When it comes to choosing your flooring, you will find there are several choices with regards to types of flooring materials that you can choose from but one of the very first decisions you are going to have to make is whether you are going to use carpeting. For some types of flooring such as tile, carpeting is a must. However, there are some other types of flooring, such as cork, that do not require carpeting to be laid over it. So how do you decide? Which option is better for you?
With regards to cork flooring or carpeting, the choice is simple. Cork offers several benefits which make it the better option of the two. Take the look at the various features of cork and how it scores over carpets.
Padding: One of the main reasons why most homeowners choose to lay carpets is so that it gives them some sort of padding to walk over. If youve tried walking over a bare granite or marble floor, youll know how hard it is on your feet and your knees. You will want something that acts as a buffer between your feet and the hard walking surface. With cork glue down tile flooring, this wont be necessary. This is because of corks cellular structure. Cork is made up of numerous honeycomb shaped cells packed tightly together. Each of these cells is filled with air. When you step on a cork surface, the air compresses and then expands as your foot leaves the surface. This creates a kind of cushion effect for you to walk on so that there is less wear and tear on your joints. If you have a cork floor, there is no need to add any layer of cushioning over it.
Insulation: Another reason that many people choose to lay carpets over their floors is because stone floors can get painfully cold in winter. Cork flooring on the other hand has excellent insulating properties because of the very same air-filled cells. This means it remains warm in winter so you do not have to incur the additional expense of laying any other type of warm covering over it.
Allergies: The biggest problem with carpets is that it tends to accumulate dust, hair and dander, all of which can play havoc with anybody who is allergic towards any of these items. This can be particularly brutal if you have pets. The particles of dust and dander tend to get buried within the pile of the carpet and are difficult to remove with regular cleaning. It needs to be professionally cleaned but it is impractical and also expensive to get this done as often as necessary. Cork flooring can be cleaned regularly, thus preventing any allergy flare up.
Maintenance: Cork glue down tile is so much easier to maintain. All it needs is regular vacuuming and mopping done every two to three days. No need to pay anything to get it professionally shampooed. Moreover it is much longer lasting as compared to carpet.