Has anyone out there used cork for the flooring in their shop? I’m about to try an experiment and lay down 1/4″(6mm) cork underlayment as the direct flooring surface in my new shop. After years of working on concrete, it’ll be nice to have a resilient surface under foot.
As I see it, the advantages are:
1. Easier to stand on all day.
2. Provides a level of additional insulation on the floor.
3. Reflects radiant heat back into the room.
4. Acoustically neutral (will help with machine noise).
5. Looks better than ply subfloor.
My only reservation is wear and tear. I’m not worried about the odd nick or gouge, but if normal traffic starts to break it down and it disintegrates, that would be a problem. I’ve had a test patch on the floor for a few weeks and it seems durable enough… but I’d like to know if anyone has any long-term experience with cork flooring in their shop.
Replies
The R value of cork is only 3.1/inch. If you really hoping for some insulating value I'd look elsewhere. Your using fairly thin cork so your 2-4 probably don't apply, and I'd have my doubts on 1 as well.
I'm a little sceptical about using cork underlayment as the main surface in a workshop. It doesn't seem to be the most floor friendly environment, and underlay is just that... it's not meant to be used on top.
Then again... if you don't like plywood your options are limited.
I have R30+ underneath between the floor joists, so insulation is not the main factor. It's the cushioning and sound control that I really like. I'm told by many people that even 1/4" will go a long way toward preventing fatigue vs. a floor with no "give" like concrete. I'm not sure about the amount of sound control, so I'll have to see on that one.I share your concern about using underlayment, but it's $0.55/sqf vs. cork flooring tile @ ~$2.50/sqf. I'm sure there is some difference between the two in terms of durability, but I'm not going to experiment at 5x the price.
It has good bounce back (for when you drop that chisel)
it's water resiliant
eco friendly because its made from bark
it should hold up ok, but how much do you work in there
check with a flooring shop they could tell you more
I'm just sayin'
Edited 10/14/2008 4:49 pm ET by andyfew322
Andy- I like your additional points. It's not a commercial shop, so it won't have a ton of traffic. I think it's worth a try. If it doesn't work out, it's underlayment! I'll just put something else over it.If it works out, I'll have something to recommend here in the forum.
That's great, keep us posted
I'm just sayin'
Wow Andy! Are you really 15 years old? Great to see that there are still kids as interested in the woodshop as they are in an XBox.
yeah really. there was another kid here once, that didnt last. it is sad though I am one of only a few in the school who actually like carpentry.
I'm just sayin'
I am a contractor by trade and have done many additions where cork has been laid as a finished floor. Even in a few high traffic areas like kitchens. At our yearly follow up, the floors were holding up as well as hardwood. Keep in mind that they were finished like hardwood. Good luck.
I just looked up cork flooring underlayment and found a reference to it at Home Depot. It comes in 200 square foot rolls (48 inches wide), for $118.00. Pretty inexpensive.
However, there was something in the specifications chart that I found puzzling: "Reduces thermal transmission, increasing the effectiveness of floor heating systems."
If adding cork underlayment reduces thermal transmission, wouldn't that *decrease* the effectiveness of floor heating systems? Am I missing something here?
Zolton If you see a possum running around in here, kill it. It's not a pet. - Jackie Moon
Yeah Zolton, I saw the HomeDepot listing and tried to order it from them, but once you get to checkout, it says they no longer carry it online. What a bonehead website. Couldn't they just remove the item if they no longer carry it? Anyway, I found the same stuff at Shock Flooring (another web merchant) for $110 per roll.Regarding your question about cork "reducing thermal transmission, increasing the effectiveness of floor heating systems."... since the cork is 'underlayment', they mean that the cork goes down first on top of the subfloor, then the heating lines/coils, and then whatever flooring on top (tile, wood, etc.). Therefore, the cork prevents heat loss into the subfloor and reflects it upwards into the top flooring and into the room.Because it's cheap and in a shop, I'm using this underlayment as my flooring surface (I'm not putting anything on top).Edited 10/15/2008 11:38 am ET by rdasilvaEdited 10/19/2008 9:25 pm ET by rdasilva
Edited 10/19/2008 9:25 pm ET by rdasilva
I think it sounds like a great idea, I considered it also.. But if I recall correctly, the cork flooring priced out at ~$3.50 sq ft or more.. Needless to say the price scared me off..
