INSTALLING STRAND WOVEN BAMBOO FLOORING
There are three ways to install strand woven bamboo flooring. This makes bamboo flooring very versatile and suitable for DIY installation. The first way to install strand woven bamboo flooring is to directly glue it to a concrete sub-floor. The second way to install the flooring is to simply lay it on a sub-floor, in otherwords, a floating installation. The third method of installation is to glue or staple the strand woven bamboo flooring to the sub-floor.
Two hints before you begin. Firstly, bamboo is a natural 'beathing' material. It is important for the bamboo flooring to acclimatize to the heat and humidity of a room prior to installation. To do this open the box containing the strand woven bamboo flooring and leave the planks for 72 hours in the room where you are going to install them. Secondly, when you are calculating how much flooring you will need (the width of the room multiplied by the length of the room) you should add another 10% at least for mistakes.
Gluing the flooring directly onto a concrete subfloor
First you must clean the concrete floor well and check for lumps and unevenness. If your concrete subfloor is uneven then rent a concrete grinder and smooth the surface of the concrete.
Next you must guage whether the concrete is damp in any way. Any dampness will rot the strand woven bamboo flooring. You can test for dampness with your hand or buy a dampness testing kit. If you find any dampness apply a waterproof mastic with a trowel.
Once the mastic is dry you can start to lay down the strand woven bamboo planks. Always put the groove against the wall and the tongue facing out. Place spacers along the starting wall and at the end of each row of planks. Before you lay a plank put some adhesive on the bottom of the plank. If the concrete surface is a bit rough (but even) the glue will work better.
If the plank doesn't reach from end to end you will have to measure the gap with a measuring tape and then use a rip saw to cut a piece of plank to fit in the gap. Use a pry bar to get the piece in place. Use the remaining part of the sawn plank to start the next row if it is longer than 8 inches. This will create a nice 'organic' pattern to your planking.
Remember to use a rubber mallet to knock the rows of bamboo flooring tightly against each other.
Once the flooring is laid leave 72 hours for the adhesive to dry.
Floating Installation
Quick lock bamboo flooring comes with a thin mat attached and has lots of 'teeth' that are easy to lock together. With this type of flooring you just literally lay it on the ground and assemble the pieces like a jigsaw. You can see an example in this youtube video.
Even without quick lock bamboo flooring it is possible to do a floating installation. This is by far the easiest method for installing strand woven bamboo flooring. Simply put down rectangular pieces of underlay on the concrete then start laying down the strips of strand woven bamboo flooring either vertically or horizontally. Of course it helps if the bamboo planks have tongues and grooves so they interlock nice and tight. Here is a youtube video showing this process.
Remember to use spacers along the starting wall and at each end of a row of planks. Also when you have laid a row of strand woven bamboo planks put a thin line of glue on the tongue so when you fit the next line of planks the glue will hold the flooring together.
If the room is longer or wider than your planks then measure the gap between the wall and the plank end. Then use a rip saw to saw a piece to fit the gap. Use a pry bar to install the cut piece of bamboo flooring. Also when you get to the final strip of bamboo planks measure carefully, especially around the door jam.
A Note About Adhesives
The best adhesive to use is one that is VOC free. VOC stands for Volatile Organic Compound, and refers to such chemical compounds as formaldehyde that easily become gases. Many VOCs are bad for human health, especially children. Scientific research links formaldehyde to respiratory problems, allergies and cancer.
Don't be confused: strand woven bamboo flooring is made using heat, pressure and a low VOC adhesive. Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be any strand woven bamboo flooring made with VOC free adhesive. However, there are adhesives and glues available which are VOC free that are recommended for installation such as Healthy Bond MS Adhesive and Sealer which is totally formaldehyde free.
Manufacturers seem quick to gloss over the point that strand woven bamboo flooring is made using VOC adhesives, no matter how low emitting it may be 'low VOC adhesive' is not as healthy as 'VOC free adhesive'. The only strand woven bamboo flooring product I could find that addressed this issue was Bamboo Mountain's fuse strand woven bamboo flooring that claims to be made with low VOC adhesive that is free of formaldehyde. This seems like a step in the right direction, however the health risks of the other VOCs still present in the adhesive is not addressed.
Nailing or Stapling the flooring to a subfloor
Another quick and easy method is to nail or staple the strand woven bamboo flooring to a subfloor. If you don't have a wooden subfloor this method of installation is a lot more difficult as you will have to make a subfloor first. Read how to install a plywood subfloor at strandwovenbamboofloorings.wordpress.com.
Once you have the subfloor in place you can start to install the strand woven bamboo flooring. Put down one strip of either vertical or horizontal bamboo planks. You then go along the plank nailing or stapling it to the sub-floor using a nail gun. Put the nail through the tongue of the bamboo plank so it is hidden. Then lay another row of bamboo flooring next to the existing one. Make sure the tongue and grooves are firmly locked together. Use a rubber mallet to knock the rows of bamboo planks firmly together and then staple the new line of bamboo to the subfloor. Here is a short video demonstrating this technique. To use a nail gun correctly you line it up against the edge of the bamboo. The nail gun has a right angle for this purpose. You then take a rubber mallet and hit the top of the nail gun with the hammer. This drives a nail or staple into the bamboo flooring to hold it in place. This video clearly shows how to use a nail gun.
