Thursday, January 22, 2009

Add Style To Your Home With Bamboo Wood Floors

By Tariq Khan

Bamboo flooring provides an excellent alternative to traditional hardwood flooring. Growing in popularity as an alternative, Bamboo flooring has many features that make it stand out when compared to hardwood. Although harvested primarily in China, bamboo flooring is now widely available in North America and Europe. Many of those that adopted bamboo flooring early on point out its environmental friendliness. The bamboo plant regrows very quickly when compared with the time it takes a forest to regrow. In fact, the bamboo plant is considered a grass, as it grows much quicker than any tree. When done responsibly, bamboo plant harvesting can be accomplished in a environmentally friendly manner.

How does bamboo flooring compare with traditional hardwoods? High quality bamboo flooring is harder and more durable than even the most expensive hardwood flooring. Moisture does not affect bamboo in the way that hardwood suffers from water damage. Where traditional hardwood may buckle and crack due to water exposure, bamboo flooring will keep out water without a problem. Bamboo flooring is processed as a laminate and treated under very high pressure with a high quality adhesive. This makes bamboo flooring very resistant to abrasions and scratches, where less treated hardwood floors may show scratches after a while. Bamboo flooring has become a great deal more affordable in recent times as well.

Best of all, bamboo flooring can typically be installed at home without any professional assistance. Like many of the newer hardwoods, bamboo flooring is produced with a tongue and groove construction, making them considerably easier to install. Before installing a bamboo floor, let the planks to adjust to their new environment for no less than 72 hours. Although bamboo flooring does not suffer from water damage like hardwood, they do need some time to adjust to the new environment before installation.

What should be done to maintain a bamboo floor? Maintenance requirements are fairly simple for Bamboo wood flooring. Make certain to sweep and mop the floor after it is laid down. Regular dusting and sweeping should be done after installation. This will prevent dust and dirt from collecting on the finish. A mat should be placed at the entrance to prevent dust and dirt from coming into the room. Dirt and small rocks will end up damaging the finish, and a mat can go a long way in preventing this problem.

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