For those who think panda whenever anyone mentions bamboo, this might be an instructive read. Thanks to the ‘green products’ trend in interior design, bamboo flooring has become the most environment-friendly and natural alternative to traditional hardwood flooring. Yes, perhaps the idea of making a floor out of grass sounds a mite strange, but the idea is not as revolutionary as you think. Plenty of indigenous peoples have been following it for centuries.
Why is bamboo flooring so popular?
• Bamboo is a renewable resource. In plain terms, bamboo grass grows faster than almost any other plant in the world, reaching maturity in as little as five years. Apart from the frequency of the harvest, this means that bamboo grass can provide over 20 times the bio-mass of a stand of trees of equal volume
• The strength of bamboo can equal, if not exceed, that of some forms of steel. Though essentially a softwood, its strength intensifies once protective or laminated layers are applied
• The rich coloring of the flooring (golden, tan, or deep earth tones) also makes a home look classy and trendy, so it is a great favorite of interior designers. Of course, the natural coloring of bamboo is usually light tan, but the smoking process that the flooring is put through during production lends it several shades of rich amber
• As a result, you can buy bamboo flooring in at least 30-35 shades to match any décor. In fact, manufacturers of bamboo floor coverings are going all out to provide consumers with options regarding color, maintenance, ease of installation etc. Such options were unavailable perhaps even a decade ago.
How do you help the environment when you use bamboo flooring?
• Most traditional hardwood flooring is derived from hardwood trees that not only take a long time to grow (and we’re talking perhaps 200 years here). More worryingly, once cut down, these trees may never grow back owing to loss of soil layers and environmental degradation
• Almost all hardwood trees used to make traditional flooring come from the world’s great rain forests, which are our richest sources of oxygen, and cutting them down is like taking away bits from the lungs of our planet
Things you should know
• With bamboo floors, you can minimize the contraction and expansion problems that floors inevitably go through. In other words, the floor will bulge or cave in less than normal, so you needn’t worry about temperature swings.
• There are two broad grain alignments to bamboo flooring – vertical and horizontal. The vertical grain provides a consistent coloring that can give an illusion of roominess. The horizontal grain gives you an idea of the features of the grass, and from the design aspect, provides unique patterns
• Bamboo species that are harvested for flooring are actually harder than traditional hardwood species like Red Oak and Hard Maple, which means relatively low maintenance and replacement costs.
• Almost all types of bamboo flooring are made of solid strips as opposed to laminated ones, giving you ‘solid bamboo laminate’. With many hardwood floors, you will most likely get thin slices of wood stuck on to underlying thicker boards.
• How much foot traffic your floor gets should dictate which kind you buy. For commercial or rough use, choose flooring that comes with a long-term warranty
And before we go…
Remember, your choice of floor should ultimately be made based on:
• How much you pay
• Whether the floor can be installed (and uninstalled if you want) easily
• How you intend to use the floor
• The time you want to have the floor installed for
About the Author:
June Mala © 2006
KEO Business News
Source:
www.isnare.com
