Bamboo Floor Durability: Tough or Not?
Many have started gracing their homes with a bamboo floor. Durability of bamboo floors then becomes an issue. Just how durable is a bamboo floor and is it really suitable for a home? Would it be worth it to have bamboo flooring at home? Will it be a source of regret later on? True, I myself have come to question this. The answers I found were very promising. It seems that the durability of bamboo flooring is very reliable.
Tough Grass
Bamboo grows very fast and as it grows it gains strength. No matter what soil condition it is planted in, bamboo will stay strong. This characteristic will remain as it is even long after the bamboo is harvested. That I think is a very positive mark when talking about bamboo durability. Not only is bamboo flooring very environmentally friendly, it is also a dependable part of a home.
Strengthening Processes
Bamboo is a strong material for flooring purposes, which I already mentioned. What I found more reassuring though is the fact that before becoming part of a home’s floor, the bamboo would still undergo a lot of processes that would increase its hardness or durability. So, I though to myself, hey that is wonderful! Man made technology coupled with natural strengthening processes; bamboo would really make a good flooring material. Here are these processes:
- At harvest, the bamboo’s green outer skin is removed leaving the bamboo stalk to be stripped or filleted. These strips will be the start of that excellent flooring. But before that, they are boiled and dried. Boiling bamboo means removing starch from it (anti-termite process) and removing its natural moisture which would cause problems later on if not paid attention to.
- By boiling the bamboo some more, it will turn darker, now becoming carbonized bamboo. With this, different hues are achieved and this helps greatly in enhancing the design of the bamboo.
- Now the process of making the flooring starts. This would involve gluing bamboo strips together in methods that would not only promote a design but strengthen the whole structure of bamboo flooring. Many a bamboo flooring out there are done in horizontal and vertical styles. These styles are definitely the best when it comes to enhancing the durability of bamboo flooring. Another style of bamboo flooring is strand woven. This is equally durable.
- Aside from the method of making the flooring, other steps are also taken to ensure the hardiness and the bamboo floor durability. Bamboo floors are treated in many ways in order to make it scratch resistant. Also, bamboo flooring is made more durable if it is made to resist moisture. Bamboo floors are even treated so that they become UV resistant.
Now I say a bamboo floor is really durable! I do recommend all of you out there to try and have bamboo flooring. Bamboo flooring is very aesthetic and truly beautiful. Also, bamboo grows very fast, so it is very friendly to the environment. Harvesting it will not necessarily make the earth barren.
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Comments on Bamboo Floor Durability: Tough or Not?
4:49 am
I found bamboo flooring to be quite soft and easily gouged. It also seemed very susesptable to water damage. I had a rubber tray on which I put my shoes on after coming in from the snow to protect the floor, but some snow got under the tray and turned the bamboo flooring black. This cannot be cleaned off – it’s into the bamboo. Unfortunately, bamboo is used throughout the entire house. Next time you’re in a Home Depot (or other home improvement store), try leaving a mark on a flooring sample with your thumbnail (not to scratch it, but to indent it). Now try the same thing on a hardwood floor sample. Wood is much much tougher than bamboo.
I will not be using bamboo again.