The fact that you have reached this page leaves us guessing that you are looking to install a floor. There are a myriad of options, and tons of (mis)information about the various flooring options. We hope you’ll be a bit better informed after reading this page.
We’re also guessing that you might be considering either a solid wood floor, an engineered floor or a laminated floor (tiles are just too cold & hard – and everybody has tiles anyway). If you have already decided on a solid wood floor, well done! This often happens when you are familiar with that warm, luxurious and solid feeling you get when seeing and walking on one.
Most immediately think of Oak, Maple or Cherry when they first think of installing a hardwood floor. Or, if you’re looking for pure luxury (price doesn’t really matter), most look to Walnut or Brazilian Teak.
We urge you to seriously consider bamboo hardwood flooring. Here’s why!
We’ve had over a million people on it [650 square meters of bamboo flooring] —strollers, high heels, wheelchairs, you name it—and it’s held up great, I think it’s done extremely well for what it’s been through.— Debbie Shock – Director of operations and facilities @ William J. Clinton Presidential Center, http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=bamboo-boom&page=2
First of all, when considering bamboo flooring, you need to see it as a solid wood floor. Even though our solid planks are “laminated” together, they are still solid – that means they are 100% bamboo, all the way through.
There is often confusion between “laminated” bamboo and laminated flooring; laminated floors are made of a base layer of sawdust or similar material, pressed & glued together, plus a top layer of a “photographed” texture, simulating the wood or pattern with a protective top layer. You’ll know a laminate floor immediately when you walk on it, it feels thin (because it is).
Here is a quote from a very experienced flooring installer after inspecting a water damaged bamboo floor after 3 weeks of exposure to water:
If this had been a laminate or Oak floor, you would have had to throw the floor away!— Hendri – Hendri’s Wooden Floors, Client Testimonial
Engineered floors, on the other hand, consist of a cheaper & softer wood base (typically Fir or Pine) with a thin 3-5 mm top layer of the desired wood (Oak, Cherry, etc). This manufacturing technique allows for a wider plank as most exotic woods used for flooring are not that stable and will buckle at greater widths, so the width of a solid plank is typically restricted to around 96 mm. It also uses a lot less of the actual wood required for the floor due to the thin layer at the top of the plank. This is a good thing, but it does not necessarily make engineered flooring any greener.
Solid wood flooring is well known to up the value of any property, is warm underfoot, and as it ages (yip, solid wood floors can last generations), it adds a unique character to your home.
Why choose a bamboo floor?
Simple, you get;
- a solid wood floor,
- with excellent durability
- & easy-to-maintain characteristics,
- that is beautiful,
- affordable (solid wood is becoming very expensive),
- increases the value of your property
- and – very importantly – is environmentally friendly.
We specified Oriental Bamboo for both Erinvale Estate Hotel & Spa as well as Devon Valley Hotel, in line with our strategy to “green” the hotel group, using sustainable resources like bamboo flooring.— Craig Seaman – Managing Director Louis Group Hotels & Vineyards, Client TestimonialWe had moisture damage in the public area of one of the hotels and Oriental Bamboo assisted in getting the best people on site to sort this out; after allowing for drying time we were able to reuse over 90% of the original floor.
I have enjoyed the proprietorial spirit of active caring that I experienced with Oriental Bamboo and thus I am pleased to recommend them.
The Green Building team have compiled a great comparison table of the pro’s & con’s of the various flooring options on this link.
If you are an Interior Designer or Architect, our Eco-Logic Bamboo flooring will exceed your requirements and give you a number of Green Star points in your next project.
Are you concerned about the “embodied energy” of bamboo as it comes from far away? Then this page is a must read.
Talk to us now about your project – let us know what you’re thinking! Or sign up for our occasional “Bamboo Showcase” newsletter to keep up to date on what others are doing with bamboo.
Read on for more detail on each of the types of Eco-Logic Bamboo floors …