Maintaining Strand Woven Bamboo Flooring
Once you have laid your strand woven bamboo flooring it is vitally important to maintain the flooring correctly. A properly maintained strand woven bamboo floor can last you your lifetime. Read the manufacturers recommendations carefully. Often a specific cleaning product is mentioned. Don't try and buy a cheap alternative; the manufacturer knows best.
Here are some general maintenance tips
1) Use a dust mop to clean the floor.
2) Don't allow water spillage to stay on the floor for any considerable length of time. Water can warp the bamboo planks.
3) The color of the bamboo will fade if it is continually exposed to bright and direct sunlight.
4) For a more thorough cleaning, one possible method is to use a mixture of water and vinegar to mop the floor with.
5) If the strand woven bamboo flooring is in a humid environment there is a danger of warping. A dehumidifier in the room can solve this problem. Most manufacturers claim that the relative humidity of a room should be between 30% and 60% to ensure the good health of strand woven bamboo flooring. This is misleading because warmer air temperatures can hold more water than colder air temperatures. Thus 50% relative humidity at a temperature of 30 degrees centigrade contains 15.2 grams of water per cubic meter (i.e 50% of the absolute humidity at 30 degrees centigrade), whereas 100% relative humidity at a temperature of 15 degrees centigrade has only 13 grams of water per cubic meter. So, the 30% to 60% range is meaningless. The relative humidity in London is always greater than 70% but that does not mean people in London need to install dehumidifiers in their houses. No because the average temperatures in the UK are temperate. The greater danger is if you live in a hot and humid zone in the world such as Missouri USA, Thailand, Singapore, Darwin (from December to April) or Manila. Use your common sense - if you sweat a lot in the summer then you are in an area with high absolute humidity. In other words, there is a lot of water in the air. To prevent your strand woven bamboo flooring absorbing this water and swelling the best thing you can do is to turn on the air conditioning occasionally to suck out the turbid air. Only as a last resort do you need to purchase a dehumidifier.
Alternatively, if the air is lacking enough water then strand woven bamboo flooring can shrink and crack. This might happen if you live in a very cold and dry climate where you have the heating on often. To add water to the air you can buy a humidifier to spray water vapor in the air or leave a kettle with boiling water on a stove. The steam from the kettle will increase the humidity levels in the room.
Preventing Particles from Scratching
Although strand woven bamboo flooring is nearly twice as dense as horizontal or vertical bamboo flooring it can still be scratched, marked amd damaged by particles such a small hard pieces of grit, gravel, dirt, plastic, glass and stone being dragged, pressed or walked on your strand woven bamboo flooring. There are a number precautions you can take to limit the damage done to your strand woven bamboo flooring. They are:
- Insist that people take their shoes off before walking on your strand woven bamboo flooring. In Asian countries this is common good manners, but customs are a lot different in the UK and other countries.
- Place rugs or mats next to every door going outside. This will collect a lot of the particles and prevent them spreading through the house. Make sure to regularly shake out the mat or rug.
- Don't wax your strand woven bamboo flooring because particles will collect and harden in the wax and then will damage your floor every time someone steps on a piece of waxed flooring containing a particle.
- Don't use a hard brush vacuum attachment. The hard brush will put pressure on particles on the strand woven bamboo flooring and scratch it.
- Check every few months your furniture protectors to make sure no particles have gathered under or around your furniture legs and bottoms. It is easy to miss this and when you move a chair to do some cleaning you will inadvertently drag the chair and the particle build up will scratch your strand woven bamboo flooring.
- And most importantly, clean the strand woven bamboo flooring twice a week to prevent the build up of particles.
Repairing a Scratch
There are three ways to repair a scratch to your strand woven bamboo flooring. They are:
- Using a 'miracle scratch remover'.
- Using a scratch repair kit bought from the manufacturer who made your strand woven bamboo flooring.
- Using a stain pen and wood putty.
No matter how tough your flooring you will occasionally scratch it. Stand woven bamboo flooring is no exception. However, it is comparatively easy to repair a scratch in strand woven bamboo flooring.
Of the three options mentioned above, the worst is the first. 'Miracle scratch removers' generally contain toxic chemicals and VOCs or volatile organic compounds. Prolonged exposure to such VOCs can lead to repiratory problems, irritated eyes and allergic reactions. Children and pets are particularly at risk. And furthermore, a miracle scratch remover doesn't do a miraculous job. No flooring manufacturer recommends miracle scratch removers.
The best thing to do if you have a scratch in your strand woven bamboo flooring is to contact your flooring supplier and purchase a scratch repair kit (sometimes called a bamboo floor scratch remover). These are easy to use and obviously the manufacturer will be able to match the color of the scratch repair kit to your particular floor coloring. If you, however, bought your strand woven bamboo flooring from the internet rather than a high street store you might find it harder to contact your strand woven flooring manufacturer and purchase the necessary kit.
Not to worry because the third alternative is normally just as effective. If the scratch is very shallow then you can just use a stain pen to cover the mark. Stain pens to match most colors of strand woven bamboo flooring can be found at your local home store and DIY store. If the scratch is deeper then it will be necessary to use wood putty first to fill the hole. Once the putty is dry buff the area and finish with a stain pen. Then when the stain pen is dry add a coat of polyurethane to seal the repaired portion of flooring from liquids that can warp the strand woven bamboo.