Today, we have advanced greatly in all of the material technologies that make up our flooring materials. But even with all of our technological advancements, we are still using the same base materials: Carpet, wood, stone, clay and concrete. The main factors in a flooring-material decision should include the financial impact the flooring has on your budget, the aesthetic impact the flooring material will have on the look you are trying to achieve and the environmental impact a flooring-material choice will have on the local and global environment.
To create a comparison between flooring materials, it is possible to describe differences in cost, and it is also possible to describe differences in environmental impact, but the aesthetic value will have to be determined by the buyer when choosing flooring. However, the fact that all of the materials listed below will have inherent aesthetic beauty cannot be denied.
The costs stated below are estimated averages obtained through interviews with local suppliers and installers in the Honolulu area. Costs may be higher or lower depending on the installer or supplier used.
The environmental impact is expressed as high, medium or neutral and is based upon source materials, transportation, life expectancy, lifetime maintenance, carbon footprint, recycling ability and landfill impacts:
Carpet:
• Average cost per square foot: $7.50
• This material is placed over a wood or concrete subfloor
• Carpet is $5 sq/ft
• Installation: $2.50 sq/ft
• Environmental impact: High
Bamboo:
• Average cost per square foot: $10
• This material is placed over a wood or concrete subfloor
• Bamboo is $5 sq/ft
• Installation: $5 sq/ft
• Environmental impact: Neutral
Hardwood Flooring:
• Average cost per square foot: $11
• This material is placed over a wood or concrete subfloor
• Bamboo is $8 sq/ft
• Installation: $3 sq/ft
• Environmental impact: Medium
Ceramic Porcelain Tile:
• Average cost per square foot: $11
• This material is placed over a wood or concrete subfloor
• Tile is $5 sq/ft
• Materials: Thinset, grout, sealer are $3 sq/ft
• Setting cost: $3 sq/ft
• Environmental impact: Medium
Travertine Tile:
• Average cost per square foot: $15 sq/ft
• This material is placed over a wood or concrete subfloor
• Tile is $5 sq/ft
• Installation materials: Thinset, grout, sealer are $3 sq/ft
• Setting cost: $7 sq/ft
• Environmental impact: Medium
Diamond-Polished Existing Concrete:
• Average cost per square foot: $7
• Concrete has traditionally been used as a base on which to place other flooring-materials. Now, through diamond polishing, existing concrete can be honed, colored and sealed to be used as a finish floor surface that never has to be replaced or sent to a landfill. The process is not to add flooring material but to use the concrete that you already have, which creates an aesthetically pleasing, affordable and environmentally neutral choice in flooring materials.
• Environmental impact: Neutral
Affordability, beauty and utility are in the eye of the beholder. The choice in flooring lies in whether to remove old flooring from the concrete subfloor and replace it with another flooring material or remove the old flooring and use the concrete flooring that is right under our feet.
ADDRESS: 518 KAMANI ST.
CONTACT: 596-8833
WEBSITE: www.lokahisurfaces.com
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