Types Of Flooring

bamboo flooring

Composite wood products: This is a general term for wood-based panels made from wood pieces, particles, or fibers bonded together with resin. This ATCM focuses on three main products: hardwood plywood (HWPW), particleboard (PB), and medium-density fiberboard (MDF). Formaldehyde is emitted into the air from composite wood products when formaldehyde is released from urea-formaldehyde resin in composite wood products. Flooring consisting solely of bamboo veneers does not fall under the ATCM because such flooring is not specified in the ANSI/HPVA HP-1-2004 standard for hardwood and decorative plywood, which lists selected hardwoods and softwoods. Since bamboo is grass, bamboo is exempt from the CARB & ARCM regulations.

carpet

As an IICRC Carpet Inspector, I am familiar with many of the manufacturer’s warranty provisions in regards to what does and what does not constitute a defect in a carpet. In addition, as a CFI Certified Installer, I have a clear understanding of the standards of installation in both Residential and Commercial applications. CRI-104 & CRI-105

In some instances, normal characteristics of carpet may be mistaken for manufacturing defects. Examples of conditions that are not manufacturing defects and occur routinely in many carpet installations are listed below.

  • Appearance Change
  • Crushing
  • Matting or Crushing
  • Fading or Color Change
  • Cornrowing/Ridging
  • Depressions
  • Dye/texture variation
  • Filtration Soiling
  • Footprints

ceramic tile

The United States has a standards body known as ANSI, which stands for the American National Standards Institute. The organization monitors the Accredited Standards Committee on Ceramic Tile (A108, A118 and A137) to ensure that a fair set of standards are developed. The definition under 137.1 is: A ceramic surfacing unit, usually relatively thin in relation to facial area, made from clay or a mixture of clay and other ceramic materials, called the body of the tile, having either a glazed or unglazed face and fired above red heat in the course of manufacture to a temperature sufficiently high to produce specific physical properties and characteristics.
  • Ceramic Mosaic Tile
  • Quarry Tile
  • Paver Tile
  • Wall Tile

hardwood

There are usually two repetitive factors involved throughout the decision to purchase and install a hardwood floor. Solid or Engineered, Glue-Down or Nail-Down, Pre-Finished or Sand & Finish, Oil-Based seal/coat or Water-Based seal/coat, Seal-The Concrete – or not seal, have professionally installed or DIY. As a Certified FCITS, Hardwood inspector, I have inspected thousands of hardwood failures and am still taking advanced hardwood classes to more thoroughly understand the possibilities of why/how a failure occurs.

laminate

If you’re having your floor inspected, the industry standard is that he/she be a NALFA Inspector. North America Laminate Association was formed by the United States and Canadian manufacturers and importers of laminate flooring in 1997. NALFA is the only trade association dedicated to the laminate industry. NALFA’s primary purpose is to create voluntary product performance standards for laminate flooring. You should insist that the actual inspector evaluating your concern is the NALFA, (photo ID), Inspector and not sent out by a brokerage company who offers a local inspector with limited knowledge. NALFA is the litmus test others emulate.

vinyl flooring

Today’s Resilient Flooring, (Sheet Vinyl) consists of several categories, Homogeneous: Through-pattern/chip construction throughout entire thickness, Inlaid: Through-pattern/chip wear layer and Heterogeneous: Most but not all of these floors can be seamed with using a process called heat-welding, whereby a channel or groove is made at a panel to panel edge and a spool of like colored materials is heated/welded into this channel forming a homogenous joint/weld. The other process called topical or chemical sealing requires a specific clear sealant, (often two part epoxy type resin), to be applied onto the edges/seams in a workmanship manner, following the manufacturers specific instructions.