February
2007
Bamboo Floors Rock: A warm renewable resource to grace the McGuigan kitchen
I’ve been busy lately planning for an impending kitchen remodel. I’m told this could take months. That’s months of microwave meals and doing dishes in the laundry tub. I’m not looking forward to it.
Picking out the flooring was difficult. I bought a beautiful porcelain tile and set it on the floor to admire it for a few days just to be sure I liked it. The next morning I walked into the kitchen in my bare feet and it felt like ice. “Hmmm…not so good” I thought to myself.
Then I discovered bamboo.
Bamboo, beautiful bamboo… warm and a renewable resource. This stuff grows like grass. Cut it down, it shoots back up. (get it, shoots… get it?)
Nope, no cutting down old growth forest for this dude’s kitchen. If Al Gore were redoing wood floors in his house, I’m sure he’d use bamboo.
But it gets better — this stuff is dirt cheap. Lowe’s has a 10% price guarantee so after I found Menard’s had a good price on it, Lowe’s matched that price and took an extra 10% off.
Jim McGuigan
Jim McGuigan
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Bamboo- Ok, My idea of remodeling is making a huge mess then calling someone to fix it for me and blaming it on my brother. How do you get bamboo in the kitchen? As what? Some form of tile? You’ll have to fill me in so I can tear apart my kitchen floor and pay to have it fixed later.
No, it comes in planks just like hardwood. It’s flat and has an interesting pattern to the “wood” grain.
That’s interesting. I’ve seen bamboo flooring and it’s kinda cool-looking. Technically, bamboo belongs to the grass family as it’s not a “woody” vascular plant.
All wood is renewable and I felt quite “politically correct” in using white oak flooring in my new house; particularly since the forest products industry is so important to Wisconsin’s economy.
I forgot to add:
Who care’s what Al Gore would use. Al Gore’s carbon footprint is fairly sizeable…
-His large stock holdings in Occidental Petroleum and earnings from zinc mining.
-The lack of use of green energy in his properties.
-The conspicuous consumption involved in owning multiple homes, one a 10,000 sq ft behemoth.
-The pollution caused from private jet use.
Tom:
You do have some very valid points here with Al Gore …
Anyone with recent research/opinions on flooring to share:
Did you compare all options? What about the laminates made of recycled materials (how much is actually recycled - is this BS)? Some of them look really nice?? [Scratch, scratch?] What is more responsible, durable & etc..? Currently in the middle of both a kitchen and a bath, still doing the drywall & cabinetry work …
My friend who has bamboo flooring says that it dents too easily. If the light hits the floor a certain way, little pockmarcks appear here and there. And forget about wearing stilettos. Is there any other comparable renewable resource for natural looking floors, or a way to finish the bamboo to minimize the impact of dropping things or areas of concentrated weight?
I applaud the use of renewable resources. Just a quick comment, though.
While there is considerable regulation regarding the responsible management of wood forests, there is none for bamboo. It is my understanding that, in fact, forests are being clear-cut to make way for massive bamboo plantations (producing a cheap product) that follow none of the responsible forest management guidelines required for wood.
One other point, most wood used in commercial interior applications is not from old-growth forests. America has a tremendous conservation program that has increased the amount of timberlands available for our use –check http://www.abundantforests.org.
The conclusion would be that the most environmentally responsible choice for building is wood. It is the only natural renewable resource.
Thanks for lettin me share.
I think you missed the point. It doesn’t matter if a bamboo forest is clear cut. It will grow back in a matter of a year or less after which it can be clear cut again. What is wrong with an inexpensive product that is durable?
As for bamboo denting — I haven’t experienced problems in our home. Of course if you drop a hammer on it I suppose it would dent.
I looked at laminates and was unimpressed. I’ve seen homes where Pergo style flooring has gotten some water on it and the edges have curled up and it looks horrible. I see it more as a temorary craze rather than a long term solution. It really looks bad when it starts to go. With bamboo, if something happens I can sand it out. My only regret is that I wish I bought the longer nails.