Cork tile is expensive. That's why I'm going with cork underlayment in rolls... it's only .55/sqf. I'm a bit nervous since true cork tile is supposed to be denser and has been tested for high traffic and wear. The underlayment stuff is not as dense and not really designed to be exposed, so I'm crossing my fingers that it'll be okay. Though if it's not, I'll just cover it with something else.
What's under the cork?
My shop is the basement with a concrete floor. I put down the 2' X 2' 1/2" foam rubber interlocking mats everywhere you can walk.
Soft on the feet and back and never damages a fallen tool.
I've paid anywhere from $ .35 to $ .40 as SF
ASK
1-1/4" ply subfloor over 2x12 joists, 12" on center. Not quite as unforgiving as concrete, but it's a very solid floor designed for garage loads so it doesn't have much "give".
I thought about the foam tiles as well, but where did you find them for $0.40/sqf? The cheapest I can find is double that.
My price may not be totally accurate but I bought them at Pep Boys Auto Supply.
Brooklyn NY and Hackensack NJ
I paid various prices over the years from $7.00 to $12.00 approximately for 8 pieces 2' X 2'.
ASK
I've been using the black, foam, interlocking squares that usually show up in Costco for about $15/four squares. Each is roughly 30" x 30", so that's about $1.66 per square foot. It's about 1/2" thick, so the cushioning is superb and the R value is higher than cork. I've had it down for 6 years now, and the wear is negligible. It lays flat with no mastic, making it easy to replace.
As a stop gap I have used the same things (from Sams) but they are hard to clean with a vac, and moving tools around on them is not good. Still they keep the feet warm in the winter and they are soft to stand on something my back likes. I will live with them until I can put in a wood floor on sleepers. (Should I live long enough to get that far down my to do list)
Doug M
ASK, I have those on my floor too. Or I did until I brought in the Unisaw, had to move all the other tools around, and haven't got everything settled yet. Therein lies a potention problem -- unless they're on pretty big casters, things don't roll super-well on those rubber pads. They are comfortable though! I'll put mine back down someday.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Jamie,
As an over reaction to having a really really small shop with a very very low ceiling in my previous weekend house when we moved to a bigger house with a really really big cellar with an 8' ceiling to the bottom of the joists I built a 7' X 8' work table with the table saw and router table integrated at one end. The other bench tools are on other tables elsewhere in the shop. So I don't have to move any of the tool around. The only time I had to pick up some of the tiles was after a really really heavy rain where I got an inch or twe of "dampness" on part of the floor. Picked up the tiles let the floor dry and put them down again. Funny that they didn't go down in the same way that they were. Don't think they changed size!!!
ASK
PS You posted my bubinga dining room table a year or so ago because I couldn't get the pictures to load. Well the buffet table is almost finished.
I've had cork floring in one room and a hallway in my house for about 5 years and I love it. It doesn't scratch, it has some give, it's comfortable to sit on, and when you rest heavy furniture on it for long periods of time, it leaves small dents that will bounce back after a few days.
Our hallway gets a lot of wear and tear and it has held up great. I got unfinished cork and applied one coat of oil-based varnish and two coats of water-based.
- Matt
Nice to know its tough. I keep wondering however if the weight of hundreds of pounds distributed on wheels would make it difficult to roll tools around. Cheers,Peter
Better life through Zoodles and poutine...
I'm not so worried about moving a heavy wheeled machine as I would be for moving the machine that has no wheels. I have moved my planer (700 + pounds on concrete and I would be afraid what it would do on cork.
