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Want to green your home from the ground up?

11.07.2006

Submitted by idealbite on Tue, 11/07/2006 - 6:00pm.
The Bite:
Then floor it with eco-options like recycled carpeting or bamboo: materials that are good looking and good for the earth. Add to that the fact that they are better for you, and the next time you drop your food, the "5 Second Rule" will be even more acceptable.
The Benefits: 
  • "Tread lightly" on materials like recycled modular carpeting, which helps avert some of the 1.8 million tons of rug and carpeting sent to landfills each year.
  • A healthier home-sweet-home. Fewer volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are emitted by solvent-free finishes and eco-approved flooring (see Wanna Try, below).
  • Call these companies up for samples - you gotta see 'em to believe how great they look. Who knew cork could be so stylish?
  • Bamboo and cork are comparably priced to hardwoods. (Recycled modular carpeting is about 3x as expensive as regular carpet, but the fact that you can keep it longer by just replacing sections makes it cost neutral.)
Personally Speaking: 
Jen's got Marmoleum in her bathrooms - the kind that looks like dark slate stone. It's got natural antibacterial properties thanks to the linseed oil it contains, which is a great justification when she doesn't feel like cleaning.
Wanna Try: 
  • Marmoleum - better-looking than the linoleums of old, it's made using linseed oil, tree rosin, lime and other natural materials ($5/sq ft).
  • Flor - spill all the red wine you want (only half-kidding) with recycled modular carpeting. The company will even take it back for recycling ($10/sq ft).
  • Teragren - beautiful, durable bamboo flooring ($6/sq ft).
  • Habitus - cork flooring made from wine stopper waste ($4/sq ft).
  • Tried and True Wood Finishes - Jen's sprucing up her hardwood floors using their linseed oil-based Original Wood Finish ($16/qt).
  • Ideal Bite's Recycled Tiles Tip - going for glass? Go with recycled.
  • Earth911 - check here to see if there are facilities that'll recycled linoleum and carpet in your area.
  • Can't give up your hardwood? Make sure the wood is Forest Stewardship Council-certified, which means it comes from a well-managed forest.
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Cocktail Fact

A pub in Dublin called Charlie P's is floored using gravestones. Owner Paddy Murtagh says, "It's in keeping with the building - it was a morgue."

Bang For The Bite

If 10,000 Biters choose an alternative, renewable material like bamboo instead of uncertified hardwood to floor our homes, we'll save about 120,000 trees.

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Jenny  on April 28, 2009 at 01:43 AM 1
I have a 'green' flooring (cork) and I am very happy with that. It is not only environmentally friendly but it is quite trendy I would say. It looks great! Maybe could have found a cheaper flooring, but it was also not the most expensive... anyway, if we do not invest a little bit in green options now, our children will pay much more... If you are looking for a store offering sustainable flooring, I can recommend a web page http://www.proservices.com/category/home-services-flooring/region/w-us/
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