Strand Bamboo Flooring vs Laminate Bamboo Flooring

Both strand bamboo flooring and laminate bamboo flooring can present you with some nice options for your home. Both of these types of flooring have some advantages and disadvantages associated with them. Here are a few things to consider about strand bamboo flooring and laminate bamboo flooring.

Construction

One of the biggest differences between these two types of flooring is in the way that they are constructed. With strand bamboo flooring, they are taking actual pieces of bamboo and cutting it into small strands. They take the strands and mix them together with adhesive and resin. This mixture is then pressed together very tightly under extreme heat. After the process is completed, you are left with a very hard and dense form of bamboo.

Laminate bamboo flooring is made differently. With this type of flooring, they are taking sawdust, and other small pieces of wood and pressing it together under extreme pressure. This is done to form the core of the laminate board. They will then attach a hard backing to the core. On top of the core, they will use small pieces of a hard fiber very similar to construction paper. They will apply multiple layers of this paper. The top layer of paper has a digital image of bamboo printed on it. On top of that layer, they will put a walking layer that is similar to plastic.

Appearance

These two products also have a very different appearance. Strand bamboo is always going to look roughly the same. It looks almost like a tiger wood with many different random stripes going throughout. This is a very unique design that many people love. With laminate bamboo flooring, they can make it look like any type of bamboo. You can replicate natural bamboo, carbonized bamboo, and you can even make it look like strand bamboo. This means that you will have many more design options when it comes to using laminate bamboo.

Price

In the vast majority of cases, strand bamboo is going to be more expensive than laminate bamboo. When you are dealing with strand bamboo, you are actually using pieces of real bamboo. When they make laminate bamboo, there is not actually any bamboo in the product. They are using cheaper pieces of wood to make the core. This means that they will be able to produce the laminate bamboo at a much cheaper price point than what you can get strand bamboo.

Installation

The installation of these two products will also be different. When you are dealing with laminate bamboo, you are going to be able to tap the boards together and they will lock in place. You do not have to use adhesive or nails during the installation. You simply lay it on top of a pad. With strand bamboo, you can nail it or glue it down to the floor. The process to install strand bamboo is going to be more difficult and take more time to complete.