Bamboo flooring

Bamboo is an attractive alternative for flooring because of its physical similarities to hardwoods. It is an “Eco friendly”, an elegant, strong and durabe product that resists insects and moisture as well. The hardness of traditional bamboo flooring ranges from 1180 (carbonized horizontal) to around 1380 (natural) to over 5000 (strand woven) using the Janka hardness test. Other flooring materials have comparable Janka ratings, with a higher number indicating a harder material: red oak (1290); white oak (1360); rock maple (1450); and Brazilian Cherry / Jatoba (2350).

Bamboo is an eco-friendly, highly renewable source of material. As a grass, bamboo grows much faster than wood. Moso Bamboo is the primary species used for the manufacturing of flooring. Moso bamboo can grow up to 47 inches (120 cm) in 24 hours and 78½ feet (24 m) high in 40 to 50 days. It takes about 3–5 years for bamboo to reach full maturity. Traditional hard woods can take 20–120 years to mature.
In its natural environment it will need no irrigation, no pesticides, and no fertilizer. Bamboo has few pests so pesticides are not required. Bamboo certified to the standards of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) meets criteria for environmental sustainability and social responsibility, and several flooring products are available with this option. Bamboo can sequester up to 70% more carbon per year than a hardwood forest. All these factors keep the carbon footprint

Bamboo flooring types

1. Horizontal bamboo: In horizontal bamboo flooring, the wider pieces of bamboo face up, so your floor actually looks like several flattened bamboo shoots lain out, which is almost exactly what it is. Horizontal bamboo flooring tends to have a more natural look and feel than other flooring types.

2. Vertical Bamboo: Vertical bamboo flooring is that which shows the thinner side of the bamboo strip on top. This results in very strong flooring that resists cracking, and has many more variations in color across each plank.

3. Strand Woven bamboo: Often considered the strongest of the bamboo floor types, strand-woven bamboo flooring uses the actual fibers of the plant, rather than restructuring the material into planks. Strand-woven bamboo floors are considered twice as strong as Oak flooring. The entire bamboo plant is used, eliminating waste. For this reason, it is often considered the most eco-friendly flooring type.