How Bamboo Flooring is Made

Bamboo flooring can be a wonderful choice for environmentally concerned customers.  When handled the right way, the flooring is durable and environmentally-friendly. The process of creating an attractive wood floor leaves very little waste. The best way to remove any doubts and concerns about the chemicals used in treating the plants is to choose a high quality flooring from a well-known manufacturer so as to be sure that the way that the flooring was made was as good for the environment as it is for the customer.

What is Bamboo?

Although it is technically a grass, bamboo has quickly worked its way up in becoming and industry favorite for the environmentally friendly wood flooring. Bamboo is a quick-growing plant, up to four feet per day and not depending on the soil quality that much, and at the same time is very durable. Some of the largest varieties of bamboo are able to grow in a few years to diameters of 13 inches and heights of 120 feet. The most common form of bamboo found in Asia does not need any type of herbicides or pesticides treatments and is self-spreading.

Usually found in Asia, bamboo has become a more and more crop spread throughout the world. It is present in many areas with about 1000 different species growing in varieties of soils and climates. Along with the demand for this type of wood increasing, the areas in which can be found will most likely increase, also.

Harvesting Bamboo

Ideally to be harvested in four to six years, bamboo can be harvested In as little as three, unlike most other hardwood trees that can take decades to be ready for processing. Instead of damaging the grass, harvesting the bamboo leaves it healthy and it continues to produce and abundant crop for future harvests. When the moisture level is lower, usually in the fall or winter, comes the ideal time for the bamboo harvest to begin, because summer harvests can lead to the bamboo fracturing during the curing process.

After the Harvest

The difficult part comes after the harvest, when the process of transforming the bamboo from grass to flooring starts. The green outer hull of the bamboo is removed, the stalk is cut into long strips called fillets and at this point the bamboo strips retain the natural curve of the plant. Miling the bamboo along the outer sides creates a flat strip more suitable for future flooring and then the strips are dried and boiled to remove moister along with natural sugars and starches. Boiling the bamboo has two benefits; first, it makes the finished produce less desirable to insects like termites, making the bamboo flooring even more desirable in areas with high termite populations. Second, boiling the bamboo almost completely eliminates the likeness of suffering expansions and contractions, unlike the hardwood floor, in humid climates.

After the boiling and drying are completed, the process of darkening the bamboo throughout carbonization is possible if it is desired to have a color more similar to hardwood flooring. Steam and pressure are the factors used in the darkening of the bamboo through carbonization. Colors are ranging from a deep coffee to a light amber, although an increasingly number of costumers choose a bamboo flooring that has a natural coloring, either stained to retain its natural color or stained for the color of their preferences.

Once the initial processes are completed, the bamboo is then inspected and given a grade A or B by the inspectors.

Strand-Woven Bamboo Flooring

During the milling stage of the bamboo processing, the strands that remain are trimmed for the long bamboo fillets and this use of a product processing of what would be considered waste is part of what makes bamboo flooring so eco-friendly. While intricate patterns are created by weaving the thin strands together and compressing them with a resin to create a beautiful flooring, the strand-wover flooring is strong, durable, scratch resistant, UV resistant, moisture resistant and is about as twice as hard as any other forms of bamboo flooring.

Vertical and Horizontal Bamboo Flooring

What makes up the greatest portion of bamboo flooring are the bamboo fillets. After the boiling process is finished, the strips are dried again in a kiln and then glued together into an either vertical grain or horizontal grain.

The vertical bamboo flooring is created by gluing together the narrow edges of several strips of bamboo. These strips are mixed and have a thin layer of lamination between them, giving the product a smooth, uniform look, resembling traditional hardwood flooring.

Horizontal bamboo flooring is created by gluing the wider surfaces together, facing up. This style of flooring also uses the lamination process which makes the thickness of the flooring uniform throughout. The knuckles or growth rings of the stalk are randomly displayed by the finished horizontal flooring.

Final Stages

The final stage involves milling the boards to refine the flooring with all three types of bamboo flooring, either being the vertical grain, the horizontal grain or the strand-woven grain. The bamboo uses, as well, the popular tongue and groove system that is traditionally used in wood flooring. This ensures a smooth surface and snug fit and creates a product comparable in style with the hardwood flooring. To make the material even more resistant to damage from daily use, several coats of finish with aluminum oxide are applied to the flooring.

Quality Stages

While some companies do use methods that are less than ideal, the best quality of bamboo flooring is made using eco-friendly practices. These companies may use the bamboo prematurely, such as bamboo which is less than four years old, and compensate by using high levels of additives in the gluing process. Although the price is lower, the quality of the flooring drops too and may negatively impact the environment.

When agreeing upon the type of bamboo flooring you are going to purchase, pay good attention to the construction of the materials, on the ends of the board, to ensure there are no gaps in the layers of bamboo and that no fillers were used to fill up gaps in the boards.The finish on the flooring should be evenly coated, having a smooth and uniform texture.

Learning all about the process of transforming a grass into these various forms of bamboo flooring makes it easier to understand how this is a durable and attractive flooring option.If you are looking for a wonderful alternative to the more traditional hardwood flooring options, this is it!