"The appeal of bamboo is often its clean, airy look and perhaps its association with warmer climes, but there's more to it than that. It has greater tensile strength than steel; it's a sustainable, environmentally friendly material (it grows fast enough to be harvested within three to five years without depleting natural resources, and it regenerates quickly); and it can cost less and last longer than red oak, the wood most commonly used for flooring. What's not to like?"
Taken from the article
"Strong as steel and environmentally sound, bamboo is branching out"
By Rhonda Stewart, Boston Globe Staff - February 17, 2005
Where it Grows: Asia
Main Uses: Furniture, flooring, millwork, woodenware
Unlike hardwood, bamboo is not a product of trees, but instead a fast growing grass. Bamboo can grow from sprouts to harvesting in three to five years, thus an acre of bamboo can provide more flooring than an acre of trees can. When bamboo shoots are cut the roots remain intact and fresh new sprouts grow in their place. The dense root mass of bamboo helps prevent soil erosion and provides a viable crop opportunity in hilly acres where other crops cannot grow. The species used for flooring is sustainably harvested from selected groves in Southern China. This species is not eaten by Pandas.
Bamboo can be an attractive alternative to hardwood because it is eco-friendly, is dimensionally stable, 27% harder than Northern Red Oak, 13% harder than hard Maple, can either be nailed-down, glued-down or floated and is resistant to flammability. Bamboo has an average hardness of 1820 LBS on the Janka Ball Hardness scale.
Grain/Color - Hardness (lbs.)
Flat Grain Natural - 2156
Vertical Grain Natural - 1846
Flat Grain Caramelized - 1926
Vertical Grain Caramelized - 1417
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| Vertical Construction | Horizontal (aka: Flat) Construction |
Bamboo flooring comes in planks and is installed just like engineered
hardwood floors. These floors can be installed over many different types
of subfloors. Refer to the manufacturer's installation procedures to be
sure it meets your application.
General Description:
It comes in a light natural color or a dark amber "carbonized" bamboo, which is
achieved by pressure steaming the bamboo. This darkens the whole board.
Because it's not a stain, there are no problems with resanding. For more info, see:
http://www.woodlist.com/ref/bamboo/bamboo.htm