Bamboo Flooring UK | Strand Woven bamboo
Eco-Plank Strand-Woven bamboo is the smart answer for consumers, design professionals and builders who are looking for ways to incorporate green, truly sustainable flooring into their projects.
Not only is Eco-plank Strand Woven Bamboo a sustainable alternative to hardwood floors, it also provides a unique look that goes with everything from contemporary to more classic traditional looks. Eco-plank is now no more expensive than traditional materials and is becoming more widely accepted as a genuine environmentally friendly choice for discerning buyers.
Strand woven Bamboo flooring is the truly environmentally friendly alternative to conventional hardwood floors. It is comparable to Ironwood in hardness and durability which makes it suitable for any application.
Although still viewed as Exotic because it is a relatively new and different method of flooring to the UK market, Eco-plank has been tried and tested in other markets for many years, particularly in Australia.
Eco-Plank Strand-Woven bamboo is the smart answer for consumers, design professionals and builders who are looking for ways to incorporate green, truly sustainable flooring into their projects.
Not only is Eco-plank Strand Woven Bamboo a sustainable alternative to hardwood floors, it also provides a unique look that goes with everything from contemporary to more classic traditional looks. Eco-plank is now no more expensive than traditional materials and is becoming more widely accepted as a genuine environmentally friendly choice for discerning buyers.
Why is Bamboo the Green alternative? Bamboo is actually not a tree, it is a fast growing grass, and is the ultimate renewable resource being the fastest growing woody plant on Earth.
Eco-Plank bamboo is sourced from managed plantations and harvested at exactly the right time in its growth cycle, ensuring quality and consistency of the end product.
Bamboo requires no fertilizers or pesticides and no re-planting, it is self regenerating, if it is not cut within 5 years it falls down and is lost. A leafy bamboo canopy, releases 35% more oxygen than a comparable stand of Hardwood trees.
Some species of Bamboo can grow 3 feet in a day and can reach heights of 60 feet, compare that to hardwood trees which can take anywhere from 40 to 130 years to mature. As the plant grows, it captures and retains carbon within the stalk and roots, the manufacturing process locks up that carbon, offsetting in part the carbon used in transportation. By buying Eco-plank strand woven bamboo, you are doing your bit towards protecting hardwood forests from further de-forestation, whilst still enjoying the benefits of a beautiful, extremely hardwearing, solid wood floor.
Is all bamboo the same? No, it is not. There are three ways in which Bamboo is processed into boards, each has its own characteristic look but only strand woven is extremely hard, the other two are relatively soft and will dent. It must be remembered that Bamboo is a grass and therefore the boards have to be constructed.
HORIZONTAL grain: boards are made by laminating together wider strips of Bamboo horizontally, in 3 layers, giving a wider flatter appearance to the surface of the finished board. This type of board is relatively soft and is not dent resistant.
VERTICAL grain: Boards are created from strips of Bamboo laid on edge with the wider faces laminated together vertically giving a thinner look to the bamboo surface of the finished board. This type of board is relatively soft and is not dent resistant.
STRAND WOVEN: Bamboo stalks are stripped and mixed with a formaldehyde free, water based resin which is then poured, heavily compressed and baked slowly until hard. The resulting board is composed of 40% resin which affords extraordinary hardness.
Eco-plank bamboo is made exclusively in a small family run factory in China that owns its own Bamboo plantations. Attention to detail and quality control are paramount to all aspects of its manufacture. The company holds Quality management System certification to ISO 9001-2000. The boards are precision milled and machined with tongue and grooves on all sides, then sanded and coated all round with 6 coats of U.V resistant Aluminium Oxide anti-scratch Treffert tm. coating. In between each coat every board is sanded and inspected for quality and finish.
It is only Strand Woven Bamboo that can boast such high density and superior durability which makes it suitable for any application where a floor is subjected to heavy duty wear, such as offices, industrial and commercial buildings, retail premises and heavy traffic areas in homes.
Our Bamboo floorboards have a uniquely warm, glowing finish and are harder than Red Oak and even Iron Wood (2890 PSI) , but are easier to cut and install. Eco-plank boards come in 2 colours, Natural Wheat and coffee. The colour difference is achieved by simply leaving the boards to cook for longer (carbonizing), there is no difference in performance.
Each colour has a choice of two different finishes, either Satin or deep gloss (Piano finish), both are scratch and dent resistant, the satin being more suitable for heavy traffic areas. Eco-plank boards are solid, not laminated and are 15mm thick which is 1mm thicker than most other Bamboo boards currently on the market. This gives our boards greater stability and resistance to cupping and warping. Each board is 1860mm long by 96mm wide and come in packs of 2.14m2.
Installed in the same way as conventional tongue and groove pre-finished solid wood floors. Boards should be unpacked and left to acclimatise in the room in which they are to be sited for 7 days.
The manufacturers recommend the use of a damp proof membrane whenever this product is installed onto a concrete slab not only to protect it from possible damp inherent within the slab , but from damp intrusion from walls or penetration by osmosis through the slab from defective plumbing/appliances.
The recommended solvent free system is Bostick Laybond one coat epoxy membrane coupled with Bostick Laybond L19 MS Wood Bond Flexible adhesive. For a perfect finish glue direct to 12mm plywood.
To finish off the perfect installation, we supply, TMoldings for use in doorways, Reducer strips to adjust to different floor heights, solid stair nosings, radiator pipe covers and molded scotia beading. All of these accessories come in both colours, Natural Wheat and Coffee.
Looking after your beautiful new Strand woven bamboo floor. Because of its unique construction and high resin content , Eco-plank Bamboo is moisture resistant, however, as with all timber boards , exposure to excessive moisture is not desirable and could cause damage, therefore conventional cotton mops which deliver high moisture levels to floors are not recommended.
In our experience, the best and most effective way to clean the floor is to use a flat headed mop with a removable toweling cover. Using preferably a cap full of pure Eucalyptus oil or Orange oil in hot water, dip the toweling head into the water and wring out till almost dry. Mop over the floor with this semi dry mop, and remove any stubborn marks with the neat oil.
This will leave your whole room smelling fragrant, it will not leave smears as will a conventional floor cleaner, it will care for the surface and as Eucalyptus oil is anti-bacterial, it will be particularly effective where there are young children or pets around. Alternatively, sparingly mist the floor with a mixture of warm water and eucalyptus oil and go over the floor with a microfibre mop, Enyo being a popular brand. Adhering to these principles will ensure that your new Ecoplank Strand Woven Bamboo floor will give you many years of wear and pleasure.
