Walk into a restaurant and it may be beautiful but often quite noisy. Why, because more often than not everyone is competing to be heard, from the kitchen staff to the diners. Hard surfaces such as drywall, windows, tile floors and metal ceilings tend to reflect the sound of voices, background music and production noise. All these sound waves bouncing back into a room creates a dense reverberant profile. What becomes then of a quiet meal. It turns into a shouting contest. How can you as the restaurateur do some damage control and attract further customers?

Look to cork. Yes, this nature-made material works as a sound insulator or inhibitor and can tone done the noise that bounces off the walls and floors of your eating establishment. Truth, we are not playing up this material. Cork is currently being used in hospitals and libraries for its sound dampening qualities. Check out the Library of Congress, where a cork floor has been in use for over a century now. We believe this makes cork a great tool to utilize in restaurants as well.

What makes this possible within cork? Its very genetic structure. That’s what we mean by nature-made. Cork is a natural material that by its own composition competes with and actually outshines several synthetics. First and foremost, cork is set up similar to a honeycomb with 30-40 million air-tight cells per cubic centimeter, a perfect barrier. On the floor. On the wall. You now have a barrier that will absorb and disperse sound waves. Imagine what it can do in a restaurant, whether you are running a comfy country diner or a Michelin-star establishment. Secondly, unlike its synthetic counterparts, cork is 100% biodegradable and sustainable. The cork oak tree, from which all cork products are derived is only stripped of its outer bark to provide the usable material. No tree is felled. With life spans upwards of 150 years, this give us a highly renewable and sustainable resource.

Why do we at iCork Floor recommend cork. It’s simple. This one material can do effective walling and flooring sound insulation, and we carry the products to get it done for you. Do we believe in cork? You better believe it. We not only distribute our cork products; we are also the importer and work directly with our manufacturer. We know our cork flooring because we specialize only in cork.

Use our 5/16 inch or 8mm cork tiles to create walling that can cut sound by up to 18 decibels. We carry a variety of colors and patterns to accentuate your décor or get artistic and mix and match for a unique atmosphere.

Take advantage of our cork flooring, available in thicknesses from 6mm or ¼ inch up to 12mm or 1/2inch. We suggest our Fusion Cork Floating Floor line for the best performance in high traffic areas such as restaurants.

Don’t want to use cork as the surface product, no problems, go with cork underlay and still have all the sound proofing abilities beneath the walling or flooring of your choice. Our underlay works beneath most traditional materials. And don’t hesitate to speak with one of our representatives on any questions or concerns.