Question: (comment from earlier Bamboo post)
“This is about the third time I have been told bamboo flooring is NOT the best for flooring, and we were considering it for our downstairs. What is the BEST flooring for heavy traffic areas? My husband doesn’t wipe his feet, my mother drags her feet, and our carpeting of one year looks bad. I don’t want to put more tile downstairs…”
Answer:
I understand your dilemma! In my experience (10 years of floor covering sales) bamboo has been a great product IF a quality product was purchased. Also, the carbonized bamboo is softer than the non-carbonized. However, I understand your hesitation after hearing stories of it not being the best choice! The good news is, you have several great choices since it’s easier to get new floors than a new mom and husband! J
Cork :
- There are many many patterns other than the bulletin board look
- Very resilient
- Hides dirt very well (the more movement in a pattern, the more it will hide dirt, unless of course you choose a white floor)
- Very quiet
- Easy to clean
Laminate:
- Scratch resistant (not scratch proof) if mom drags her feet with dirt and grit on them
- Great for high traffic areas
- New technology (if you haven’t looked at it in a while) that looks just like hardwood and is not hollow sounding like it used to be
- Easy to clean when husband doesn’t wipe his feet
Hardwood:
- Choosing a wood with lots of grain will help hide dirt and minor scratches
- Prefinished hardwood will have an extremely durable coating
- Bamboo’s hardness is about the same as black walnut. There is a hardwood scale that measures hardness and a few woods that are harder than both bamboo and black walnut are: white oak, hard maple, hickory, Jarrah and Merbau. (this site is helpful – )www.hardwoodinstaller.com
- Hardwood, like bamboo will scratch and dent, but the harder the wood, the better your chances are of minimizing this.
This seems to be a popular topic – if you have experiences, please share them with us!
No Responses to “Reader Question – Bamboo Floors”
June 27th, 2009 at 6:41 am
Look for established brands as this would ensure that the bamboo flooring is genuine, meets the quality standards, and follows all the environmental guidelines specified.
In the highest quality bamboo floorings, you’ll find the strand-woven technology that makes bamboo flooring what it is – very hard, durable and water resistant. Aluminum oxide coating makes the floor perform better against high traffic, dampness and also stains, indents, and abrasive scratches.
Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.helpful-kitchen-tips.com/kitchen-blog/2009/06/17/bamboo-flooring-review-bamboo-floor-covering-ideas/
May 28th, 2008 at 11:55 am
Hello
Bamboo is very much a buyer beware product,i have seen lots of samples and mosta re junk when you look at the finish hardness and the actual construction. we have installed Higuera bamboo and it is great it is the only sample that we put in the dishwasher and it lived. our floor is plenty hard and looks great!!
Mark