The unique natural qualities of cork make it an environmentally friendly material for the control of sound transmission in hard surface flooring applications.
With nearly 200 million completely sealed air filled cells per cubic inch, the physical structure of cork makes it a very effective acoustic insulating material. This same physical structure also provides cork with the ability to be constantly compressed and yet recover nearly 100% of its original shape and size.
These combined benefits make cork an ideal and environmentally friendly choice for sound control underlayment applications.
An Environmentally Friendly Product
Unlike solid wood, composite wood products, paper and other so called "renewable resources"; Cork is a truly renewable resource. No trees are cut down to make cork products. Cork Oak trees in Portugal and other cork harvesting countries are protected by law. The product that we know as cork consists of the bark of the Cork Oak tree. The bark is stripped from the trunk of the tree every 9 to 12 years. This process actually enhances the life span of the tree. Without being periodically harvested, the life span of a Cork Oak would be considerably shorter than the 150 to 200 years seen in cultivated trees. Also, the manufacturing process of cork products produces a near zero waste stream and results in no toxic emissions.