How to Keep Your Floor in Good Condition

Posted on: 29 November 2017

Bamboo flooring is a very popular option for those who want timber floors in their home, as bamboo offers many advantages over other timber species. If you're shopping for timber floors for your home, note a few questions you might have about bamboo itself, and about choosing this species for flooring in your home. This can help you determine the best choice of flooring in every room, and will ensure you're happy with that flooring for years to come.

Is bamboo waterproof?

Bamboo is very dense, which makes it a durable species of wood, good for rooms where the floors will see heavy foot traffic and which might have higher humidity levels than other rooms in the home. However, bamboo is still a natural timber that has the ability to absorb moisture, so it's not quite waterproof, and may not be the right choice for bathrooms, basements that tend to flood, kitchens, and other such areas. A ceramic tile or laminate flooring may still be a good choice for these rooms in particular.

Why is bamboo often called eco-friendly?

You may not think that any wood used for flooring is eco-friendly, as harvesting wood typically results in deforestation, which is very bad for the environment. However, bamboo grows very fast, with some varieties growing 1.5 meters in a year, so it can be replaced or regrown just as quickly, unlike other species of trees that may take decades to grow to full maturity.

Harvesting bamboo also involves simple cutting, versus the harsh blasting that is needed to collect stone for flooring tiles. Natural wood floors are also eco-friendly because wood continues to "breathe" even after it's cut, helping to clean the air around it, without holding dirt, dust, and other allergens, as does carpeting.

Can you paint or stain bamboo?

Bamboo is very dense, so it can be more difficult to sand it down so that it holds a paint or stain colour, but a professional can manage this job for you, if needed. You might also consider if keeping bamboo natural and without a paint colour is the better option; shop for a darker shade of bamboo, if this is what you prefer in your home, or one with a lighter tone and colour.

You can even choose what is called tiger stripe bamboo, which has a mixture of light and dark shades. By choosing a tone or colour of wood that you prefer, this will eliminate the need for actually painting or staining altogether.