Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Re CH kitchen flooring

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

> On Feb 21, 2019, at 12:08 PM, Lynn Nadeau / Maraiah <welcome [at] 
> olympus.net> wrote:
> 
> RoseWind in Port Townsend WA
> We have had our Marmoleum floor for 19 years now. I also have it in my home 
> of 23 years.
> Advantages: Environmentally friendly, attractive, resilient (dishes 
> practically bounce if dropped).
> Cons: Needs official installer, not cheap, will gouge if a hard heavy metal 
> object is dropped on it, corrodes from harsh chemicals such as may splash 
> from commercial-type dishwasher.

We replaced linoleum fit together planks a number of years ago. Do not use 
these. Easy to install but seep water and degrade very quickly. We put  in 
solid sheet Marmoleum which  has worked much better for all the reasons Maraiah 
mentioned.

Marmoleum should last “forever” if it is cared for. The color and pattern go 
all the way through the product so it looks the same when worn. BUT it does 
require polishing/sealing at least 3 times a year. I don’t know why they call 
it polish — it’s really a clear surface, like hard wax.

It also stretches after installation so plan for an adjustment a year or so 
out. The floor people came back and refit one side to take up the slack. It 
will also wear if the subfloor is not smooth. We have a transition to another 
subfloor and feet have worn off the surface over a board that isn’t level.

> I apply a quality high-solids floor wax about 3x a year, in between damp 
> mopping is enough. 

We use a professional company 2x a year and it isn’t enough. They also use 
machines to take off the old polish and they  wear down the floor. The last 
time, they left scratches in the surface on the corridors that look  like 
someone has dragged heavy boxes over  it. They hadn’t. The scratches are too 
regular and go the width of the corridor. It was the brushes on the machine.

They  won’t do the floors more than twice a year because it wears them out!!!!! 
Like why are you doing this if you are just wearing out the floors. I haven’t 
had the energy to take this on but we need to put on polish ourselves much more 
frequently and just ask them to remove all of it once a year. The floors would 
be much easier to maintain and look fresh and new. Things could easily be wiped 
up. Sweeping would be easier. As our floor man said, “Someone came late to the 
maintenance party.”

We are in the process of redesigning and redoing the kitchen so I haven’t 
pressed it. The Marmoleum may not fit the new plan. But it hurts my Zen 
sensibilities to have it looking so dull and the surface wearing off. 

I understand why people like vinyl tile in kitchens. The linoleum in my 
grandmother's kitchen had been there at least 50 years but it was polished 
regularly.

I think Marmoleum is still the best option. It’s a wood product so sustainable. 
And soft and quiet.

Sharon
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Sharon Villines
Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
http://www.takomavillage.org