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    • 17 July 2005 at 11:53 am #30421
      Anonymous

        Can anyone recommend or comment on bamboo flooring? How ecological is it in general terms? I see it is laminated and therefore contains glue, how enviromentally friendly is the glue is it likely to be high VOC? Finally, is native hardwood such as Oak / Ash a better material for flooring above UFH?

        Many thanks,

        Paul

      • 18 July 2005 at 8:32 am #32618
        Anonymous

          Certainly bamboo has a very rapid carbon fixation rate compared to timber. What does UFH stand for?

        • 18 July 2005 at 9:53 am #32619
          Anonymous

            Under floor heating. I have seen a few websites advertising bamboo as an alternative to hardwood. But I am becoming more cynical the more I read about so called “green” products. Bamboo does grow very quickly and is pretty strong. But the manufacturing lamintaes bamboo and I am concerned about the glue that is use both environmentally and from a health perspective. Just wondered if anyone on here had looked into it.

          • 25 July 2005 at 10:46 am #32620
            Anonymous

              All I know is that it's supposed to be as hard wearing, if not more, as hardwood. I fitted some once and it's very pleasant to work with. How do the costs compare with oak flooring?

            • 25 July 2005 at 12:24 pm #32621
              Anonymous

                Yes I have seen it is supposed to be very hardwearing. One site I have found is quoting £21.00 per sq metre which sounds very reasonable. What is turning out to be more difficult is if the bamboo is from FSC “forests” and even more difficult is finding info on the glue that is used in the construction, especially the VOC content

              • 25 July 2005 at 1:01 pm #32622
                Anonymous

                  You've also got to be careful when sourcing oak flooring. A lot of companies are marketing oak floors at around the £20 per square metre mark as well. It certainly won't be FSC certified, but generally European oak is nothing to worry about – it's all from sustainably managed sources even if not certified, as we cut down all our old-growth forests centuries ago. But enquire exactly where its sourced from, and if it's Eastern Europe, especially Romania, Bulgaria or Ukraine, then it's best avoided, as old-growth forests are being decimated in that region.

                  In terms of the bamboo floor, I'd be interested to know what type of glue is used as well. I wouldn't imagine it would contain a particularly high concentration of glue; I'd see no reason it should be any higher than plywood or hardwood worktop, which are generally considered fairly benign.

                • 26 July 2005 at 11:25 am #32623
                  David Olivier

                    Most external-grade plywood (ironically given the location where it's normally used) uses phenol-formaldehyde glues which are less problematic than urea-formaldehyde glues as used in internal-grade plywood, chipboard or MDF. Probably better to use external-grade ply. even indoors; e.g. kitchen furniture.

                    D.

                  • 26 July 2005 at 4:16 pm #32624
                    Anonymous

                      Does that also apply to birch ply and hardwood worktop, David?

                    • 1 August 2005 at 10:28 am #32625
                      Anonymous

                        I mailed one of the suppliers and they said the glue was Dyno Glue which I believe is owned by the Dynea Group and the floor lacquer is sourced from Krumpp

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