Engineered wood vs. Bamboo

[Garald]

[Preface: I bought a duplex/triplex in a near suburb of Paris (most of a small house from 1930) a few months ago. I've been planning a major renovation with an architect since then. Work is about to start - and the contractor my architect favors has just given us quotes that are much, much higher than what was initially foreseen. So, time to make some economies.]

 

Yes, I will still remove that pretty awful floor in the attic (where most of the sleeping space will be), but the dream of replacing it with solid hardwood may be something to give up on (even though what really seems objectionable to me is the cost of laying the floor (52.5 eur/m^2, apparently) more than the price of the solid hardwood (80 eur/m^2)).

 

It's then a choice between bamboo flooring (40ish eur/m^2) and engineered hardwood (50 eur/m^2).

 

What are the advantages of one vs. the other? All I know is that bamboo may be eco-friendlier and engineered oak hardwood may be better for resale value in the area.

 

PS. We will buy a little more that we will lay now, just in case I ever raise the roof (in which case I would have to lay flooring on the part that is now hidden in the eaves). What is likely to have greater differences in discoloration (on the floor vs. in storage in the bike shed)?

[Kelvin]

I’ve looked into this a bit. Primarily it will come down to what you prefer the look of. Smoked engineered oak looks much better (to me) than bamboo which tends to look more like patchwork when laid and almost tile like. Bamboo isn’t as durable as engineered oak so if it’s in a high traffic area keep that in mind. It’s also more susceptible to marking. However, it is from a very sustainable source so if you care about that then it wins hands down. Technically it’s also not a wood per se as it’s a grass processed into planks. Not that this matters much. 

[JohnMo]

It's bit like saying shall I have a red or blue one, its down to your choices and what fits in best with the rest of the house.  Only way to choose is to go look at samples.

[Gone West]

9 hours ago, Garald said:

What are the advantages of one vs. the other?

We used strand woven bamboo in our newbuild. It was advertised as twice as hard as oak and horizontal or vertical cut bamboo. It was click together and easy to lay and we preferred the look of it to oak. We got a large number of samples of many types of flooring before deciding.

[Garald]

I liked some (solid) oak samples and I liked some bamboo samples. It's also the case that a friend with experience in the area tells me that nothing resells as well as oak hardwood (even if it is engineered) in the Paris area.

 

All of that is preferences - I was checking in here really to learn more about differences in durability and other objective aspects of performance (e.g., intrinsic sound insulation).

[SteamyTea]

No experience with either, I have parquet flooring (cheap stuff as well).

But I know that the bamboo chopping board I have has lasted longer than my proper wooden one.  It still lays flat.

It is not so nice to use though.  I have no idea what timber my old chapping board is made from, but it is softer and quieter to use, nicer to touch and is generally better, except it warped badly.

[Mr Punter]

I have used strand woven bamboo stuck down to 22mm chipboard decking,  It gave a really solid feel.  It is difficult to cut, especially with a jigsaw as the tough strands make the blade wander.