Bamboo Flooring Installation

Summary:

Bamboo is the emerging material for hardwood flooring, especially when bamboo groves can be cultivated in such a short time than other typical hardwood species like teak and oak (ripe harvest on 3-5 years for bamboo; 10-20 years for typical hardwood species like teak and oak). In fact, eastern countries like China, Burma and India had cultivated hectares of bamboo plantation, recognizing its worldwide economic impact.

Bamboo floorings are beautiful, its colors and characteristics of striping makes it an excellent flooring material. With colors ranging from deep brown to lively yellowish hue, it makes any quarters livelier. Here's Wood Flooring International's photo gallery showcasing bamboo flooring styles: www.bamtex.comphoto_gallery.htm

Having bamboo for your flooring is never a bad choice; in fact it is cheaper without sacrificing durability and aesthetic. And if it counts for you, it is environmentally friendly, because bamboo groves grow in an astonishing rate; flora denuding is a far problem.

Bamboo flooring is also a DIY. There are dozens of sites that sell bamboo materials plus accompanying bamboo flooring installation guides. In event there's none, read on for a brief bamboo flooring installation guide.

Bamboo Flooring Installation

Before starting out, clean the base floor by removing any wax, grease and protrusions. The best sub floor is always cemented since it affords plain surface unbroken surface. You can also make do with wooden sub floor (like plywood) in case cement isn't viable, like when working on a second floor. With wood sub floors, you have to check the entire area for creaking, hammering joists securely as you walk around the area. This is important, as you have to means to correct it once the flooring material is installed. Locate the dead center of the room, and there you should start laying down the strips. The longest wall should be perpendicular to the joist. Leave around 13mm expansion joint between the wall and the flooring strips which you can hide by using a baseboard or quarter round. This is needed when floor boards “expand” due to weather.

As you nail the first row, take into consideration the strips of wood you install. Make sure you avoid aligning the end joints of the adjacent rows. Depending on the style you want, installation can have variation (always ask for installation guides and procedures from the manufacturer as well as tips and recommendations with regards to style). All styles don't have aligned end joints though. And always leave sufficient space for expansion in between rows and joints.

In nailing down boards, it is recommended to rather use a nail punch than conventional hammer. That way you can avoid damaging you floor boards from a mistimed hammer blow. And use the vacuum cleaner frequently in between bamboo flooring installation processes. That is to maintain your floor surface and eliminating wood chips, grit, and saw dust that could scratch the wood surface.