Carpet Network Blog – “What’s Under Foot”

Archive for category Green Solutions

Allergy Friendly – Carpet

May 5

Posted by Christine Rankin in Carpet, Green Solutions

Studies have shown that carpet is better at trapping allergens than hard surface, such as tile or hardwood, because carpet fibers catch particles and allergens that fall to the floor. When allergens are trapped in the carpet, they cannot circulate in the air to breathe. Proper cleaning is performed with a vacuum that effectively sucks up dirt and dust from the carpet, locks it in the machine and keeps it out of the air.Sometimes, new carpet may also have a “new carpet smell.”  Scientific studies show that new carpet is one of the lowest emitters of VOCs into the indoor environment. In fact, carpet emits less VOCs than other products such as paint. Further, these emissions clear very quickly. The low-level VOC emissions and the harmless odor from new carpet dissipate within the first 48 to 72 hours after installation – even sooner with the ventilation of fans, open windows or doors.

The Carpet and Rug Institute offers Green Label and Green Label Plus testing and certification to indicate carpet, carpet backings, cushions and adhesives that emit low VOCs. In fact, the Green Label carpet program has such a positive impact on the indoor environment that the American Lung Association approves its use in its Healthy Homes programs. Additionally, the Green Label Plus program’s tough standards exceed the green building requirements dictated by California schools.

So if you are concerned about asthma, allergies or VOCs, be sure to ask about Green Label and Green Label Plus carpet, cushion and adhesive options.

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Factors to consider for eco consciousness

Apr 22

Posted by Christine Rankin in Green Solutions

These factors should be part of your decision making process when considering which floor coverings that best fit with your eco consciousness.

Transportation

  • Be cautious of products that have to be transported long distances.  Energy used in the transportation of the product may cancel out any perceived benefits.
  • Choose products made or grown within 500 miles of your location.
  • Shop locally when possible from vendors that supply locally.

Installation

  • Use adhesives with low VOC’s.
  • Choose watebased finishes over solvent-based ones.

Use and Maintenance

  • Once installed, some floors continue to give off gas compounds.  Ventilation of the room will help dispell any off-gassing from products.
  • Avoid less durable floors which have to be replaced more frequently.  Often the labor cost to install a long lasting floor is the same as for a less durable one.
  • Avoid high maintenance floors that need harsh chemicals too keep them clean or polished.  The life cycle costs may outweight the original cost of the floorcovering over its lifetime.
  • Consider floors that don’t have to be refinished.

End of Life

  • What will happen to the floor when it has reached the end of its lifecycle?
  • Can the floor be recycled or reused?
  • Can the floor be donated to charity?
  • In general, synthetic products don’t decay, but they can be recycled.
  • Natural products will decompose.

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Why Bamboo?

Apr 22

Posted by admin in Green Solutions, Hardwood Floors

The answer is easy, exciting and environmental. Unlike hardwood, bamboo is not a product of trees, it’s a fast growing grass.

Bamboo can grow from sprouts to harvesting in three to five years, thus an acre of bamboo can provide more flooring than an acre of trees.

When bamboo shoots are cut the roots remain intact and fresh new sprouts grow in their place.
The dense root mass of bamboo helps prevent soil erosion and provides a viable crop opportunity in hilly acres where other crops cannot grow.

The species used for flooring is harvested from selected groves in Southern China. And, good news — this species is not eaten by Pandas.

Bamboo can be an attractive alternative to hardwood because it is eco-friendly, is dimensionally stable, 27% harder than Northern Red Oak, 13% harder than hard Maple, can either be nailed-down, glued-down or floated, and it’s resistant to flammability.

Bamboo flooring comes in planks and is installed just like engineered hardwood floors. These floors can be installed over many different types of subfloors.

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What is CARE?

Mar 23

Posted by Christine Rankin in Green Solutions

Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE) is a joint industry-government effort to increase the amount of recycling and reuse of post-consumer carpet and reduce the amount of waste carpet going to landfills. CARE increased its carpet collection sites from 37 in 2006 to 56 last year. CARE reported for 2007, 296 million pounds of carpet were diverted from landfills (a 17% increase from 2006) and 275.1 million pounds were recycled (a 19% increase from 2006.)

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Raw Materials

Mar 9

Posted by Christine Rankin in Green Solutions

What factors determine if floor coverings are green?  Green flooring includes any flooring that is sustainable, eco-friendly, contains recycled content, is recyclable, leaves a small carbon footprint or has low VOC’s (volatile organic compounds).  There are different degrees of green associated with different types of flooring.

Raw Materials:

Consider categories of flooring that begin as a natural product such as WOOL, WOOD and CORK; or are made from RECYCLED MATERIALS.

  • Soda bottles can be melted down and recycled into carpet fiber.
  • Some carpet manufacturers have the ability to take post consumer carpet and break it down to its original raw material.  The new material can be manufactured back into carpet without any degradation of quality to performance or styling.
  • How products are harvested is critical – legal logging and chain of custody certification for example.  Sustainably harvested products should always be selected.
  • Salvaged products are a great choice.  Many hardwood flooring manufacturers are reclaiming raw materials from riverbeds and dilapidated buildings.
  • Choose products that are certified as environmentally friendly.  There are a number of third-party organizations that provide certification.  These would include the Scientific Certification Systems, Forest Stewardship Council, GreenGuard Environmental Institute, Sustainable Forestry Initiative.

