One of our pals just put in a new bamboo floor, and it's been less than 24 hours and he's already found scratches in it. Usually, our advice is, "Don't worry about it! It'll give your home character!" But seeing as though our advice did very little to console him, we've found some interesting DIY tips on how to repair a bamboo floor. Tips after the jump!
[ Photo from Keetsa.com ]
For the common surface scratch: Use a surface filler that matches the color of your floor to fill the crack, and then buff like mad to match the surface finish. If the scratch is deeper than you expect and you are feeling particularly brave, wet sand the area to the root of the scratch, and then reapply a new coat of polyurethane.
For water stains or pet damage: Make sure the area is dry and clean. Then, use a disc floor sander, sand the damaged area down to clean material. Grab a mop and bucket, and start applying coats of polyurethane. You'll want to taper off as you work towards the undamaged areas so the finish will be uniform. Lightly sand between coats so the new finish area will match as closely as possible to the older area.
Tips from Sean O'Halloran at DoItYourself.com.
Copyright © 2007 Apartment Therapy
I have wall to wall black bamboo floors and they are nothing short of a pain in the ass. I have learned that since it was once a plant they can NOT be sanded down and re-stained like normal hardwood floors. I have been told that this is due to the fiber-is quality of the wood. Yes it they are environmentally friendly but they have large draw backs. I am getting estimates to replace them with a common hardwood. Good luck.
view LA 's profile
Dragging furniture across the floor is the #1 enemy for hard flooring - even those slick furniture moving pads will scratch a wood floor if dirt gets caught under them.
Always get someone to help you lift and carry larger furniture pieces.
view bepsf's profile
Bamboo is not good for floors. It should not be considered in the same category as ('hard') wood flooring. It is a type of grass. It is nice as a veneer for cabinets or furnishings, but do not expect it to last for flooring. It is not a very green product for flooring if it will need to be replaced.
view weezerad79's profile
LA,
I think th ereason you cannot sand is that your floors are stained black. Sanding will bring out the rather light natural bamboo color.
I do not have experience with bamboo, but it is pretty hard and it should be possible to sand it.
view Jute Zak's profile
per the dwell and sunset home tours this year: bamboo must be seven year growth before harvesting for flooring. anything less is unlikely to be resilient enough. and given the popularity of bamboo and green design, there has been a race to the bottom with immature harvesting and many substandard products. bamboo is fine for floors, if it's the right bamboo.
view healthyhome's profile
Hard soled shoes are the enemy of hardwood floors. Tennis shoes and athletic shoes don't do nearly the damage. Only wear soft soled shoes inside. I had my hardwood floors refinished 10 years ago, never wear hard soled shoes inside, and the floors look as good now as they did 10 years ago.
view RichardinLA's profile
Ug. My experience with my bamboo floors has been wretched. Pretty the first hour after they were installed, and a scratched mess the next day. DO NOT try to re-sand them. It will make things much much worse. But scratches are the least of my problems: a month after the "basement grade", two-week acclimated, blonde floors were put in, they started cupping and warping. I agree, NOT a green product if you have to rip them out after a year.
view Veruca's profile
Veruca -what adhesive did you use? Was it water/moisture proof? I put Bamboo down in March and so far so good. We don't wear shoes other than slippers in the house so, so far everything has been good there. Where is the cupping and warping starting? Is it in the corners...I just want to know what to look for just in case. You're the second person to say it happened to them. I installed mine on a slab.
view kerri's profile