Before You Buy A Bamboo Floor
There's more to know about bamboo floors than that they are beautiful, durable, and environmentally sustainable. However, let's start with those three characteristics.
Beauty and Appearance
Available in a variety of colors and hues, the subtle unique grain pattern makes bamboo a stunning addition to any room.
The way that the bamboo stalk is cut also plays a major role in the appearance of a bamboo floor.
Vertical-Cut
Vertical-cut bamboo accentuates the linear appearance of the grain, making the flooring look more like most hardwoods at first glance.
Horizontal-Cut
Horizontal-cut bamboo emphasizes the unique nature of bamboo by making the characteristic nodes extremely visible.
Durability
Some species of bamboo floors are harder than oak and more durable than maple. Different species of bamboo have different durability levels. In addition to species, the maturity of the stalk can impact strength of the floor. Bamboo harvested between five and six years of age offers the highest levels of fiber density.
Resistance to wear varies, depending on the wear layer applied by each manufacturer. Many bamboo floors come with a 25-year foot-traffic warranty.
Environmentally Sustainable
Bamboo replenishes itself every three to five years, making it one of the most environmentally friendly, naturally renewable flooring products available.
The harvesting of bamboo has virtually no impact on the plant or the environment. By harvesting bamboo instead of hardwood, over-harvesting of forests is reduced, helping to protect our planet's climate and environment.
Bamboo is renewable, recyclable, and biodegradable. Bamboo is considered the ultimate "green" flooring option because it provides the benefits of hardwood, with none of the negative environmental impact.
Humidity
Humidity levels can be a double-edged sword for bamboo floors.
Because bamboo contracts and expands 50% less than hardwood, bamboo is often considered ideal for climates with large swings in humidity, such as in and around Columbus, Ohio.
Total Cost
The square-foot or square-yard price of bamboo is just one component of the entire project cost. Here's a list of other issues that can play into the final cost of your bamboo floor:
- Furniture Removal and Replacement
- Removal and Disposal of Old Floor Covering
- Sub-Floor Preparation (if necessary)
