We have learned so much about our environment over the past twenty years that we now know we have to be careful about how we use our planet’s resources. Green solutions have been invented for many aspects of our daily lives in order to reduce our carbon footprint and keep our planet clean for generations to come. The options for green flooring have really multiplied in the past few years. The home construction industry in general has been reducing its waste and using less harmful materials and now that ability comes to each and every homeowner. Today’s latest green flooring options now include cork, bamboo, and reclaimed hardwoods.

Cork Flooring

The use of cork flooring has exploded recently, with it being installed in colleges, churches, mansions and even the Library of Congress. Cork is a natural renewable resource; cork flooring is made from the bark of a cork tree, but that bark can be removed without harming the tree. Each tree lives up to 150 years and its bark can be removed safely every 9 years. As an additional environmental benefit, fertilizers and pesticides are generally not used on cork.

Cork flooring will also improve your health as it is hypoallergenic and will not absorb dust, as well as being naturally water resistant and an anti-microbial. It also provides a barrier against pests, especially termites. Cork flooring is resilient and an excellent insulator against temperature and noise, making it ideal for a condo. Overall, cork flooring is an excellent choice for the green homeowner in either a new construction or a home remodeling project.

Bamboo Flooring

Bamboo flooring is the newest trend to hit home decorating. Bamboo flooring is actually made from the grass of a bamboo plant, but it is still stronger than some hardwoods. Since it is harvested form bamboo’s grass, this type of flooring is a renewable resource; the bamboo plant does not have to be cut down for it to be harvested. Bamboo plants reach maturity in five years, so the plants will produce bamboo flooring materials quickly and over their entire life spans.

Bamboo flooring is extremely flexible and still highly durable. It is naturally resistant to water being a jungle plant and works great in wet areas of the house such as kitchens and bathrooms. Bamboo is cut into planks just like hardwoods and even has its own unique “grain” style. Decorating with bamboo flooring works just as easily as hardwood flooring.

Reclaimed Hardwood Flooring

Hardwood flooring is one of the most elegant and classic looks for home decorating and it really makes a bold statement. Unfortunately, hardwood flooring requires a tree to be cut down in order to make the floor planks. The trees can be re-grown, but the mighty hardwood trees take a very long time to reach maturity. A green option is to use reclaimed hardwood flooring. Reclaimed hardwoods are the same woods that are used in flooring now, only they have been recycled and re-milled instead of being thrown away. This option gives you the best of both worlds, you get hardwood flooring and its amazing beauty while helping to recycle and protect the environment.

Green flooring options have really come a long way. They are widely available and at a great price too. Keep these amazing options in mind the next time you are starting a home improvement project or having a new home built.

While it is not necessarily the most inexpensive of the flooring options available on the market today, hardwood floors are certainly one of the simplest and most lovely options available. Wood matches just about everything, and you don’ have to worry about vacuuming or those nasty smells that just won’t seem to leave carpet. It is an effective option for floor covering and if you take care of your hardwood floors, they will last you a very long time.

However, having hardwood flooring in your home is about more than wishing it was there and deciding to have it. Here are the three things that you should know about installing hardwood flooring in your home.

DIY Is Not Always Cheaper

Hardwood floors are certainly something that those handy people out there in the world are able to take care of. Buying wood and laying it down as flooring in your home sounds a great deal easier than it is. There are many different kinds of wood that can be used for flooring in your home and depending on your needs; there are great deals of different styles to choose from. You want your flooring to resist nicks and scrapes, but you want it to be able to get some character as well.

There are all of these things and more to think about, and if you install your wood flooring all on your own, chances are that you will not be able to get the solid advice that you might wish you had later. You want your floor to last as long as possible and although you might be very willing and able to put in your new hardwood floor all by yourself, the costs down the line might make this not-so worth it. Do you want to end up having to have your floors redone because of an error on your, the amateur’s, part?

Not All Wood is the Same

The more money that you spend the better quality of wood flooring you will be able to get as far as outward appearance goes; although a floor may not look as uniform and sleek as another type of wood floor it will probably last just as long. The quality and type of wood that you select for your floor has a lot to do with how you want your flooring to look when it’s down. Do you want a smooth look or do you like the way that natural knotholes look in the wood? Do you prefer the way that wide planks look on the floor or do you prefer the look of thinner, smaller pieces of wood for your flooring?

Depending on what you are willing to spend, there are a great deal of different ways that you can go with the wood for your flooring. You can buy First, Second, or Third wood, which is a description of the type or quality of wood on the market ranked in order of quality. Clear is the finest wood that you will be able to get a hold of. It has little to no grain marks or knot holes in it, so if you want the best quality that is the way to go.