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Radiant Heat – Ecologically Responsible and Comfortable

Feb 2

Posted by Christine Rankin in Green Solutions, Hardwood Floors

What are the many benefits to installing electric floor heating in your home? As awareness rises around energy consumption and conservation, it just makes sense to learn how you can enjoy the benefits of radiant heating and be a part of the green movement.

Electric radiant heating systems are often installed under naturally cold surfaces, such as tile, stone and hardwood. The heat from the system penetrates the flooring and warms from the ground up. The warmth transfers directly to you and warms everything it touches as it radiates throughout the room. It’s sort of like stepping out of the shade and into the sun; the air temperature is essentially the same, but you feel warmer.

Operating your floor heating system with an Energy Star rated, programmable thermostat further reduces energy consumption. You can program your thermostat to be “on” only during the time that you actually want to enjoy your electric floor heating system. If we can turn our thermostats down and stay as warm (or warmer), thereby wasting fewer resources, why wouldn’t we do that for Mother Earth?

Many of us will have to replace our floors at some time, so why not add radiant floor heating then? You can even go one step further to reduce your carbon footprint by selecting hardwood flooring. Hardwood is a popular floor covering option and can be installed in virtually any room in your home. Recently, the National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA) published an article, Radiant Wood Floors: Wood Floors Over Radiant Heat Reduce Carbon Footprint, and explained that, “Because wood floors are sustainable and renewable, they increase radiant heat’s benefits.”

Why not complement the strength and beauty of your hardwood flooring with radiant floor heating and be ecologically responsible and comfortable?

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What, exactly, do you mean by “green”?

Nov 17

Posted by Christine Rankin in Green Solutions

There is no question that the floor covering industry is being affected by a desire to be green.  Overall, the industry is responding positively, with products like carpet, hardwood, laminate, linoleum and cork, each offering different attributes that respond to the desire for a green floor.  However, there is no one “perfect green product”.  Some floors may contain recycled content or resouces that rapidly renew.  On the other hand, some of these products may not be made domestically and are transported from across the globe.  It helps to think of products as being “greener” than one another.

Research tells us that there are six key factors people consider in making environmentally responsible and healthful flooring choices:  Indoor Air Quality, Raw Materials, Product Life Cycle, Installation, Manufacturing Processes and Maintenance.  While no product can meet all these criteria, almost every floor will address one or two of these areas. A well informed dealer can explain how products score in each category.

As retailers, we need to understand what consumers really want when they ask for green products.  We need to educate them through the product choices and explain responsibly.  We need to provide the facts that help our customers make well-informed decisions.

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Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)

Jul 15

Posted by Christine Rankin in Green Solutions

The initials “LCA” stand for many things, but in the world of the environment, LCA stands for “Life Cycle Assessment.”  Often referred to as cradle-to-grave analysis, LCA examines all the impacts of a product on the environment, from the raw materials used to how it is ultimately disposed of (or recycled).

Recently, the National Wood Flooring Association announced the results of an LCA study it commissioned with the University of Wisconsin.  The study compared the LCA of solid wood flooring in four categories: 1.  harmful emissions to air, 2.  water consumption, 3.  total primary energy consumed and 4.  product life expectancy with those of four competing floor coverings: 1.  generic VCT, 2.  generic linoleum flooring, 3.  generic nylon carpet tile and 4.  generic wool carpet tile.  The results of the study were consistent with previous European studies concluding that wood flooring has environmental advantages over other floor coverings, including less air emissions, less primary energy use and its renewable nature, among others.

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Near Perfection in Flooring

Jun 30

Posted by Christine Rankin in Green Solutions, Linoleum Floors

If you’re looking for the near-perfect green flooring, look no further:  Marmoleum, a natural linoleum flooring material, is not only eco-friendly—it’s also health friendly and ideal for interior spaces.

Marmoleum is made from all natural ingredients of linseed oil/flax, wood resins, cork, limestone, and jute.  The flooring is naturally bactericidal, anti-static, and discourages the collection of dust mites—making it a great option for those affected by asthma and for babies, whose respiratory defenses are still developing.  Another well-touted plus is the flooring’s consistent temperature neutrality, which allows it to work well in all homes, even those situated in zones with extreme climates.

Marmoleum boasts a wide color palette ranging from soft, natural earth tones to boldly colored patterns.  Many Marmoleum products come as patented clic tiles, which literally click together for a seamless appearance.  Clic tiles also make for very easy installation.

It’s low maintenance in the cleaning department as well—a simple once-over with a dust mop or damp cloth will restore it to sparkly clean glory.

Don’t forget the lifespan.  Marmoleum is known to last at least 30 years and it’s purported to keep for generations beyond that . . .  This floor will last you virtually as long as you want it!

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How to Identify Horizontal and Vertical Bamboo

May 20

Posted by Christine Rankin in Green Solutions, Hardwood Floors

If you place your hand palm down and look at your  knuckles you will see that they are more apparent, as the “knuckles” also appear more apparent on the horizontal orientation of the bamboo.  Turn your hand and rest it on the “pinky” finger edge.  Your knuckles appear smaller and your hand more narrow, this is similar to the appearance of vertical bamboo.

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