As a homeowner, you have numerous options when choosing the best floor for your house. Traditional hardwood floors are still a popular option for flooring, however, the benefits of bamboo wood flooring have made it an exceptional alternative to traditional floors. Understanding the different types of bamboo flooring ensures that you make the right choice. Here are the two main categories of types of bamboo flooring.
- Solid strand bamboo: If you are looking for a tough yet beautiful bamboo floor, a solid strand is your best option. This eco-friendly material is easy to install with glue or nails and they also come in premium wide plank at a relatively low cost than traditional wood floors. Solid strand bamboo flooring is 3 times harder than oak flooring.
- Engineered Strand Bamboo: Solid strand bamboo and engineered strand bamboo floor both look the same, even their application. But the engineered woven bamboo is wider ideal for flooring applications. The engineered bamboo structure allows more customize size planks and does not compromise its stability. It’s easy to install and for durability, experts recommend an engineered floor with a minimum of 2 mm wear layer that can be refinished at least twice, and premium quality with 3 in 1 underlayment.
Bamboo flooring can be stained or refinished. But how do you do it? Unlike traditional wood floors that required staining after some time, these two main types of bamboo flooring rarely have to be stained because of a dense layer that protects against scratching.
Simple Steps on How To Stain Bamboo Flooring
1.Remove your furniture, rugs, and drapes
Before working on the floors, the first step is to remove carpeting and clear out the furniture. All curtains should also be removed and install back when the floors dry up completely.
2.Clean the Room
Once you remove the carpet, you’ll be surprised by the amount of dirt and sand under it. So, you need to sweep and vacuum if necessary all the dust before you even begin sanding.
3.Sanding
Bamboo floor refinishing involves the removal of the original layer by sanding. This process is done using a floor polisher and a sanding screen or an electric sander. Essentially, if you want to change the color of your floor from dark to bright you will have to sand it down to remove the old stain.
If you are looking to simply refinishing your floor which is still in a good state, then consider screening the original layer only. Likewise, a light-colored floor can be screened to remove the top finish and apply a darker shade.
When sanding your floors, observe the color of the sawdust. If it’s white then you are applying enough pressure. But if you see dark colored sawdust, then know that you are using excess pressure, apply a gentle touch.
4.Clean the Floor Again
After a successful sanding, sweep the area completely to eliminate any trace of sawdust. Repeat this process at least twice to make sure you don’t miss anything, otherwise, you may end up with rough spots on the floor after applying the stain.
5.Stain
After all that work preparing the surface, your floor is ready for staining. Ideally, you need two coats of permeating stain and there several ways to apply the color. One is using a cotton rug and wipe the color onto the floor or you can brush on the stain, then use a cotton cloth to remove the excess stain.
Whichever method you choose to use, make sure you apply thin and even coats. Be sure to cover all area and then allow the stain to dry before moving to the finish.
6. Seal
The last step in staining different types of bamboo flooring is applying the polyurethane finish. Polyurethane protects wood floors against scratches and spills, increasing its impermeability. The same way you applied the stain, apply thin and even coats of polyurethane using a paintbrush. Give it 2 hours before applying another coat of sealant.
Polyurethane comes in two varieties and different sheen levels. You can choose from glossy to matte depending on what you want. Applying polyurethane is a bit tricky, so you need to be more careful with your stroke of paint. The result should be a glossy and scuff-resistant bamboo floor.