Contacted to ask who to question about bamboo and maybe get samples. They are located in California and sell bamboo stalks around the country.
Strand woven bamboo flooring is the most durable bamboo on market now. The strand is 90% of the flooring mass and 10% is the glue.
The raw bamboo is split into bamboo pieces. This strips of bamboo then need to be broken down the middle. It doesn't break the bamboo fibers. This breaking of the pieces allow for the adhesive to hold better when it comes to gluing the pieces together. That makes the process of flattening out easier.
Bamboo contains sugar, protein, carbohydrates, starch, fat, and wax more than wood. This makes bamboo susceptible to mold and insects. Carbonizing them removes all the organic parts through the use of high temperatures. This helps to extend the life and quality of the bamboo.
The carbonized bamboo strips are then dipped into an adhesive, and then is hung up to drain the excess off.
Then it's on to the press machine for the bamboo strips. The cold press puts about 2000 tons on the strips in a 15 minute span per log. One mold equals one log. After being pressed, the mold is moved on to dry and allow the adhesive to get stronger. After drying the mold is then taken off.
These logs were what was taken off from the mold. The sides are already cut and ready for the next step in the process.
These are the logs without their mold with 2 ends cut.
Here are the logs with 4 sides cut.
Then the logs are slices into boards. They can't be sanded and finished down like normal wood flooring, instead it has to be cut. The flooring pieces are then placed in conditioning rooms for weeks. This is a must in the process because it stops the bamboo flooring from cupping or bending after installation. The flooring pieces have small holes in them from the slicing that a putty is first put on and sanded down. Then the finishing coat is applied.
Hardwood trees take around a 100 years to mature enough for it to be cut down and made into flooring materials. Bamboo on the other hand only takes about 3 to 5 years to grow enough in order to be the right size to cut down for flooring. Also, since bamboo is a grass it doesn't need to be replanted about being cut. It just continues to grow back, and doesn't need pesticides for it to grow. The variety of colors in bamboo flooring is due to the amount of heat exerted on the bamboo. Bamboo floor sadly isn't resist to scratching, chipping, or denting. This makes it somewhat similar to typical hardwood flooring. There are two types of bamboo flooring: engineered and stranded. The engineered bamboo flooring isn't 100% bamboo, instead it is considered in piles; the more piles the stronger the flooring is.
The problems associated with bamboo growing is the amount of space being cleared for bamboo growth, the large amount of chemical fertilizers used, increase in erosion due to clearing of spaces, the soil is losing its qualities, and there is a lose of local plants due to the changing of the landscape. Sadly, no bamboo companies have a credible environmental certification. Some problems with bamboo also is that in direct sunlight it can bleach, there is no Fair Trade certification with it, it can't be sourced locally, and it will stain easily if not sealed right.
The benefits of bamboo flooring are is easy to clean, it's non-allergenic, and is long lasting. The benefits it holds over other hardwoods are it costs up to 50% less, it's easy to install, it can be installed in a variety of ways (nailed, floated, or glued down), it's a renewable source, some companies use safer resins, and it's fire resistant.
* Emailed about who to contact with questions and asked for samples.
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