Bamboo, a grass once conjuring up images of Pandas and rickety boats, is now being used to make quality wood floors in many North American homes. Bamboo laminate flooring is both an excellent building material and environmentally friendly; bamboo is easily renewable and matures in only five years. It is durable, strong, hard, and dimensionally stable.

Grown in China and Southeast Asia, the many species of bamboo being used for bamboo laminate flooring are harvested after four or five years, cut into strips, dried in the sun, and then laminated either vertically or horizontally into two- or three-layer pieces. Horizontally laminated planks are referred to as “face grained,” and vertically laminated planks are “vertically grained.” Planks vary by color, which usually comes in natural shade or carbonized (darker). Carbonized bamboo is treated with heat to give it a more amber color.

After the initial processing, the bamboo laminate flooring planks are cut into various sizes and finished with a stain. Typical finishes include; no-stain (a natural look and color), glossy (distinct shine), and matte (mottled appearance). Matte-finished laminate bamboo flooring is typically more scratch-resistant than the glossy finish. Unfinished or no-stain flooring gives the buyer more choices for finishing the flooring.

Bamboo flooring installs in the same manner as standard hardwood flooring. It can be glued to the subflooring, installed over plywood and particleboard, or nailed with a nail gun (pneumatic nail guns are preferred). After installation, laminate bamboo flooring is as easy to care for as typical hardwood floors. Entrance mats for dirt, daily dusting/sweeping, and quick cleaning of spills is all that is necessary for long-lasting, beautiful bamboo flooring.

Not to be confused with the bamboo mats that are strung together out of thinly sliced bamboo reeds, bamboo flooring is a high-quality option to make an aesthetically pleasing, beautiful floor in any home or office. Besides the benefit of helping the environment, a laminate bamboo flooring also adds a stylish, beautiful floor that will add value to your property and last for many years.