some experience with it or installed it themselves.
mrehberg
18 years ago
That posting looks like an advertisement.

Anyways - just in case anyone stumbles in here looking for green flooring opinions.

Bamboo and cork? No way. Why would we burn the fuel shipping 4200 lbs of floors in from halfway around the planet when we could buy North American hardwood floors, manufactured here, and grown on a continent with a long history of scientific forest management? Further, we have a lot better idea that the manufacture met pollution standards by buying our flooring locally. Linoleum is a fun idea though.

Can't wait - all that fine engineered maple headed our way soon!
gigabit
18 years ago
The idea behind any merchant's private label products are to make it tough to shop and compare. This allows the merchant to make more profit on that item. It's not just in flooring but all industries.

By the way, because someone tells you it is grown in the Appalachian Mtns. doesn't mean it is. There are a lot of hardwoods coming from China these days and how do you prove it when they don't let you know more about the product. I would do more research and look around some more.
al_horses
18 years ago
Most large brand names sell products to distributors and will on occassion sell private label to large retailers. My gut tells me Exdura is manufactured by Appalachian who is owned by Anderson.
lvjenn
18 years ago
I've heard of cork, linoleum, and bamboo being great "green" flooring types...but have u guys heard of peach pit flooring??? I read this article: http://www.findanyfloor.com/article/APeachyKeenFlooringAlternative.xhtml and it looks pretty cool. You would think that it would hurt b/c peach pits have those sharp edges, but they say that those are smoothed out...and they look great too!
mrehberg
18 years ago
I'm holding out for watermelon seed flooring myself.
kendavis14
18 years ago
I saw that site on peach pit flooring and talked about it to some people i know in the flooring industry. They say it's similar to cork, so it may be a big hit here.