Welcome to Marmomoleum-land. Give a look and listen and learn about the attributes of this durable, eco-friendly and beautiful flooring material for your next project.
Monday, July 14, 2014
Eco Friendly Countertops---Sustainability and Style
Heather from Green Goods Products gives the low down on the choices and benefits of designing with Eco Friendly countertops.
Tile Comes in Green
Heather from Green Goods Products talks about Eco-friendly tile. What makes a tile sustainable? Find out here.
Wool Carpet Goes Deep Green
By Heather Tissue, Green Designer
I’m not talking about green the color, I’m talking about green the lifestyle. You may think that if a carpet is made from wool that it’s a natural product and an excellent choice for a healthy lifestyle. But it takes more than just fiber to make a carpet.
Let’s start with fiber anyway, even that basic ingredient can be more green. ”Deep Green” sheep are raised in a free range environment. They are outside in all types of weather, both harsh and pleasant. This dynamic environment causes the sheep to grow a very hardy fleece with excellent crimp and fiber characteristics.
The colors for a truly green carpet are derived from the wool as it is naturally grown on the sheep’s back. Just as humans have specific colors of hair, so do the sheep have unique colors based on particular breeds. These naturally colored fleeces are blended to achieve the beautiful colors for carpeting. No dyes or harsh chemicals (moth proofing) are applied. The natural lanolin in the wool serves to repel soiling and the twist of the wool fibers keeps dirt from getting down into the backing of the carpet.
Backing material and padding can also make a wool carpet “greener” and healthier for your family. Conventional carpet backing and padding is made from synthetic materials while a “Deep Green” wool carpet has a primary backing made from cotton and hemp, a secondary backing made from jute and a pad made from real rubber.
When you shop for wool carpet, keep in mind—-happy sheep, natural colors, natural materials top to bottom—-these are the elements that create a beautiful, eco-friendly, healthy wool carpet for your home.
More Marmo, More Marmo, More Marmo
Kind of a tongue twister but what a versatile flooring material. Marmo, or marmoleum is true linoleum, a resilient floor made with all natural materials including wood flour, linseed oil, pine rosin and mineral pigments.
With over 90 colors and patterns, linoleum offers endless design possibilities.
Marmoleum provides excellent indoor air quality. It’s one of just a handful of flooring materials recommended by the asthma and allergy Foundation of America.
It’s an extremely durable floor, resistant to scratches and dents. Should you manage somehow to knick it, the color goes all the way through so the blemish disappears.
Marmoleum is well-suited for installations in wet areas like kitchens and baths. The linseed oil in the material helps make the floor very water resistant.
It’s easy to clean, just sweep or dry vacuum like you would any hard surface floor, and damp mop with a neutral ph cleaner periodically. You can even use a spray cleaner and a microfiber mop system like Bona.
Sheet
The traditional style for a resilient flooring material, sheet, comes on a roll 79” wide. This material can be seamed for an all-over color look and must be installed by a professional flooring installer familiar with the material.
This floor design was created with Marmoleum sheet material in several colors, precisely cut and professionally installed. Design by Heather Tissue Design, installation by Green Goods.
Marmoleum sheet installed over radiant heat warm board. Design by Heather Tissue Design, installation by Green Goods.
Glue Down Tiles
Tiles currently come in two sizes, 13” and 20” and are glued down to your subfloor. This can be a do-it-yourself project but takes a little skill.
Marmoleum 13” tiles completed the update for this 1930s-era home renovation. Design by Heather Tissue Design, installation by Green Goods.
Click Tiles and Planks
Marmoleum click tiles are the most user-friendly installation. These tiles comes adhered to their own sub-floor with a cork backing and lock together easily. Currently available in 12” x 12” tiles or 12” x 36” planks, the inside scoop on click is that it will be available in larger size tiles and more patterns later in 2014.
Easy-to-install Marmoleum click panels were used to create this lively kids room floor.
Think about Marmoleum for your next flooring project—-healthy, all natural, beautiful, durable and easy to care for, it’s a great choice for your home.
