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With Global warming looming in the 21st century, everyone is looking for ways to be environmentally friendly. We can see the effect of global warming while it wreaks havoc all over the world, and nobody can afford to be complacent anymore. So why is cork considered environmentally friendly? First and foremost, no cork tree is cut down to provide base material. Only the bark off the tree is used in the manufacturing of cork flooring material. The scientific name of this tree is QuercusSuber and it is found primarily in Spain, Portugal, Morocco and Algeria. The bark of this tree is thick and spongy. It is carefully peeled off the tree and used first to manufacture corks for wine bottles. The remaining scraps are then pulverized and combined with a non-toxic glue under high pressure to manufacture cork flooring and cork tile. The trees meanwhile are not harmed in any way. After the bark has been peeled off they are left alone to regenerate. This process takes nearly nine years before the tree will be allowed to be harvested again. The life span of each tree is about 200 years. The long life span of the tree, combined with the fact that it keeps on regenerating and growing new bark make this a renewable, environmentally friendly resource. Cork itself is made up of millions of cells packed closely together. These cells contain air that is able to compress and release with pressure. These air chambers give cork flooring its resilient and insulating properties. Therefore chill winter floors are no longer a worry. Consider this – you are walking across a hardwood floor. How does the floor feel? As many will attest to, while walking barefoot the floor can feel cold and hard; whereas walking with heels will cause a loud clicking sound with it strike against the floor. With cork flooring, it’s different. When you walk barefoot across cork floors it feels warm and not so hard and when you walk with shoes on, nobody will hear a sound. This is because the cells not only absorb the sounds but acts as an insulating material so it never gets too cold. It also absorbs the impact as you walk across the floor, which is great news for anyone who suffers from knee and joint pain. As you can see cork is a great material, not only does it have great benefits a few whom have been mentioned above, but it is also environmentally sound. If you are looking for environmentally friendly flooring options, cork floor is amount the best. Cork Flooring is also durable, and is easy to clean and maintain. To find out more, go to iCork Flooring today.
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