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CONTENTS:

INTRODUCTION TO FLOORING
SUB-FLOOR
TYPES OF FLOORING N USES
NEEDLE FELT FLOORING
SOFT FLOORING
WOOD FLOORING
CORK FLOORING
RESILIENT FLOORING
HARD FLOORING
SEAMLESS FLOORING
SUSTAINABLE FLOORING
PAVER FLOORING

FLOOR FEATURES
Flooring

Flooring is the general term for a permanent covering
of a floor, or for the work of installing such a floor
covering. Floor covering is a term to generically
describe any finish material applied over a floor
structure to provide a walking surface. Both terms are
used interchangeably but floor covering refers more to
loose-laid materials.

Subfloor
The floor under the flooring is called the subfloor.
This provides the support for the flooring. Special
purpose subfloors like floating floors, raised floors or
sprung floors may be laid upon another underlying
subfloor which provides the structural strength.

The sub-floor may be finished in a way that makes it
usable without any extra work, see:
Earthen floor adobe or clay floors

Flooring materials
The choice of material for floor covering is affected by
factors such as cost, endurance, noise insulation,
comfort and cleaning effort. Some types of flooring
must not be installed below grade (lower than ground
level), and laminate or hardwood should be avoided
where there may be moisture or condensation.

Soft coverings
Carpet is a floor covering woven or felted from natural
or man-made fibers. Fitted carpet is attached to the
floor structure, extends wall-to-wall, and cannot be
moved from place to place. An underlay can extend
carpet life and improve comfort.




fitted carpet
underlay carpet

Rugs are also woven or felted from fibers, but are
smaller than the room in which they are located, have
a finished edge, and usually lie over another finished
floor such as wood flooring. Rugs may either be
temporarily attached to the flooring below by adhesive
tape or other methods to prevent creep, or may be
loose-laid.

A carpet is a textile floor covering consisting of an
upper layer of "pile" attached to a backing. The pile is
generally either made from wool or a manmade fibre
such as polypropylene, and usually consists of twisted
tufts which are often heat-treated to maintain their
structure.


Carpet types

Woven
The carpet is produced on a loom quite similar to woven
cloth. The pile can be plush or berber. Plush carpet is a
cut pile and berber carpet is a loop pile. There are new
styles of carpet combining the two styles called cut and
loop carpeting.
Needlefelt
These carpets are more
technologically advanced.
Needle felts are produced
by electrostatic attraction
of individual synthetic
fibres forming an
extremely durable carpet.
These carpets are
normally found in the
contract market such as
hotels etc. where there is
a lot of traffic

Wood flooring
Many different species of wood are fabricated into wood
flooring in two primary forms: plank and parquet.
Bamboo flooring is a floor manufactured from the bamboo plant and is a type of
hardwood flooring, though technically not a wood. Bamboo is known to be durable
and environmentally friendly. It is available in many different patterns, colors, and
textures.
Laminate
It is a floor covering that appears similar to hardwood but is
made with a plywood or medium density fiberboard
("MDF") core with a plastic laminate top layer. HDF
laminate consists of high density fiberboard topped by one
or more layers of decorative paper and a transparent
protective layer. Laminate may be more durable than
hardwood, but cannot be refinished like hardwood.
Laminate flooring is available in many different patterns
which can resemble different woods or even ceramic tile. It
usually locks or taps together.

Cork Flooring

Cork flooring is a wood based
flooring product made entirely from
cork material, which is obtained from
the bark of the cork oak tree
(Quercus Suber). The primary reason
that cork floors are considered a
green product is because they are
made from a renewable resource. The
process of harvesting cork (the bark)
from the cork oak tree does not harm
the tree, allows it to re-grow its bark
and continuously be harvested
throughout its lifespan. Cork is a very
durable material and cork floors can
last a lifetime with proper care and
maintenance.
One interesting benefit of cork flooring is
the fact it's a great insulator of heat and
cold.
Resilient flooring
Resilient flooring is made of material that has some
elasticity. It includes many different manufactured
products including linoleum, sheet vinyl, vinyl
composition tile (VCT), cork (sheet or tile), rubber,
and others. Performance surfaces used for dance or
athletics are made of either wood or resilient flooring.

Hard flooring

Ceramic tiles
A tile is a manufactured piece of hard-wearing
material such as ceramic, stone, metal, or even glass.
Tiles are generally used for covering roofs, floors,
walls, showers, or other objects such as tabletops.
Alternatively, tile can sometimes refer to similar units
made from lightweight materials such as perlite, wood,
and mineral wool, typically used for wall and ceiling
applications.
Terrazzo
It consists of marble or other stone aggregate set in mortar and
ground and polished to a smooth surface.
Terrazzo workers create walkways, floors, patios, and panels by
exposing marble chips and other fine aggregates on the surface
of finished concrete or epoxy-resin. Much of the preliminary
work of terrazzo workers is similar to that of cement masons.
Marble-chip, cementitious terrazzo requires three layers of
materials. First, cement masons or terrazzo workers build a solid,
level concrete foundation that is 3 to 4 inches deep. After the
forms are removed from the foundation, workers add a 1-inch
layer of sandy concrete. Before this layer sets, terrazzo workers
partially embed metal divider strips in the concrete wherever
there is to be a joint or change of color in the terrazzo. For the
final layer, terrazzo workers blend and place into each of the
panels a fine marble chip mixture that may be color-pigmented.
While the mixture is still wet, workers toss additional marble
chips of various colors into each panel and roll a lightweight
roller over the entire surface.

Mosaic
Mosaic is the art of creating images with an
assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or
other materials. It may be a technique of decorative
art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and
spiritual significance as in a cathedral. Small pieces,
normally roughly cubic, of stone or glass of different
colors, known as tesserae, (diminutive tessellae), are
used to create a pattern or picture.

Seamless chemical flooring
Many different seamless flooring materials are available. These are
usually latex, polyester, urethane or epoxy compounds which are
applied in liquid form to provide a completely seamless floor covering.
These are usually found in wet areas such as laboratories or food
processing plants. These may have granular or rubberized particles
added to give better traction.



Sustainable flooring
Sustainable flooring is produced from sustainable materials (and by a
sustainable process) that reduces demands on ecosystems during its
life-cycle. Some think that sustainable flooring creates safer and
healthier buildings and guarantees a future for traditional producers of
renewable resources that many communities depend on.

Paver flooring
An interlocking concrete paver is a pre-cast piece of
concrete or brick commonly used in exterior hardscaping
applications. Developed in Europe and introduced into the
United States in the early 1970s.
Interlocking paving stones are installed over a compacted
stone sub-base and a leveling bed of sand, concrete paving
stones can be used for walkways, patios, pool decks and
driveways and airport or loading docks.
Instead of connecting the pavers by pouring grout between
the joints, as one would with tiles, sand particles are spread
over the pavers and tamped down. The sand stabilizes the
interlocking pavers, yet allows for some flexibility. In other
words, this type of pavement will absorb stress such as
small earthquakes, freezes and thaws, and slight ground
erosion by shifting each tile slightly. Therefore, they will
not crack or buckle like concrete.

Floor features
There are a number of special features that may be used to
ornament a floor or perform a useful service:
. Doormats to help keep a floor clean
Gratings used to drain water or to rub dirt off shoes
Tactile or rumble strips to warn of for instance a wheelchair
ramp, these would normally also be distinctively colored or
patterned.
Light strips to show an escape route out, especially on
airplanes.
Moldings or baseboards to decorate the sides of a floor or
to cover the edge of a floating floor.
Anti-Slip Devices The addition of either granular or
rubberized particles that will allow wheels, shoes, or feet
better traction.

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