the cork test
According to the chezerbey master plan, the kitchen (and the rest of the main floor) is the project of 2010. The design is done and our goal for the next 6 months or so is to finalize materials, products, and all the nitty-gritty details that will ideally ensure a smooth(ish) construction process. One of the biggest considerations is what will replace the horrid linoleum in our current kitchen. We have been throwing around different ideas and at the top of our list is cork, though we have some concern about its durability when it comes to 96 lb. golden retrievers. So last week during our trip to Ecohaus, we picked up a bundle of Vida cork planks. It’s a pre-finished click together system (no glue or fasteners). We assembled three of the planks (1′x3′ each) and “installed” them in Bailey’s #1 lounge spot (we’ll probably install another test area in a spot that gets more foot traffic). It will be interesting to see how the cork holds up to both his paws and his shedding. I’ve heard that cork is great at camouflaging dirt and food particles so let’s hope the same is true for pet hair!
So far, he doesn’t seem to mind.
The husband and I are a fan of cork after seeing, feeling, and walking on it in our friends condo. Having 2 dogs – one 58 lb, one 42 lb – we were never certain if the cork would hold up. You will have to let us know how is fares with a 96 lb Golden.
Over the next few weeks we will be tearing out our kitchen floor – all 3 layers – getting ready for new kitchen cabinets. Ugly linoleum flooring complete with nasty black tar paper stuff accompanied with glue. I forgot the the sub floor material that was under the 1 layer of press-on sticky flooring that didn’t stick so well.
Hey Michele,
We’ll be sure to do an update on the cork! I’ve also heard that cork is more of a concern if your dog has sharp nails, rather than just their overall size. Bailey doesn’t really scratch or use his nails that much, so maybe it won’t be too bad?
Good luck on the flooring! Let me know if you come up with any good methods for removing the old linoleum…I have a feeling ours will not give up easily.
-Lauren
I actually started to tear that floor out back in 2005, a rug now covers it so I my never have to look upon it. It took hours to do a section 3′ x 1′ – did I mention the hours.
I stumbled across Larry’s blog at Simpson’s Folly and was in horror. There it was our floor, actually his floor, and that black/gray STUFF – GLUE – all that horrible glue and black stuff.
I used everything under the sun to get the “stuff” off without killing myself or the pets. The orange spray stuff – just made the house smell bad and me cough. D&L hand cleaner on the real heavy spots, but soap and water works best.
Ughh…not looking forward to removing our linoleum! We considered just going over it but I think we really need to put down a new subfloor in that area. I wonder if one of those shovel tools that you use to remove roof shingles would work?
as someone who put a cork floating floor into their kitchen and dining— I LOVE it. For us, Home Depot had way better prices then Ecohaus, although I adore that store!
We don’t have a pet though…
We were told (both for our house, and for a public project that I am trying to spec cork in one space) that LOBA makes some great finish products for cork specifically. They sent my office a sample with 2 coats of LOBA on the cork and I literally could not scratch it. This would thought take away your ability to replace a piece of floating floor if you ever needed too. We didn’t do it on our place because we wanted to see if we really needed it. We have an extra box of the planks in the basement and if we start to notice scratching… we will replace damaged pieces and put on a finish!
Love your blog btw, us Seattle architects should hang out!
Thanks for the tip on the LOBA…is it a polyurethane product? The cork we picked out at Ecohaus has a wax finish which makes spot repairs a bit easier.