Anyone have cork flooring?

[Kerry Adams]

Good Morning,

Thinking of putting this in kitchen. Seems a little soft for putting Kitchen Table and chairs on.

Opinions welcomed from those of you whom might have it!

Thanks,
Kerry

[Mark Rios]

Wouldn't it be a little inconvenient since you would probably have little notes everywhere pinned to the floor?

[paul cottingham]

My in-laws have it through their whole house, including the kitchen. No problems that I have heard of. Believe me, we would hear if there was.

[Kerry Adams]

Mark, I walk on my hands, so actually that would be quite convenient!LOL

Thanks,
Kerry

[Jim Becker]

Cork flooring is more durable than you might think...it's not the soft stuff used for pin-up boards; rather, it's a product specifically aimed at this application. I don't have it, but I've seen it and walked on it. Very impressed, too.

[Bob Lloyd]

A friend used the click fit cork flooring in his kitchen. He has four kids, a dog and two cats, they are very happy with it. As Jim said, it is a lot more resilient than you might imagime.

[Scott T Smith]

An old friend of mine had it in her house for close to 30 years. It was very durable and attractive.

[Stephen Tashiro]

Does cork flooring absorb water from spills that aren't cleaned up promptly?

[Curt Secor]

Cork is a great flooring material that has been used for decades for it's durability, resilience, sound absorbing qualities and comfort. Much of it in commercial applications, so you know it will take a beating. With the cork click laminated flooring it's also super easy to install. A warning if using it in kitchens or baths, make sure you use the manufacturers sealer for the surface and seal the perimeter edges with silicone. Some cork flooring has an aluminum oxide finish with sealed tongue and groove surfaces and don't require sealing on the surface. You don't want water getting under the cork's surface at the joined edges or at the exposed sides. The cork is generally laminated to MDF or HDF, and that material and moisture don't get along well. I own a flooring store and have never had a complaint about cork, in fact I have had several customers come back, after living with it, and want to use it in other rooms. Another word of advice, if you do think you will want to expand your use of the cork at a later date, buy all the material you will need at the same time. Some manufacturers are fairly inconsistent with their different dye lot colors. Hope this helps, enjoy your floor.:)

[Harry Hagan]

Curt,

No problems with table legs and other heavy objects leaving indentations in the cork floor?

[Jon Knauft]

Kerry,

I installed cork in my kitchen and master bath 7 years ago. We were one of the first homes in the area to have it and no one knew how to install it so we ended up doing it ourselves. We used 12 inch square tiles and a special adhesive to install it. The tiles were coated with poly and we added 2 more coats after it was installed. We haven't done anything since.

Pros - It's warm underfoot. There's also a give to it so it feels great underfoot. We've also dropped glasses and they haven't broken. I've dropped a knife into it once and it stuck into the cork. Once I removed it you couldn't even tell were it went in.

Cons - It does dent. It will self-heal after 24 hours but they don't recommend someone walking on it with high heels because it would probably leave a permanent mark. We have a table and chairs in the kitchen and have felt pads underneath both and haven't any issues with permanent denting.

The biggest drawback is fading. If the cork is in direct sunlight it will fade over the years. Similar to having cherry furniture in the direct sunlight.

We damp mop it every couple of weeks and it still looks great. You don't want it in a situation where it's in contact with a lot of water. I probably wouldn't put it in the master bath again but we had enough left over from the kitchen install and thought we would try it.

I would definitely install it again for a kitchen area. Workshop might be interesting as well!

Regards,

Jon

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_xxJnMW9ep6Q/SxL2he379oI/AAAAAAAAAks/ibSLymdsoL0/s512/PB290050.JPG

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_xxJnMW9ep6Q/SxL3ePJhgmI/AAAAAAAAAlI/fXNQvYJJlko/s512/PB290048.JPG

[Curt Secor]

Table and chairs should be fine as long as you use felt pads on the bottoms of the legs. If the legs are narrow, you might want to use hard plastic pads under them to distribute the weight better. Cork is very resilient and resists permanent compression well, but just like sheet vinyl or wood floors you want to protect it from scratches and gouging.