Episode 2: From The Ground Up
Written by: Lilly Roth-Shapiro
So many factors and pieces go into designing a home, and there are many considerations to each decision: cost, durability, aesthetics, sustainability, etc. Flooring is something that we may not give as much thought to, but it can have a large impact on all of the above considerations, in addition to the health of the home. Environmental Protection Agency studies have shown that indoors can have between two and five higher pollutant levels than outside. New carpeting and flooring can be a major culprit, emitting hundreds of volatile organic compounds (VCOs) that can continue for years after installation. Sustainable flooring takes human health into account and uses renewable materials that can be harvested and produced with minimal carbon footprint. Sustainable flooring should be easily recycled, repurposed, or should be biodegradable.
Carpeting makes up 60% of the US flooring market. 19 billion square feet are sold each year, and an estimated 5 billion pounds of it end up in landfills annually. Most carpets are made from oil-based plastics and are often treated with toxic chemicals to make them moth-proof or dirt-repellant. On top of this, carpets are known to trap things like lawn pesticides, VOCs, and allergens that get brought in from the outdoors, worsening indoor air quality. Though carpeting can be energy efficient due to its insulating properties, the cons outweigh the benefits. They require more maintenance and cleaning than other flooring, they have a shorter lifespan (five to twenty years) and need to be replaced more often, and they can retain moisture, potentially leading to mildew, mold, and rot.
If you already have carpeting and nixing it is out of the budget, or if you are set on putting in carpeting, there are some options to reduce the toxins in your home. If you already have a carpet, you can use a non-toxic, eco-friendly carpet finish that seals your carpet from water and odors and prevents chemicals in the carpet from off-gassing into your home. One seal lasts from between five cleanings, to up to a year. When looking for new carpeting, the padding and installation make an environmental difference. Many carpets and carpet paddings are made using plastics that come from petroleum. Opting for a carpet with a lightweight backing that doesn’t need additional padding is a good move. You can also find padding made from recycled materials or 100% recycled cotton. Once you’ve found a carpet that checks these
boxes, the installation process is also important. Carpets are often installed using toxic glues that pollute the indoor air quality. A human- and eco-friendly alternative to gluing is tacking down your carpeting. If you are looking to get rid of your carpeting for some eco-friendly and non-toxic flooring, try to find a carpet recycling company. Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE) is a nonprofit with a database that can help you locate donation and recycling sites nearby.
The better option—for the health of the environment and of the people living in your house—is to choose solid-surface flooring rather than carpeting. Below are four solid swaps for your floors.
Hardwood
Hardwood supports a circular economy. Since it can be recycled and reused, it reduces waste by extending the life of a product. If you have hardwood flooring, restaining and refinishing it—rather than ripping it up and replacing it entirely—can cut your carbon footprint by more than 75%. When installing new flooring, recycled and reclaimed hardwood flooring is the best because it is high quality, beautiful, and also avoids the cutting down of new trees. When looking for new hardwood flooring, find wood that has been certified by the Forest Stewardship Council to ensure your floors have been harvested from sustainably managed forests. Some tree farms in New Zealand and British Columbia, for example, are harvesting less than 1% of trees each year and then regrowing them to avoid deforestation. Tropical hardwoods grown in the Brazilian rainforest, and wood coming from parts of Asia and Africa, however, tend to come from less sustainably-managed forests, and are areas of the world experiencing the most deforestation. Engineered hardwood flooring is made by combining a plywood core—which is often made using recycled materials—with a solid hardwood veneer. This allows fewer hardwood trees (which tend to be slower-growing so take longer to be regrown once cut down) to be used towards flooring. Engineered hardwood has low levels of VOCs, and you can find non-toxic and eco-friendly finishes and stains to go along with it.
Cork
Softwoods are not often used for flooring, but cork is an exception. It’s a great and inexpensive flooring material. It is comfortable to stand on, has insulating and sound-dampening properties, and is not prone to scuffs and scratches. Cork is hypoallergenic, fire-resistant, and insect-repellant. It is harvested from the bark of the cork oak tree, meaning the trees do not need to be cut down, and the bark only takes three years to grow back. The downside of cork is that while it doesn’t get easily scuffed up, it does require more maintenance (resealing, revarnishing) to keep it from deteriorating or breaking. It is also susceptible to humidity, which can cause it to expand and warp in appearance. Lastly, cork flooring can sustain UV damage, yellowing, and fading over time if in direct sunlight, though this can be mitigated with the right finish.
Bamboo
Bamboo is one of the fastest-growing plants in the world and is 13% harder than maple and 27% harder than northern red oak. Its hardness translates to a long lifespan (20-50 years) and greater durability than a lot of hardwood floors. Bamboo flooring is resistant to water, mildew, and bugs. Similarly to cork, since bamboo can be regrown so quickly, it has a smaller environmental footprint than slow-growing trees, which can take up to two decades to regrow. Bamboo takes just nine months to reach its full height and can be harvested every three to five years. Bamboo flooring can be refinished multiple times, which reduces waste and the emissions associated with manufacturing, transportation, and installation when replacing an entire floor. Also like cork, bamboo is susceptible to moisture and can lead to warpage. There are fewer species of bamboo than there are hardwood, so there are fewer design options. Bamboo is also prone to scratches, but this can be partially prevented by placing slip pads underneath furniture and retouching the floor a bit more often.
Tiles and Recycled Materials
Floors made entirely from recycled materials keep trash out of landfills, require less energy than they would to produce entirely new, “virgin” materials, and add a unique detail to your home. On top of this, most flooring made from recycled materials can also be recycled when it reaches the end of its lifespan. Natural linoleum floors are hypoallergenic and biodegradable. Natural linoleum is a mixture of linseed oil, pine resin, wood flour, cork flour, limestone, and pigment all on a jute backing. Linoleum tiling is low-maintenance and usually requires only a coat of natural wax—beeswax and linseed oil—to protect it. When maintained properly, these floors can last for decades. The term “linoleum” is sometimes used to refer to vinyl flooring, which is completely different and is harmful to the environment, so make sure the tile you select is natural linoleum and not vinyl flooring.
Recycled glass tiles are a great option for spaces like the kitchen and bathroom, as they are not damaged by moisture. Ceramic and porcelain tiles are also very durable. Stay away from stone tiles, though. Even though stone is a naturally produced material (so it doesn’t require any emissions to create it), it is energy-intensive to mine it and transport and install it. When buying tile, shop for US-made products to avoid lead glazes. Use low-VOC or Greenguard-certified cement backer board, and use water-based adhesives and cement-based grout to set your tiles. Once installed, apply a low-VOC sealant to protect the grout and tile, and make sure to cut or grind any tiles outdoors to reduce dust pollution indoors. Overall, solid flooring is a better option than carpeting, with hardwood, cork, bamboo, and recycled material tiles available as environmentally friendly and nontoxic options. Generally, stay away from laminate flooring, vinyl flooring, and synthetic carpeting. Install your flooring with nail-down or click-lock tacking rather than with glue, and if you are using glue, look for a low- or no-VOC option that is Greenguard certified.
Designing or remodeling your home can be overwhelming, as there are so many decisions to be made and seemingly endless options. Flooring covers every square foot of your home and isn’t something you can avoid. Following this guide and doing your research into the materials and installation methods you select can go a long way to reducing your carbon footprint and making your home a healthier, happier place.
