Cork flooring - cons

Once, the cork was associated purely with small cylinders, which were clogged up with wine bottles or champagne . This light and hard natural material perfectly resisted moisture and did not degrade over the years. It's no wonder that the designers noticed it and tried to use it on the walls and on the floor, both in rough and finish trim. Alas, but the colorful rollers about the cork floor cover hide the real pluses and minuses of this material. After buying such products it is desirable to know all the hidden nuances that may arise from the time in the form of defects.

What is cork made from?

The greatest value has a solid veneer from the cork tree, it is selected by color to create separate collections. The baby is now also not lost, it is pressed agglomerate. Even the smallest pieces go to the floor or wall cover after special processing. In some cases, you can find products that are produced from large veneer particles and tiny pieces of cork, which is a compromise solution for connoisseurs of environmental products. If you start to list the disadvantages of cork for the floor , then you can do it now. To compare a natural edging board and products from crumb will be fundamentally wrong, because we initially deal with artificial products in which there are impurities.

Types of cork

1. Technical cork . This material is supplied in rolls and laid in the form of substrates for insulation or sound insulation. You can also buy granules from a small cork, which is suitable for the fall of various voids in building structures.
2. Tiles made of cork . Such products are suitable for gluing flooring and are sold in tiles. Dimensions of blanks can vary greatly. For example, there are squares 300х300 or 450х450, but there are rectangular tiles 600х300 or 450х150. Standard sizes allow you to lay out all kinds of drawings and create a moisture-resistant floor.
3. Cork flooring . This type of coating is still called the floating floor. As a basis, the widely used MDF material is used, on which the cork is glued. The size of these plates 900h185 mm and they are pretty much like a laminate panel. Cork parquet has locks that facilitate its assembly.

A little bit about the advantages of the cork floor

Advantages of traffic jam are considerable and they can be listed on several pages. But we were going to do this article focusing on the minuses of the cork cover, so we will describe all the benefits only in a few phrases. This material can provide some sound insulation, although its quality in all advertising prices is clearly exaggerated. In addition, the owners will receive additional insulation in the apartment, which has never been superfluous. The coating is extremely pleasant to the touch and slightly springs. This cork is resistant to decay and well against moisture. In conclusion, we add that bacteria, mice and even household chemicals will not spoil your sex from cork.

Disadvantages of a cork cover

1. First of all, the cork floor buyer stops its price, veneer from natural oak will be afforded only by a wealthy person.
2. The agglomerate costs less, its cost is more affordable, but do not forget that in the production of such material synthetic (glues, varnishes, vinyl) is used. Therefore, it is impossible to talk about the full ecological compatibility of this product from crumbs. This minus the cork floor for advertising agents try not to mention.
3. The cork parquet has locks, if water gets into them, there is always a chance that the MDF will swell and defects will appear on the surface.
4. The cushioning effect is only a quality expensive cork, on cheap material, there are no traces of the bed, sofa or closet.
5. The surface layer can be erased, after a long operation without renovation you can not do. It is best when a layer of high-quality lacquer is applied to protect it and increase its wear resistance.

Listing the advantages and disadvantages of this material can be talked about its good characteristics. Still, it is more safe for apartment tenants than chipboard or plastic. Cork can be compared with natural parquet, and it is suitable for finishing in an apartment building. As expected, cheap cork flooring is endowed with obvious minuses that can spoil the mood of the owners. We hope that this review will help dispel a couple of advertising myths and make a more reasonable choice when buying a new type of building material for yourself.