Matt, how thick is the cork flooring in your house? What are your thoughts on how well tool-laden casters might roll on the cork?? It's an intriguing idea.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
This link is pretty much the exact tiles I purchased and installed. The write up on the page previous says they're 5/32 in. thick, although mine are 12 in. by 24 in. I also managed to buy mine for about $1.50 per square foot, because I found them on the closeouts/sale page of that Web site. I would highly recommend them and really think they would hold up to shop casters. I've been known to drag heavy dressers filled with cloths across the floor without any scratching or denting and those don't have wheels...
Edited 10/24/2008 11:46 am ET by MBerger
Matt, thanks for the info. Cork may be a great option for me to replace those rubber mats.
BTW, has anyone told you about that handy little "link" feature here at Knots? the one that enables to you to turn a few words into a hyperline for a lonnnnnnnggggg URL, and keeps the post text from running off the side of the monitor?? ROFL!!!!forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
:)
Unfortunately that helpful little tool doesn't work on Safari, which is what I use on my home machine at 7:30 a.m. Now that I'm on my work PC I'll go edit the post. It is very annoying...
Wow, that was fast! Happy Friday, Matt.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
What can I say. I'm addicted to my Knots email alerts...
What little link is that? Sounds handy.Cheers,Peter
Better life through Zoodles and poutine...
Hi, Peter. I think it only works if you're using Internet Explorer. So, if you are, look at the formatting area of the text composition box when you're writing a reply. Just under the "color" box you'll see a blue globe-like thing with two chain-links superimposed. That's your tool. So, if you want to make a hyperlink, say to a video of a bunch of people popping popcorn with their cell phones, you do the following :
copy the URL you're going to use
use the mouse to highlight the words you want to use for your link (weirdos popping popcorn), then
click on the globe icon
in the box that pops up, paste in the URL
click "OK"
Oh, just in case you're wondering -- the cell phone thing was a hoax, as explained at the bottom of this page.
If your browser's security is set to disallow scripts (I think that's what it's called), you'll have to give permission for the procedure. Usually, that allows the procedure for the rest of the browsing session.
forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Edited 10/24/2008 6:58 pm by forestgirl
Edited 10/24/2008 11:25 pm by forestgirl
Yeah, looks like an IE thingie. Oh well..
Better life through Zoodles and poutine...
Do you have the "Source" option just under the reply text box? (Next to WYSIWYG). You could always select that and type the HTML code. The ahref= string.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Nope..have none of those with Firefox :-(
Better life through Zoodles and poutine...
For a shop, where sawdust, oil, spirits, paint, dirt etc are present, I would mat the thing, either in free standing mats or interlocking rubber mats. Regards, Scooter "I may be drunk, but you're crazy, and I'll be sober tomorrow." WC Fields, "Its a Gift" 1934
I would generally agree Scooter, but this part of the shop will only see sawdust and maybe some tracked dirt. The cork seems to sweep as well as any wood floor. There is a completely separate finishing room for all liquid nasties.
So no glue either? So you have a separate glue room too?
I like your shop better than mine!
I just think rubber is the best product. Its no coincidence that the interlocking rubber mats are found in major gyms, shops and other areas to alieviate fatigue and to provide a good surface for cleaning. Its also cheap and easily repaired, e.g., replace a section by removing the interlocking section and replacing it.
I still think rubber is better, but hey, its your shop. Regards, Scooter "I may be drunk, but you're crazy, and I'll be sober tomorrow." WC Fields, "Its a Gift" 1934
How are the rubber pads?
I generally try to keep glue confined to the assembly table, if not on the workpiece. ;-) Minor spills and gouges are just a part of the patina of a working shop. My point was that any major spills (full can of stain, etc.) are not in the main shop.
I have nothing against rubber mats. I just needed to cover the floor with something; and I just don't think 1400 sq/ft of rubber mat would be that cheap. I could see putting mats in a few strategic places for extra comfort and spill "insurance" and I may just do that.
Thanks for your input.
