Many people know that wood floors are green in terms of upping property value while remaining environmentally friendly. But did you know that wood floors are good for your health?
Hypoallergenic
A recent Hardwood Flooring Magazine article cited that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reports that wood floors are hypoallergenic. For anyone belonging to the 30% of allergen sufferers this is great news. It turns out that “wood floors do not harbor microorganisms or pesticides tracked in from outdoors as other flooring options can. They also minimize the accumulation of dust, mold, and animal dander, which improves overall indoor air quality.”
Less Carbon Dioxide and Cleaner Air
And that is not all. The wood floors that are crafted from our forests store the carbon dioxide they absorb as trees for the remainder of their lives. Once the trees are harvested, they do not release the carbon dioxide back into the environment but maintain it in the fibers of the wood. And while Carlisle continues its practices of sustainable forestry, we are also ensuring there is more trees and clean air for generations to come.
Non-VOC Finishes – Practical and Safe
Lastly, when paired with non-VOC finishes, like the Naturals Collections, wood floors are a practical and safe flooring option for any family. VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds), or volatile organic compounds, are found in many finish products and when emitted have been known to cause headaches, nausea, sore throat, etc. While the country strives towards regulating suggested safety standards, such as the California Air Resources Board has done already, it is reassuring to know there are safe products on the market already.
So, whether you want to call wood floors healthy for their hypoallergenic qualities, their fight against the world’s carbon dioxide emissions, or their environmentally nontoxic finishes, you can have peace of mind when investing in a Carlisle floor. As the single largest area of space that your family will walk, play, live and stand on – doesn’t it make sense to invest in a durable floor that will give you the reassurance you need that your family is well cared for?
Wood Floors in Office Spaces When you are in the process of creating the design plan for your business office, there are a lot of things that will come to mind. You are looking at cubicle sizes, logical furniture and even paint colors that encourage productivity. But there is one important aspect of office design that deserves ample attention and careful thought: what type of flooring will work the best for the space?
If you are like a lot of office business owners, your first inclination will be to gravitate towards carpeted flooring. However popular carpeted flooring in office spaces may be, this is not really the best option. In fact, hardwood flooring is a more fitting flooring type in your commercial office setting. Look at some of the advantages of hardwood flooring has over carpet in an office space.
Easier to Clean
Think about all the work that must go into keeping carpeted floors clean in a space where there is high foot traffic. Maintenance and cleaning are part of your office operation, but the less time-consuming cleaning processes are, the lower you are cleaning and maintenance costs will be. Even in the cleanest of settings, carpeted floors must be:
Vacuumed regularly to remove dust, tracked-in dirt, and debris
Spot cleaned when someone spills something or a mark or stain is discovered
Cleaned by a professional carpet cleaning company on occasion to eliminate hard stains
Hardwood flooring is far easier to keep clean than carpet because it is not made of fabric or fibers that are vulnerable to dirt. There is no vacuuming involved, these floors do not need shampooing or deep cleaning by professionals and the basic cleaning will only involve the typical broom and mop.
Resilient and Long-Lived There are good reasons why hardwood flooring is still one of the most popular flooring choices today even though it is the oldest form. More specifically, hardwood is highly resilient to the rigors of everyday life. It does not stain easily; it wards off spills when properly finished and it can even be refinished when it starts to look a little drab. Carpet is far less resilient in form and function. Some forms of traditional solid hardwood flooring can last if 100 years when maintained the right ways. So, hardwood may be a little more costly to install in your office than carpet, but it gives you a worthy service for your investment. In comparison, the average lifespan of a carpeted floor is only about 10 years, even when cared for well.
Resistant to Contaminants Carpet is notorious for trapping nasty germs that are hard to get out, even with regular vacuuming, shampooing, and cleaning. Just to give you an idea of a few things that can be hiding out in a carpeted floor, look at some of these common contaminants:
Campylobacter
Enterococci
Fungi
Mold
Norovirus
Staphylococcus
These contaminants can be enough to make your office staff sick, which is never a good thing. On the other hand, a hardwood floor is a solid surface. Therefore, when it is professionally installed and sealed, there is nowhere for germs and dirt to hide out. So, these floors are much easier to keep germ-free than those that are covered with cushy carpet.
Hardwood makes an excellent flooring choice in a business office for a lot of reasons. This form of flooring gives you absolute durability, traditional appeal, and cleanliness where carpet would come up short. If you would like to get hardwood flooring installed in your office, contact us (908)-232-6600.