Pop the Cork: What Are the Benefits of Cork Flooring?

Floors endure more wear and tear than almost any other area of your home, especially for pet owners. Between shoes, paws, and claws, even well-maintained flooring starts showing its age. The accumulation of minor damage on floors likely explains why flooring upgrades remain a perennially popular home improvement project.

While many people turn to traditional materials like hardwood, tile, or carpeting for these projects, some homeowners explore less traditional options. One alternative worth a second look is cork flooring. If you’ve never had cork flooring, you might wonder about the benefits of cork flooring.

Keep reading and we’ll give you a quick breakdown of the benefits.

Comfort

For all of their traditional beauty, flooring materials like hardwood and tile are decidedly hard surfaces. Drop something or take a fall and you can expect broken belongings or bruises.

Cork provides a little give, which makes it more comfortable to walk on. You also get a little more cushion if you do fall on it. Fewer broken dishes are one of the benefits of cork flooring in kitchen.

Health

Another benefit of installing cork flooring is that it offers you a mildew-resistant surface. That can prove helpful in any area of the house with a lot of water or water vapor, such as a laundry room.

Cork is also hypoallergenic. That makes it an ideal choice if someone in your family suffers from serious allergies or sensitivities.

Durability

Every drop something heavy onto a hardwood floor or tile floor. You can end up with a serious dent in the wood or a cracked or shattered tile. Even worse, there is very little you can do about either problem short of a full-on replacement.

The give you see in cork flooring works to your advantage here as well. If you drop something heavy, the cork will often bounce back to its original look and feel.

When professionally installed by a company like CVM Enterprises Inc., cork is typically highly resistant to spills.

Low Maintenance

Cork flooring also provides you with a low maintenance surface. In most cases, you can get away with occasionally vacuuming or sweeping for dust and dry spills.

On the off chance that you spill something liquid, you can take a damp mop to the spot to clean things up. This reduction in overall maintenance makes it preferable for busy professionals and parents.

Are the Benefits of Cork Flooring Right for You

The benefits of cork flooring make it an attractive alternative to other flooring options for many homeowners, but is it the right choice for your home?

For older homes with existing hardwood flooring, it may make more sense to leave them alone. Vintage hardwood flooring can add value to your home if you intend to resell soon. You must also consider cork flooring will work with your home’s look.

If you plan on updating the floors anyway, then cork flooring often makes sense.

Looking for more design tips? Check some more of the articles in our Interior Design section.