What Is Strand Bamboo Flooring and How Is It Made?

In an effort to provide a durable alternative to traditional flooring, manufacturers have designed a relatively new process known as strand woven bamboo flooring. Strand bamboo flooring is created by heating long strips of bamboo, weaving them together, and compressing them into a durable floor with pressure and heat.

The result of this process is a woven and stranded bamboo floor that can rival even your most rambunctious pets and kids. In light of this fact, it easily rivals traditional hardwood floors, as a durable, eco-friendly, and cost-effective option.

The contemporary process of producing stranded woven bamboo floors have helped to improve their easy of installation. No longer is there the need to individually split and nail strips of bamboo as is done in traditional southeast Asian stilted houses. Modern-day manufacturing of woven bamboo floors have enabled the production of a woven bamboo floor with an easy to install tongue and groove system.

What's more, you also have a few installation options available to you. Bamboo floors can be installed not only as floating floors but can also be fixed directly to the sub-floor via gluing or nailing.

Strand Bamboo flooring provides a variety of textural options and looks that can suit a wide variety of tastes. The appearance of strand bamboo-flooring varies depending on how its constructed. While horizontal woven bamboo has a look that resembles traditional wood floors, vertical stranded bamboo floor shows the individual nodules of the bamboo. A hand scraped bamboo floor is also available, providing a worn rustic look.

What may easily have you sold on strand bamboo flooring though, is how it serves as an excellent eco-friendly alternative to traditional hard wood floors. In the midst of rampant deforestation, with the depletion of our ozone layer, strand bamboo flooring is a clear winner. After all, in light of the gradual rise in global temperatures and rapid melting of the polar ice caps - the need for an eco-friendly alternative is undeniable.

The production of traditional hard wood floors necessitates the clearing of large areas of old growth forest. Once a specified grid of old growth forest is harvested, lumberers are unable to return to that area for another 30 years when the trees have had time to regrow. In contrast, with daily growth of as much as 12 inches for some breeds of bamboo, this replenishible resource can be harvested every 3-6 years.

To conclude, strand bamboo flooring is a viable eco-friendly option to traditional wood floors. In addition to being easy to install, it's durable and cost effective. Its also a highly versatile flooring option that can cater to a wide variety of tastes for any home.