I have the rubber mats that you can get at Sams Club in my shop as a temp. floor (Some day i will put in the wood sleepers, insulation and wood floor it is ment to have, should I live so long) They have a few nice things going for them, they are soft on the feet and I can spend a lot longer in the shop then when I was walking on the conc. They also provide enough insulation value to let me walk around in my socks (not something I do when I am working in the shop but something I do if I need to run out and get a tape or some such from the shop) so I figure they will help with the heating bill also.
Down side is that they do NOT vacume worth a d@#m as the vacum tries to pick them up. Also the dust (the fine stuff) gets into the cracks and only comes out with a vacume (catch 22) The big issue is that I have a few tools on rollers and these do not work well on the rubber matts.
Still I like them enough that I ended up covering the whole floor with them (for now).
Doug M.
i installed about 400 sqft of used laminate flooring in my doublecar garage 2 years ago with a decent but used underlay foam
its been great, powertools roll on it easily, a snap to keep swept, and really easy on my aging leg joints, and a dropped chisel heaven forbid, not a mark, on the chisel that is, who cares about the cheap floor in the garage
total cost if bought new maybe 500 bucks
heres a historical note, the original linolium flooring used in many,many houses in the early 20th century was made from cork as a base material, an the imprints an patterns of the originals r highly sought after an collectible. my back is envious
I have the finished cork tiles in my kitchen. The house is on a concrete slab. I can cook for four to six hours for Thanksgiving or Christmas, on my bare or stocking feet, and my feet don't get sore, (or cold) my back doesn't get sore, I can drop a knife or a glass, and pick it up and put it in the dishwasher rather than the trashcan... I love my cork floor. However, it is finished with the Aluminum oxide coating that Pergo has. I think if you do use just underlayment, you should put a finish of some kind on it.
That's what I'm thinking, the question is what kind of finish. It's got to be something that provides a film, but does not get brittle. Probably some kind of urethane.
This is just a shot in the dark but I wonder if rubber roofing would work. I wouldn't think that it would need to be overlapped.
We put the cork tiles in a home office a few years ago and love them. It is soft on the feet and looks good. I would not put them in my shop, I don't think they would hold up. Moving anythig around could tear them up, and dropping heavy boards or items like that might gouge them. They are great for regular rooms, but the shop is another story. The tiles we used were interlockling 12" x 12" squares. When installing on concrete (basement floor) a moisture barrier is also needed. They were not recommended for potentially wet areas.
Gottlieb
Most of my concrete workshop floor is covered with heavy rubber interlocking 3'x3' mats. They are very comfortable and when I drop something it is not damaged. Even with the open design they are fairly easy to vacuum. I use a shop vacuum with a wide attachment.
They are $20 each at Lowe's.
http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=155419-20787-0516836&detail=desc&lpage=none
Life is what happens to you when you're making other plans .
"Life is not a success only journey." Dr. Phil
Thought I'd post a picture of the cork floor going down. Actually, now that it's installed, I like it even more. It's tougher than I thought it would be yet has the resilience I was hoping for. Let's hope I feel the same in a year.
Looks great! Bring in a band and we'll have a dance.Frosty"I sometimes think we consider the good fortune of the early bird and overlook the bad fortune of the early worm." FDR - 1922
I agree - it looks great. Good luck with respect to its longevity.
this may not be what you are looking for but i have a pair of "ergomates" that are essentially antifatigue mats that attach to your shoes. they are rubber based on the bottom and have velcro straps that wrap around your shoes, i use them at work in a factory and they work great, i also have a pair at home attached to my shop shoes, they are perfect, wherever you go you are always cushioned. Your chisel is still going to chip on the concrete but you can't have it all, they only cost about $30.
Trying to bump/revive this old topic/thread about cork flooring in the shop...to see how it has held up over time. Status? Have you had any sizable machinery on it? Do it again? Regrets?
Am moving into a 1200sq/ft free standing shop--pole barn construction but no slab floor...it appears to have a post and beam covered with 2x6 T&G subfloor...covered with a layer of masonry cement (?) and then linoleum floor tiles.
Matt K
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