Bamboo Flooring

Bamboo flooring has become a popular alternative to traditional oak and maple flooring in the USA. There are many advantages that bamboo floors have over traditional hardwoods. The main advantages include environmental friendliness, hardness, and costs.

Bamboo floors are friendly to the environment because a bamboo takes only a few years to mature and even when the bamboo is harvested, the root continues to live. On the contrary, a traditional hardwood such as oak takes 100 years to mature and the tree has to be cut down and destroyed to make the floors that we enjoy.

The hardness of Bamboo floors is comparable to traditional hardwood floors. A natural bamboo floor is about the same hardness as hard maple and harder than white or red oak. However, the carbonized bamboo floor, a very popular color, is much softer and is closer to the hardness of black walnut. The reason why carbonized bamboo floor is softer is because the process to make the color requires pressure and steam which reduces the hardness.

The cost per unit of bamboo floors is lower than traditional hardwood floors, usually around 25% to 50% lower, while the installation costs are the same. This makes bamboo floors a low cost alternative. Additionally, the bamboo floor installation is exactly the same as other hardwoods so there is no additional training needed for the installers.

While bamboo flooring companies tout the benefits of bamboo, it is important for you to do your research so that you know the facts. Start by writing down particular features that you would like such as easy to clean, resistant to moisture, cost, etc. Then ask those specific questions to flooring experts from both sides so that you get the most objective and accurate information.

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