At first glance, cork seems to be an inappropriate flooring material. Not many years ago, many homeowners preferred a traditional flooring option than an “exotic” one.
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Today, cork flooring has an increasingly demand in U.S.A. and Canada. Cork flooring has many benefits and is a “Green” flooring choice.
Among the many advantages of cork flooring, we can include the following:
– Cork flooring is warm and soft
– Provide an underfoot comfort – that means fatigue free and less pain in knees, hips, feet and spine
– Cork flooring is an excellent insulator, hygienic, anti-static, and anti-allergenic
– Cork flooring is coming in a wide range of patterns, colors, and designs, which means it has a great aesthetic look
– Cork flooring match very well with any style and décor and will increase the look of the room- it gives a warm and comfortable feeling
– Cork flooring is also moisture resistant and very easy to maintain
– Very good sound insulator and fire retardant
– Cork flooring has a non-slip surface , which makes it a safe flooring
– It can be easily installed
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However, one of the biggest benefits of using this kind of flooring is that cork flooring is environmentally friendly natural flooring made of renewable resource.
In fact, cork is the outer bark of the cork oak tree. The cork bark is harvested without any danger for the tree, allowing the new bark to grow. This makes the tree a permanently source of raw material for flooring.
Cork trees grow in abundance in South Europe and North Africa, more specific in Portugal, Spain, Italy, France, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. However, the biggest producer of cork is Portugal. Almost, one-half of cork production comes from Portugal.
Today, cork flooring is more and more appreciated for its qualities, which make it one of the most desired flooring options.