Showing posts with label Green Hardwood. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Green Hardwood. Show all posts

Thursday, January 25, 2018

The Many Advantages of Wood Flooring


Wood flooring is beautiful in every home and creates a feeling of warmth and friendliness unsurpassed by any other type of flooring.

Suitable to all types of architecture and decor, wood flooring enables you to create or enhance any design scheme. There is a large choice of wood species from which to choose, each having its own color, feel and charm. Add that to today’s choices in stains and finishes, and the possibilities are endless and exciting.

We’re experts at helping you pick the perfect wood, stain and finish for your home or project. Call us for a free home estimate or to set an appointment to visit our showroom.

Because of wood’s ability to reflect light, a wood floor will brighten and “enlarge” your room. Should a room be too wide, or too narrow, you can change the perceived shape of the space by the way in which the boards are laid. The eye naturally follows the directional flow of the wood, adding “length”.

In addition to evoking a feeling of warmth, wood is an efficient thermal insulator- better than most structural materials. Given the critical condition of our energy resources, and the high cost of fuel, heat loss in the home is a large concern. Here in toasty Tampa, wood floors add comfort. You can kick off your shoes at the end of the day and feel refreshed as your feet touch the cool wood floor. Where beauty and insulating value are desirable, wood is always your first choice.

YOUR FAMILY'S HEALTH…
The Environmental Protection Agency recently conducted a study of pesticides used in gardens and homes and found that once tracked inside, these poisons accumulate on floors and other surfaces. While the poisons outside soon wash away, those tracked into your home may last for years. These poisons are then absorbed by your bare feet, by your children playing and your baby crawling on the floor.

The EPA suggests that wood flooring greatly reduces the amount of pesticides accumulating in your home because a simple mopping easily removes the poisons from your floors.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has received many complaints of toxic fumes in homes, caused by new carpeting. Sadly, after the carpeting has been in your home for a period of time, dirt and mold may accumulate in its fibers.

A noted authority on indoor air quality states, “Carpet holds large quantities of dirt, only some of which is removed by vacuuming or carpet cleaning. This dirt contains various allergic, irritating and toxic components. A wood floor is healthful in Tampa, with its high humidity and sandy soil.”

Additionally, the active ingredient often found in carpet shampoos (which frequently leave residues) is a known human carcinogen. Other common carpet shampoo components have been found to cause such effects as liver and central nervous system damage from long-term exposure.

A solid wood floor is more than just a covering; it adds strength and stability to the floor system. A wood floor is a safe and healthful floor.

…AND WEALTH
A large majority of real estate agents surveyed stated that a home with wood flooring will sell more quickly and for a higher amount of money than a comparable home with any other type of flooring. Look through a Tampa newspaper or home sale publication and you’ll see “hardwood floors” listed as a top feature! They are in demand!

A sound investment here in Tampa, hardwood flooring can last the lifetime of your home, unlike other flooring materials which require replacement after about seven to ten years.

There are floors today, dating back to Renaissance Europe that are still structurally sound and beautiful. In comparison, the stone steps leading up to them are deeply worn and irregular. Here in Tampa, hardwood floors in historic homes are a prized feature. Because it is a permanent part of your home, your wood floor’s value increases as your home appreciates in dollar value.

YOUR PLANET
US Forest Service statistics show that almost twice as much hardwood timber is added every year through new growth as is harvested. The forest from which your floor comes is replenished, not depleted.

A strong market for exotic woods will create an economic value for our endangered rain forests, which will encourage their protection. Currently, the majority of rain forest destruction is the result of forest lands being burned in order to convert the land to agricultural use. Maintaining the forests for selective cutting and natural harvesting (rubber, nuts, medicinal plants, etc.) makes far more sense than the burning of thousands of acres of these trees. By increasing demand for rain forest products, we will increase economic reliance upon the forests and promote their conservation.

It is estimated that 2% of the waste materials making up our landfills is rolls of used carpeting. This huge waste will take about 20,000 years for nature to digest. The life span of a hardwood floor can be well over 100 years and if it should ever be taken up and discarded, it’s biodegradable!

Many people love the look of antique woods, recycling old warehouses, barns, and other structures, giving these materials second lives.

Wood is a natural, earth-friendly, product.

EASY CARE
Your grandmother probably spent many hours on her hands and knees, waxing her wood floors. No more! With today’s scientifically formulated finishes, you will spend little time keeping your floors shiny and clean. There are cleaning products specially created for wood floors which will ensure that they sparkle and have a long and beautiful life. Manufacturers have developed durable finishes, able to withstand your family’s active lifestyle and keep your floors looking great.

To request a free estimate, call us at 813.232.3985 or fill in our free estimate form.

Saturday, January 20, 2018

Green Hardwood Floors - Our Part


THE PROBLEM
Until the energy crunch of the 80’s, we devoured our planet’s resources as though there is a limitless supply. We are discovering that our supply is finite, and that as stewards we must change our ideas of how to capture and utilize energy. We must reuse our waste so that it aids our survival rather than burying us and polluting our air and water.

In the face of global warming, we are realizing that our impact on the health of our environment has real consequences for each one of us.

THE SOLUTION
Tampa Historic PreservationSustainable building has been defined as building that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Having walked on wood floors that are over 100 years old, I would say that wood flooring is a sustainable material. The best thing about wood is that is beautiful and timeless. A homeowner is not likely to curse earlier residents for having installed it, and feel the need to tear it out to cart it away to the landfill.

OUR WORLD FORESTS
Over 10 million acres, almost 1% of African forests are lost every year. People, desperate to feed their families hack out plots for small-scale farming. Hundreds of them go to the forest each day to work their pineapple and cocoa farms.

In the Amazon and throughout South America, forests are burned for cattle grazing or large scale soybean farming.

In Indonesia and elsewhere in southeast Asia, island forests are being cut or burned to make way for giant plantations of palm, whose oil is used in food processing, cosmetics and other products.

We support sustainable forestry which promotes management practices that ensure long-term timber production while maintaining the ecological health and balance of the forest. Sustainable forestry is about prompt reforestation, protecting water quality, and wildlife habitat, maintaining cultural and historical sites, providing for recreational use, and generally respecting the forest ecosystem.

Woods produced through such practices are commercially more available now than ever before. On the 486 million acres of forestland in the United States classified as commercial, substantially more wood is added in new growth each year than is harvested. For hardwood species, from which most wood flooring is milled, 86 percent more wood is added annually in net growth than is removed through harvest.

OUR PART

Through the Woods was the only wood flooring contractor invited to attend Renew Tampa: Making Preservation Greener! — organized by the Tampa Bay Chapter of the American Institute of Architects’ Architectural Heritage Committee. The weekend conference promoted a greener architectural heritage by assisting participants in shaping tomorrow’s ideal environment, through architectural preservation and design that is environmentally sensitive.

At the recent National Wood Flooring Association’s yearly convention we spoke with many manufacturers about their products in our constant research for earth-friendly materials. This experimentation with low-VOC finishes is continuous as new products constantly hit the market.

We are also committed to promoting brands of wood that are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), a non-profit organization devoted to encouraging the responsible management of the world’s forests. FSC sets high standards that ensure forestry is practiced in an environmentally responsible, socially beneficial, and economically viable way.

RESOURCES
In our research for green products and services, we have found many folks who are committed to ensuring that our planet will support life for generations to come.

Visit our Green Glossary to learn the basics of preserving our precious resources.

To request a free estimate, call us at 813.232.3985 or fill in our free estimate form.

Tampa Hardwood Flooring Buyer's Guide

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