Cork, Not Just for Wine Bottles Anymore
Cork, Not Just for Wine Bottles Anymore
by Heather Tissue, Green Designer
Sure, a cork stops the wine bottle for years, preserving that precious cargo while it mellows and ages to perfection. And who doesn’t enjoy that wonderful “pop” sound when the cork exits the bottle and lets that liquid pleasure flow into your glass? But did you know that cork also makes a great floor? All the properties that make cork useful to winemakers also make cork an excellent flooring material.
Resilient, Warm to the Touch, Insulating and Sound Dampening
Structurally, cork’s cells are full of air which provides insulating and sound dampening properties and gives cork it’s warm feel (71 degrees Fahrenheit, 24 hours per day!) Cork is truly a barefoot floor.
Anti-microbial, Hypoallergenic and Water-repellent
Cork enjoys these properties because the material is naturally comprised of a waxy substance calledSuberin. It’s the Suberin the lends cork the ability to repel water and fungal growth.
Natural and Sustainable
Cork is the bark of the Cork Oak tree and can be harvested every seven years without damage to the tree.
Design Versatility, Easy to Install, Easy to Maintain
Glue down cork tiles lend themselves to a multitude of patterns with a smooth flush joint between pieces, a great way to install in wet areas like a bath or a kitchen.
Click-together planks are easy to install. Now available in narrow widths with a beveled edge profile, this style gives the look and durability of a hard wood floor with the benefits of cork.
The Aluminum Oxide finish on a cork floor is the same as on today’s wood floors. Regular vacuuming and cleaning with a microfiber mop and an eco-friendly gentle spray cleaner like Bona are all that is required to keep your floor looking its best. And most cork floors come with a lifetime (25 year) residential warranty.
Whether your design is contemporary or traditional, on a concrete slab or over a raised-subfloor, there’s a style and type of cork that will complement your decor, provide warmth, quiet and healthy indoor air-quality all in a durable, easy-to-maintain floor. Think cork for your next flooring project.
Oil Finished Floors, You Know You Want One
by Heather Tissue, Green Designer
Have you dreamed of having a home with hardwood floors? Do you worry about upkeep and having to refinish them? An oil finished floor might be the right choice to solve both issues and give you the look you want.
What is an Oil Finish?
An oil finish is applied on site, not at the factory, and becomes part of the wood penetrating the top layer of the unfinished floor and bonding with the material. Over time, the oil actually hardens the fibers of the wood. You don’t have to be “shoes-off” worrying about scratching the finish of your floor. If there is an area that gets scuffed or just receives the concentration of traffic, a refresher application of the oil will restore the floor and keep it looking good. And you’ll never have the expense of sanding and refinishing.Think of it this way, instead of living on your floor, you’ll be living with your floor.
Eco-friendly benefits
The oil used in this finish is no VOC, that means no volatile organic compounds off-gassing into your home. And many oil finished floors are constructed with FSC certified wood or bamboo. So a non-toxic finish combined with a sustainably-sourced material provide you with a high-quality, durable, long-lasting eco-friendly floor.
Floor Care
Caring for an oil-finished floor requires regular sweeping with a microfiber mop or vacuuming with a canister vacuum with a hardwood floor attachment, the same care recommended for any hard surface floor. Periodically, you will need to mop with a special oil soap and once a year, a refresher oil should be applied.
The natural oil repels water and most stains. But If you do get a stain on the floor—-say red wine or crayon or Sharpie marker—-you can treat the area with a little refresher oil and quadruple 0000 steel wool and watch the stain disappear.
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Practicality
While an oil-finished floor is beautiful in any application, that beauty is transcended by practicality in a commercial application. When the floor needs refreshing, a busy restaurant need not lose business hours for the treatment. Refresher oil can be applied in about an hour in the average size establishment and will dry in 5 hours and the floor is ready for business as usual.
Style
Oil finished floors have been around forever. Many of today’s oil-finished floor styles are inspired by floors found in castles and chateau’s in Europe. With wide planks and lot of knots and character, these floors add elegance to your design whether in a contemporary loft or a traditional home.
And now bamboo floors are also available with an oil finish taking this popular flooring material in a new style direction.
Applications beyond flooring
Because an oil-finished floor does not have that shiny, acrylic finish, the natural beauty of the wood can stand alone. This quality lends itself to application beyond flooring, like wall paneling, cladding, wainscoting and feature walls.
Eco-friendly, durable, beautiful, easy to care for, consider an oil-finished floor for your next project. You know you want one.
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