TYPES

Strand woven bamboo flooring is made in a different way to other types of bamboo flooring.

To make strand woven bamboo flooring the bamboo is cut into strands and then heated to dry the bamboo and remove most of the sugar from the bamboo which attracts termites and other insects.

Then the strands are pressed together under pressure with an adhesive. All the waste from the strand cutting is added at this point so nothing is wasted of the bamboo.

After the strands have been subjected to intense pressure they come out in thick and dense planks like lumber. These planks are then milled to standard sizes for retailing.

The differences in strand woven bamboo are to do with an optional heating process.

If the strand woven bamboo is subjected to additional oven treatment then the remaining sugars caramelize and produce a rich brown colour in the plank.

This is called carbonized strand woven bamboo.

Carbonized strand woven bamboo is an attractive dark brown colour that many people find attractive. However, the carbonizing process reduces the hardness of the strand woven bamboo by 30%. On the positive side, the rich colour is throughout the entire bamboo so even if you sand the bamboo there is no change in colour.

If the strand woven bamboo is not further heated it remains a light honey colour. This type of strand woven bamboo is often called natural strand woven bamboo.

Tiger stripe is a distinctive type of strand woven bamboo made by combining natural and carbonised strand woven bamboo to make a striped effect.

Finally, some dealers are offering a variety of different colours of strand woven bamboo flooring such as rustic, coca and burgundy. These colours are achieved with dyes and the carbonizing process.