You’ve probably heard about bamboo flooring recently. After all, this interesting type of flooring has been getting a lot of attention.

Many of us who haven’t seen bamboo flooring find it hard to envision. We’re pretty sure it’s not made up of round poles, but it can be hard to imagine how those poles are processed into bamboo.

Unlike hardwoods used for flooring like oak and walnut, bamboo is classified as a grass, even though it doesn’t look much like one.

Bamboo is an extremely large grass. There are some species than can grow to be a foot in diameter and over one hundred feet tall – don’t mistake it for a tree.

Despite its grassy origins, bamboo flooring still has a lot in common with floors made from hardwood. It looks similar and requires similar treatment if you want to maintain it.

This kind of flooring is also hypo-allergenic, since there are no places for dander, pollen, mildew and dust to hide. It’s warmer than tile and other materials and beautiful to look at.

Bamboo’s durability is also something special, since this material is about ten percent harder than floors made from red oak. Installation of bamboo flooring can only increase your home’s value.

Bamboo flooring is made through splitting the stalks of the bamboo, then flattening them under immense pressure. These flattened stalks are then laminated together with glue.

What results is a bit like a hardwood laminate floor. It’s multi-layered, pre-finished, and offers tongue and groove installation. These extremely regular planks can even be installed by homeowners themselves, if they have a little experience.

In addition to being strong and beautiful, bamboo’s environmental record also gets a lot of press. Most of us have heard that using bamboo as a flooring material is very environmentally friendly, but we might not know why.

Thats because of the speed with which bamboo grows, and its low pesticide and fertilizer requirements. To make a bamboo floor, the plants need to grow only for five to six years, and they regenerate extremely quickly after harvesting.

That’s why bamboo is considered a sustainable, renewable flooring option. However, buyers should take care when choosing their floors.

Since bamboo is so popular, some have decided to use unnecessary fertilizers and pesticides in the growing process, and make flooring using lower quality techniques to get a quick sale. Anyone who’s worried about how long their floor will last or its environmental impact should avoid using these products.

Fortunately, this isn’t difficult. Good distributors and manufacturers of bamboo flooring want you to know all about the benefits of their floors, so avoid extremely cheap flooring and people who don’t want to talk about the source of their bamboo flooring materials.

Bamboo flooring is an excellent investment, both for the beauty and value of your home and for the environment. Most of our waste each year comes from the housing industry – if you choose an environmentally friendly option for your home, you’re cutting down that waste.

Think about bamboo flooring when the time comes to choose the floor covering for your home, whether it’s new construction or a remodel. You’ll love this durable, beautiful natural material, and so will the environment.

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