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Cork flooring work surface thoughts?

nahuebsch82

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Joined
Feb 7, 2013
Messages
444
Location
Portland, Or
This may be totaly off but I was reading about cork tile and flooring and it seems to be quite a resilient material to use. I was wanting to get thoughts on how well it might hold up as a work bench or tool box surface?
 
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James E

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Jun 21, 2010
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16,507
Location
Raleigh, NC
I have installed a couple snap-together cork floors and while I like it for walking on, I'm not so sure it would work on a bench top.

I think most cork flooring has a layer(s) of cork with a fiber or wood back for stiffness and a coating on the top for protection (scuff resistance and something to keep it from absorbing too much liquid when you spill).

The resilience of the material is great to walk on but it's susceptible to puncture or cutting--especially if you drop sharp and/or heavy items onto it. I know my benchtop gets sharp stuff dropped and dragged across it alot and I think cork wouldn't stand up to that very well.

For inside a tool box, I prefer foam or rubber. It's resilient but also holds tools in place. Stuff would just slide all over cork flooring. Bare cork might work better inside a toolbox but it would absorb oil and grease off of your tools. Cork would be a good material to cut tool outlines into and customize your tool drawers. I did this with foam but I think cork would look more cool.

Just my two cents and I hope this helps.
 
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lightn95

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Joined
Sep 2, 2012
Messages
89
ive installed a few cork floors (12"x12" or 12"x24" tiles) they look good for the first 2 months until they start to expand and contract. there usually 3/16" or 3/8" sold cork.once they scratch, the grains in the cork (which are round like pencil erasers) start to chip and tear off. then youll end up with a hole in the tile.


i woulnt use it for anything other then a cork board
 
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