the story
Install a new floor in a day with beautiful, eco-friendly and easy to install EcoCork click planks.
Natural and sustainable, Cork is a nationally protected resource of Portugal. The cork used in our cork floors comes The cork bark is harvested from the tree every 9 to 11 years. And the trees are kept alive and in production for generations. At maturity a typical tree can produce upwards of 450 pounds of cork per harvest.
Natural Cork is still harvested by hand in the traditional method leaving the habitat intact and with minimal impact on the overall environment. The cork forests in Portugal make use of otherwise arid land. Often the cork “farms” are combined with other uses such as raising cattle or growing other crops in and among the trees. These combinations allow local farmers maximize their use of the land.
performance
Because it contains millions of tiny air cells per square inch, cork has a multitude of stellar qualities. Its cellular structure creates a shock-absorbing effect, which makes it an exceptionally comfortable surface to stand on. Air within the cells also acts as insulation, so cork flooring can reduce heating bills as well as noise.
Cork’s natural defenses protect it from assaults that can ruin other floors. It contains a waxy substance called suberin, which repels insects and inhibits the growth of mold, mildew and microbe colonies. Its resilience allows it to “give” when something moves across it, whereas hard flooring surfaces will scratch or gouge.
Cork offers excellent insulation against noise. A rating system called sound transmission class (STC) assigns a number to quantify acoustical insulation; an STC rating of 50 means loud speech is not audible across the barrier. Our cork planks, installed over a concrete slab, have an STC rating of 52.
Cork planks do not perform well in damp or steamy rooms, and they are not as easy to repair as glue down cork tiles.
EcoCork is milled with a specially shaped "click" together tongue & groove center core. This sophisticated and highly accurate milled shape ensures a very tight connection during installation and beyond. Click technology is a glue-less installation resulting in less mess, less fuss and less time on the job. Additionally, floors that are clicked into place can also be un-clicked for easy repair.
Click planks offer several advantages:
- Subfloor preparation is less stringent
- The floor 'floats' and is less visibly affected by expansion and contraction normal to wood products
- Plank can be installed below grade (with suitable vapor barrier)
- Installation is relatively quick
- Thicker product provides better insulation
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