As more of us become more concerned about our relationships with the environment, eco friendly options become much more prominent. When it comes to hardwood flooring, some types are definitely more eco friendly than others. We’ve compiled a list of three eco friendly hardwood flooring options to help you find one that’s right for you.
What Is Eco Friendly Hardwood Flooring?
Ultimately, eco friendly hardwood flooring minimizes its impact on the environment during all phases of its existence. From growth and harvesting to transport and manufacturing to installation and disposal, sustainable practices are employed to cut down on greenhouse gas emissions, curtail fossil fuel use, use fewer harmful chemicals and reduce waste products.
Eco Friendly Solid Hardwood Flooring
Solid hardwood can be a very eco friendly choice since the trees that solid hardwood is made from can be regrown. There’s also little need for toxic chemicals during the manufacturing process. Solid hardwood can be sanded down and refinished several times which gives it a longer lifespan and reduces the need for disposal and replacement. And even when it’s time for a new floor, solid hardwood is easily recycled.
Eco Friendly Engineered Hardwood Flooring
Since engineered hardwood consists of a very thin layer of hardwood backed with several layers of fiberboard or plywood, it means that less virgin wood and more waste products are used during the manufacturing process. Also, many engineered hardwood flooring planks use the floating-floor concept. This means that toxic adhesives are necessary in the installation process. Engineered hardwood flooring is very stable, hard-wearing and refinishable which lengthens its lifespan and cuts back on the need for replacement.
Reclaimed Hardwood Flooring
Reclaimed hardwood flooring is created from repurposed or salvaged wood. This reduces the need to fell virgin trees. It also extends the lifespan of the wood and prevents it from ending up in the landfill or being burned. Creating reclaimed hardwood flooring can play a major role in cleaning up trees that were felled by disaster (natural or otherwise) or making use of wood collected from remodeling or demolition projects. Using reclaimed hardwood flooring typically minimizes the use of chemicals, manufacturing resources, transportation and other environmental scourges.
