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Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

Thank you to The Carpet and Rug Institute for sponsoring this post about environmentally-friendly flooring!  All opinions are 100% my own! 

With two toddlers, a dog and two cats carpet was a must have throughout our home when we were going through the building/design process.  Carpet provides comfort, warmth, and style (you can read more about my thoughts on it here) but did you know it is an environmentally-friendly flooring option?  The Carpet and Rug Institute shares a lot of great information on their website about the sustainable aspects of carpet, as well as how to install carpet and the best way to clean it.  They are also running a sweepstakes at The Beauty of Carpet where you can enter to win a $250 Visa gift card.  Make sure to check them out!

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

the girls spend a lot of time playing on the carpeted floor of our playroom!

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

Earth Day is Monday April 22nd.  In honor of Earth Day, I'm really excited to share some of the environmental benefits of having carpet in your home!  The fact that carpet is an earth friendly option might not even cross your mind when deciding on your flooring.  Carpet works the best for us in our home with young children and pets.  It is easiest to keep clean and looking clean.  The hardwood floors we have downstairs show dirt and dust so quickly after cleaning them!  The girls are always playing on the floor, so we like giving them a comfortable surface to play on.  I've rounded up 4 reasons why carpet is a great, environmentally-friendly flooring option.  Keep reading below!

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

One - Carpet Can Improve Indoor Air Quality

Did you know that carpet is one of the lowest emitters of volatile organic compounds (VOC) among household building materials?  We try our best to purchase low VOC items especially with little ones in our home!  Most carpet meets the industry’s strict standards for VOCs, which you can find by looking for carpet in CRI's Green Label Plus program.  Carpet also can act as an air filter by trapping dust particles, which removes them from the air.  This can help people greatly who suffer from asthma and allergies. 

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

I love layering rugs over carpet (also in our bedroom) as seen above in Madison's room

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

enjoying her toys while big sis was over at Grandmas house

Two - Carpet Can Be Recycled

If you are remodeling your home and changing out your carpet, you might be able to recycle the old carpet!  Close to 5 billion pounds of carpet has been diverted from landfills and recycled since 2002.  Used carpet materials can actually be put back into carpet production.  It can also be turned into building materials and auto parts! 

If you aren’t quite ready for new carpet, you can look for the CRI Seal of Approval logo to identify products and equipment that will effectively clean your current carpet without causing damage.  The CRI Seal of Approval helps lengthen the life of carpet and in turn, lessens the time that carpet needs to be replaced.

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

always an animal (or two or three) in our photos 

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

again, love laying rugs over our carpet for a fun and interesting look 

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

Three - Recycled Materials

More often, carpet is made of recycled materials like plastic bottles, glass, and fishing nets, keeping  this waste out of landfills and lessening the industry’s reliance on limited natural resources.  Carpet also can be made from renewable resources, like corn and soybeans.  McKinlee's mattress was actually made from soybeans, and it was a great mattress! 

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

I love having carpeted stairs.  I can't imagine hard wood stairs with little ones! 

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

our living room is luckily carpeted since we spend a lot of time playing with the girls on the floor here 

Four - Sustainability and Resource Conservation

Today, carpet manufacturers have sustainability front of mind.  They are highly focused on resource conservation, such as reducing water and energy use.  Many carpet manufacturers work hard to create zero waste during the manufacturing process.

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

we have a second family room upstairs, and it is another great space for the girls to play and hang out 

Carpet is a Must-have

As you can tell from our photos, we love spending time playing on the floor!  Carpet is so soft and comfortable to hang out on with the girls.  It was definitely important for when the girls were learning to crawl and walk, especially!

Enter to Win - $250 Visa Gift Card

I'd love to hear if you have mostly carpet in your home.  Did you think about environmental factors when deciding on carpet in your home?   Make sure to visit CRI's website for more information on carpet, carpet trends, and best practices!  Don't forget to enter the sweepstakes at The Beauty of Carpet for a chance to win a $250 Visa gift card.  Good luck!  Thank you so much for reading!  

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Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet

3 comments on “Environmentally-friendly Flooring - The Green Benefits of Carpet”

  1. We have carpet throughout the house except for the kitchen and baths. Im looking to replace it because I have pets. This would help us

  2. Awesome blog! Is your theme custom made or did you download it from somewhere? A theme like yours with a few simple tweeks would really make my blog shine. Please let me know where you got your design. Kudos

  3. It really surprised me to read how recyclable carpet flooring can be. We were planning to help Aunt Francisca remodel her entire house as a surprise for her 50th birthday and we were skeptical if carpet flooring was gonna be a good choice because of how environmentally-harmful it might have been. Now that we know that this is not an issue, we'll definitely look into getting a carpet flooring contractor to help us out. Thank you!

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