eco flooring

Flat-out fabulous floors

Gabrielle Bauer, eco options, Fall 2007

An appealing room begins from the floor up, whether you choose carpeting or decide to go with wood.  These days, it's possible to find flooring that not only fits your taste and your budget but is also healthy for you, your family and the earth.  What couldl be more satisfying?

Carpets are a classic way to add warmth and comfort to a room.  But traditional carpeting can be a source of pollution, filling the air in your home with toxic chemicals called volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that can affect your family’s health.

Mohawk PET carpets are a great alternative.  For a start, they received The Carpet and Rug Institute’s Green Label, which guarantees a high standard for indoor-air quality as established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.  They there’s the fact that they’re made from recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET), the plastic that’s used to make pop bottles.  These carpets are also considered ecologically sound because the dyeing process is less polluting than other carpet manufacturer’s and the carpets require less energy to produce than regular carpets.

But all this doesn’t mean you have to compromise on looks.  Mohawk has five different PET carpet lines, each with between 28 to 36 different colours, from gold, taupe, white and off-white to pastels, coffee, charcoal and burgundy.

FACTS ABOUT PET BOTTLES

• The PET bottle was patented in 1973 by chemist Nathaniel Wyeth, brother of American painter Andrew Wyeth.

• On average, every Canadian drinks 24.5 gallons (111 L) of pop per year.  Americans ditch an astonishing 2.5 million plastic containers each hour.

• 1,350 recycled 3-litre bottles save 1 cubic yard (0.75 cubic m) in landfill.

• Fourteen 590-ml plastic bottles will make almost 1 sq. foot (0.09 sq.m) of carpet or enough fiberfill for a jacket.

FACTS ABOUT PET CARPETING

• Making PET carpets is relatively simple.  The recycled plastic bottles are sorted, ground into fine chips, cleaned and then melted.  The resulting liquid is forced through molds that extrude thin fibres, which are then spun into yarn to be woven into carpets.

• Because of its unusual ingredients, PET carpeting is exceptionally durable, highly colourfast and generates very little static electricity. 

• Since it doesn’t absorb much moisture, it’s also stain-resistant.

BEAUTIFUL AND HEALTHY, WOOD FLOORS ARE A SNAP!

The clean, uncluttered natural look of wood floors has always been popular with homeowners.  But with consumer’s attraction to the look of exotic wood to beautify their homes, loggers have moved into the jungles of Papua province in Indonesia, the largest remaining tract of virgin tropical forest in Asia.  In 2004, Europe and the U.S. alone brought so much of this wood that 224.5 million sq. yards (189.5 million sq. m) of this previously untouched forest were razed, and every year, 6.9 million acres (2.8 million ha) – an area about the size of Belgium – continue to be lost.

Kronopal Marketing developed its FSC-approved “eco-exotics” line to give consumers an environmentally friendly option to popular exotic woods.  Its Wild Merbau laminate, for example, successfully mimics real merbau wood, which grows in the rain forests.  It’s simple to install and easy to maintain and, since it clicks together, it requires no glue, which eliminates any potential off-gassing fumes. 

 So, beautiful and healthy floors are a snap!

WHAT'S FSC?

Wood that has been certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).  An international network started in 1993, the FSC promotes and rewards responsible forest management that preserves the world’s eco-systems.  Its label lets you know you are purchasing lumber and wood products that haven’t contributed to the destruction of a forest’s biodiversity, productivity or ecology.

WHY THE RAIN FORESTS MATTER

Rain forests around the world make a huge contribution to the overall health of our plant.  They play a large  role in climate stabilization by absorbing carbon dioxide and returning oxygen and water vapour to the atmosphere.  They are also home to between 50% and 90% of the world’s species and the source of many of our modern-day medicines.