Cork Flooring Review


As I have the opportunity to work with a variety of floor coverings, I wanted to Cork floor in kitchenoffer my review of APC Cork Flooring that I installed last week. The following section will be some information about the product followed by my thoughts about the product. Included are some before and after pictures.

The product I worked with was their cork floating floor. The construction consisted of: a top layer of cork veneer, a HDF (high density fiberboard) middle layer and a bottom layer of cork veneer. The top layer was factory finished- sanded, stained and urethaned.

Visual Characteristics

The top layer is very distinctive of cork flooring with a wide variety of naturally occurring marks, texture and colors. Although the floor was smooth to the touch, it has the appearance of a uneven texture which is accentuated by the color streaks. Overall, it is extremely attractive and very unique for design purposes.

The product was 7/16" thick. Overall, the middle layer of HDF was the thickest portion of the floor at slightly less than 1/4", leaving the top and bottom veneers at slightly less than 1/8". The panels were about 1 foot wide and about 3 foot in length. I found this product to be an easy installation and consider it to be very doable for any do it yourselfer. The panels are definitely milled extremely tight in my opinion, such to the degree that the panels stay together nicely.

To add to this, since cork is so distinctive in appearance and natural in form, there is a wide variety of panels that are shipped after inspection. While all panels are common to the natural appearance of cork (ie. large color variations, pock-marked appearance, shading variations) some might not be what the homeowner expects their floor to look like.

Variation In Appearance Among Planks

It is an absolute must to lay out several panels of flooring from different packages prior to installation for the homeowner to fully appreciate the contrast the flooring will have in appearance and to make sure both the installer and homeowner share the same vision of the finished floor within the guidelines of the product's appearance. I also found that pulling panels from 5 different packages while selecting boards to be installed helped to randomize the final appearance of the floor.

Overall, I enjoyed working with this product. I thought the factory finish was quite good and is easily re-applied as needed with minimal time, effort and expense. There is cleaning and some maintenance required for this type of cork floor (ie. sweeping, swiffering or vacuuming; cleaning with a mild cleaner and a mop; re-application of the urethane finish when necessary depending on wear.) While it may seem like a lot of upkeep, it is basically the same as a hardwood floor but these floors are more easily re-coated by a homeowner than a hardwood floor is.

I loved the finished look of the floor and the Cork floor aftermultitude of design choices that work with cork flooring. Simple, country design blends just as easily as sleek, modern design does. The wide array of colors and shades of light and dark really open up all avenues for decorating.

Consumer Benefits - Comfort

The real benefits of comfortable flooring in areas dominated by hard surfaces (like kitchens) is a great plus. Aside from a comfortable floor to stand on for long periods of time, cork flooring also insulates your floors better and is hard to beat when it comes to acting as a sound barrier. Add to that the natural water-resistance of cork and it's easy repairability and you have a great floor choice.

The homeowners noticed the difference in the acoustics of the kitchen and the feel of the floor immediately.

I absolutely recommend cork flooring in any kitchen as well as any other room where a new floor with the above mentioned benefits would be appreciated. When it comes time to select a floor for your next room make-over, definitely give cork a 2nd & 3rd look.

Free Samples of Cork Flooring No credit card required.

Ken Peirson

Submitted By: Ken Peirson. Carpet Castle, Inc
Location: Tom's River, NJ

Contact: 732-255-6900

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Related Pages:
 
• Cork Flooring Introduction
• Cork Flooring Benefits
• Installing Glue Down Cork Tiles