Bamboo Flooring: Great for the Home and Safe for the Environment

Bamboo Flooring

As environmental pollution and global warming become a daily reality, people are becoming more concerned about their impact on the environment. Beginning with the home, people are seeking new ways to beautify their house without damaging the environment. The first great place to begin is with your floors. Bamboo flooring can be a great option for flooring, and it offers many of the qualities of hardwood at a fraction of the cost.

Sustainable for the Environment

For those who want to protect the environment, one of the best advantages to bamboo is that it has a very low impact on the ecosystem. A parent bamboo plant grows new stalks each year, and in approximately six years, the stalks are ready to harvest. The manufacturers of bamboo flooring can then continually grow and harvest bamboo with no lasting impact on the bamboo forest. With other hardwoods, the trees take much longer to grow; even with reforestation techniques, it can take decades for a forest to grow back to its original state.

To make bamboo flooring, the bamboo is harvested, split, flattened, processed, and dried. These thin planks are then glued together to create the boards that can be used for flooring. Other types of bamboo flooring involve the bamboo being crushed, with the strands glued together to form boards. Once the glue is dried, the boards are prepared, milled to have proper tongue and groove edges needed when being installed, coated to protect their durability and finish, and then shipped to the store or directly to you. You can even choose to have your bamboo flooring stained to match your décor and tastes.

In addition to the fact that bamboo grows quickly and causes little environmental impact, many manufacturers will also use environmentally friendly glue during the manufacturing process. The bamboo boards can then pass the stringent E-1 emissions standards. This means that there is a minimal amount of hazardous emissions coming from the finished product.

Bamboo Flooring’s Longevity

Your bamboo flooring will also be just as durable as other hardwoods that you could buy. Adult bamboo has to survive extreme temperature changes in its natural environment, making it extremely durable. This allows the bamboo flooring to handle the wear and tear of even high traffic areas. Bamboo is easily comparable to the quality of an oak or Brazilian walnut floor, but bamboo flooring is much more affordable.

Pre-finished bamboo flooring is ready to be installed, and it is finished to be scratch and abrasion resistant. It is perfect for any room in your home, whether installed in the kitchen, dining room, or a bedroom. Many bamboo floors carry a warranty of 25 years, which ensures that you will get what you paid for, and that the floor is made to last.

The installation of bamboo flooring is not any more difficult than any other hardwood floor style. However, the bamboo should be allowed to sit in the house at room temperature for several days, allowing it to adjust to the relative humidity and temperature of the room. This will prevent gapping or swelling after the floor has been installed.

To keep your floor in pristine condition, you may want to consider having door mats at all entrances and avoid wearing shoes in the house. This will prevent any scratching or denting that might occur with regular use, both with bamboo and any type of hardwood.

If you are looking to protect the environment, or desiring to save money but not sacrifice quality, then bamboo flooring is an excellent option for your home.