Pros and Cons of Bamboo Flooring in Your Home

The most exciting part of your home reno has come. It’s time to pick out new floors. While shopping, you may come across a product quickly gaining popularity: bamboo. This flooring option adds a warm, natural element to any room, and it’s impressively durable. But there are some things to consider before you install bamboo flooring in your home. Learn all the bamboo flooring pros and cons before deciding if this material is right for you.

What Is Bamboo Flooring?

Bamboo flooring is made from the plant bamboo, a type of grass that is hardy and has few pests. This plant grows quickly, so it’s ready to harvest every five to seven years, after which it can regrow from the same plant. Manufacturers process the bamboo into floor planks that resemble hardwood but boast the plant’s natural pest resistance. 

Bamboo comes in solid, engineered, or strand-woven varieties. Strand-woven bamboo flooring is even harder than solid bamboo because it combines bamboo and resin in layers for increased durability. Bamboo flooring has many pros and cons, including its durability against wear and tear, its eco-friendliness, and its limitations in style options. Homeowners should carefully weigh these benefits and drawbacks before deciding whether bamboo matches their family’s needs and preferences.

Pros of Bamboo Flooring

Bamboo offers several benefits, particularly for eco-conscious homeowners. It’s durable enough to stand up to scratches and denting from pets and kids, and it has the added benefit of being naturally resistant to many common household pets, including termites. Some of the benefits of bamboo flooring include:

1. Sustainability

Bamboo is considered a sustainable material because the plant grows quickly. It takes five to seven years to reach maturity, at which point it will be ready to harvest. Plus, the whole plant doesn’t have to be harvested and replanted. The bamboo can be harvested and left to regrow.

2. Pest Resistance

Unlike hardwood, which can be vulnerable to pests like termites and carpenter ants, bamboo is a pest-resistant material. Bamboo is not wood but grass, so it’s not a common food source for these pests. Bamboo is also an allergy-friendly flooring option because it doesn’t attract or provide the right environment for dust mites to thrive.

3. Durability

Bamboo floors have between 1,380 and 1,825 on the Janka scale, which measures the relative hardness of wood (or, in bamboo’s case, a wood-like material). The exact hardness will vary by specific bamboo materials and manufacturers, but in comparing bamboo versus hardwood flooring, bamboo is harder than some types of hardwood, including oak.

Cons of Bamboo Flooring

Bamboo flooring has its pros and cons. While there are many things to like about this sustainable material, it might not work for every household. The limited colors mean bamboo flooring may not fit in with all decor styles, and it has a much shorter life span than other flooring materials, like solid hardwood, tile, or concrete. Some drawbacks of this material include:

1. Limited Color Options

Unlike wood, vinyl, or laminate, which can come in a range of different colors and styles, bamboo is more limited in its natural color options. Bamboo has a light, yellow-toned appearance, or it can be carbonized, which darkens the color. The material is difficult to stain and can look splotchy or uneven, so it may be better to stick with its natural tones.

2. Shorter Life Span

While bamboo flooring isn’t as short-lived as some flooring types, like carpet or low-quality vinyl or laminate, it doesn’t last as long as engineered or solid hardwood. Bamboo flooring has a life span of 10 to 30 years on average.

3. Vulnerable to Moisture

Bamboo flooring is vulnerable to spills, leaks, and even humidity, so it might not be the right choice for bathrooms, basements, or kitchens that see a lot of messes. Bamboo will soak up liquid and swell up, and stains will easily stick to this material. Be mindful of humidity and temperature swings, too. If the bamboo experiences major swings in humidity levels, it can shrink and crack.

Alternatives to Bamboo Flooring

Bamboo flooring costs $2 to $20 per square foot, so it costs less than other types of flooring, especially hardwood. Add in its durability and sustainability, and you can easily see why bamboo is becoming a popular flooring choice. However, its limited designs and vulnerability to moisture mean bamboo flooring isn’t the right fit for every room. Homeowners may want to consider other options for style or water resistance, such as:

• Engineered hardwood: Engineered hardwood has better resistance to moisture, so it may be a better option than bamboo for basements or kitchens.

• Solid hardwood: Hardwoods offer more color and style options and a longer life span, but they can be high maintenance. Sealing every few years offers better protection.

• Vinyl: Vinyl has a similar life span to bamboo flooring, and some types of vinyl are more water-resistant. But vinyl flooring isn’t as eco-friendly as bamboo.

• Laminate: Laminate is vulnerable to moisture like bamboo, but it comes in a wide variety of designs. It’s also a lower-cost option at $3 to $10 per square foot.

Is Bamboo Flooring Right for You?

Bamboo flooring is a great choice for many homes, especially if you want to incorporate natural elements into your interiors or you value sustainability. It’s not the lowest-cost flooring option, but it does cost less than materials like hardwood or ceramic tile. Because it’s so durable and can be refinished, bamboo will last several years, even up to three decades, in your home.

Of course, if you dream of floors that have a rich, dark tone or a grayish hue, it may be harder to achieve those design goals with bamboo. Also, if you find yourself cleaning up spilled sippy cups often or steaming up the bathroom with long showers every day, you may want to opt for something more water-resistant.

If you decide that bamboo flooring is right for you, get the most out of your new floors by hiring a local flooring company to handle installation.

How Much Does Bamboo Flooring Cost?

The cost of bamboo flooring can range anywhere from $1,750 to $5,000, with an average total of $3,400. Some of the biggest cost factors of bamboo flooring include the room size and the type and brand of bamboo flooring you want. 

DIY vs. Hiring a Pro 

While installing bamboo flooring yourself can save you some money—you’ll spend $2 to $10 per square foot on the flooring itself—it’s not an easy DIY project. If you don’t have any experience installing flooring, it can be a dangerous endeavor. What’s more, any mistakes in creating an even flooring or spacing the flooring out correctly will result in you spending more time and money on fixing the mistake. It’s best to hire a professional floor installer to ensure you get the job done right the first time.