You Are In It for the Long Haul

While hardwood floors are a great option for the floor covering in your home, be sure that that is what you want to do, and that it is an acceptable long term solution for you and your home. While the hardwood floor will not have to be vacuumed, it has to be specially cleaned and probably swept constantly (unless you are a fan of dirty feet). Also, keep in mind that depending on the quality of wood that you purchase you may have to deal with some small repairs due to warping or splitting, or simply due to damage that is unsightly for your home. Either way, hardwood floors are much easier to maintain than they are to replace and although you will probably be thrilled to keep your floors for years to come, it will be rather difficult to do otherwise.

This article is sponsored by My Dream Home Registry, the gift registry for everything home. Visit them on the web at www.mydreamhomeregistry.com

While most people are used to traditional hardwood flooring, laminate flooring is quickly emerging as an alternative that makes home remodeling projects easier and more affordable. Both hardwood and laminate floors are beautifying to homes, but laminate flooring wins out due to its various advantages.

Thanks to contemporary developments, you can now have the hardwood look without the wood through laminate flooring. This emerging alternative to traditional flooring techniques is gaining popularity due to its various advantages. Old houses brag about the classy look, but home remodeling projects these days are more inclined to have laminate flooring because it makes the workload easier for people. You have more options in design, and at the same time, you can change floorings as often as you want without feeling remorseful with the expenditure.

The most obvious and greatest advantage of laminate flooring is affordability. You can buy twice as much laminate flooring material with what you would spend on hardwood flooring. They look the same outwardly, and the less meticulous owners will hardly know the difference.

But how does laminate flooring lessen the workload in home remodeling projects?

Hardwood flooring requires a lot of expertise and is not advisable for DIY (do-it-yourself) projects. Laminate flooring, also commonly called Pergo Flooring, on the other hand is tailored for easier installation. In remodeling your home, you will have to worry about other things aside from flooring. Saving time with your laminate flooring installation will also render you more valuable hours for other areas that you need to work on. Remodeling a house usually requires less time so that you will have more opportunity to use it as soon as possible.

Laminate flooring is also much safer than hardwood since it won’t involve hammering down nails to keep it in place. Laminate planks simply click together, often not even requiring glue. If it is required, a small amount of an ultra-strong adhesive such as hard construction glue usually does the trick. Hammering nails also requires more energy on the part of the person behind the home remodeling process, and it will definitely cause more delays and fatigue to those involved in the remodeling project.

Over time, laminate flooring is more long lasting, with superb resistance to scratching and fading. For people who like to remodel their homes less frequently, this is definitely the best choice to have. Furthermore, with all the time saved, there will be more time for double-checks and touch ups which you could not have time for if hardwood flooring has taken up a huge chunk of the working time.

These days the flooring options available are so abundant that it can turn out to be a very complex scenario in deciding the best flooring options. The wide variety of options which are present with their pros and cons are the rugged painted concrete, the smooth ceramic tiles, to the majestic carpets and the list goes on. However to decide on the selection of your flooring options you need to think on your budget, of course your choice of preference and  the durability of the flooring.

In the process of selecting the flooring choice in your home remodeling process you will have to look upon the present condition of your flooring. You have to check if there are any cracks, the moisture problems or any issues that pose problems, so it is important that you resolve these problems before moving ahead. Incase you want to check whether there are going to be any moisture content problems then you can take a 3’x 3’ waterproof material and then place it flat on the floor , seal it on all four sides and ensure that no air passes in. You can try this in a couple of areas like the corners of the room and then in the center. Leave it for 24 hours and if you find it to be wet than there are some problems which you need to resolve before you move ahead with your flooring remodeling.  

Engineered flooring is one option which you can go for. Engineered flooring is made up of three to four layers of different hardwood materials or high density fibre core. The different layered construction provides greater resiliency in humidity and the basement looks good in spite of the greater humidity changes. Engineered floorings have real hard wood flooring in the bottom and these floorings are than the other flooring options.

Another good option which you can consider is the tiles where you can have a wide variety of options to select from. They can be constructed directly on a cement base or a good sub floor for tile. While you select the tiles check that there are no cracks in the tiles which you purchase as well as the in the cement base for the tile. Incase there are any cracks in the cement base then this will spoilt the look of the tile flooring too.

The easiest and the most traditional option available is that you can paint the cement sub floor. You have variety for the color selection. However problems beneath the floor will be visible on the flooring but this is the cheapest method.

No matter what flooring option you select for home remodeling but make sure that the condition of your sub floor is absolutely stable.