It’s easy to think that just because wood is a natural material, you are making an environmentally-friendly choice when you install wood flooring in your home. This may be the case, but only if you choose a manufacturer which has certain ‘green’ qualities.

In the first part of this guide, we covered the following green qualities that the ideal wood flooring manufacturer should have:

1. FSC or PEFC certification
2. Chain-of-Custody certification
3. Environmental management systems in factories

Now let’s look at a few more:

4. Low VOC emissions. Many man-made flooring products can contain and gradually release Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) which can cause health problems. You should look for wood flooring manufacturers with a proven record for making products with low VOC emissions.

5. Products require fewer chemicals to clean and maintain. Wood flooring which has been surface treated and properly finished requires less cleaning with chemical products, which can be environmentally harmful.

6. Company operates a reuse and recycle policy. In as many of its practices as possible, wood flooring manufacturers should be reusing and recycling. For example, using old wood flooring as an energy source or reusing it in another way.