Green Shoots Blog
With customers in locations such as Hawaii, Arizona, and beyond, a common question we get here at Cali Bamboo is how our flooring holds up in extreme climates. Because bamboo is a natural product, it will expand as it absorbs humidity and shrink as the air grows drier. The key to avoiding wood floor gaps and distortion, even in the most extreme climates, is to properly acclimate the flooring prior to installation.
Our dealer Nate McVay of Renew Bamboo has successfully installed dozens of Cali Bamboo floors in Reno, Nevada. Reno experiences all kinds of weather from dry, hot summers, to wet, snowy winters, and everything in between, but Nate has never had a problem with gaps and distortion because he acclimates all his flooring for at least two weeks before installation. Like we said, acclimation is essential to avoiding wood floor gapping, and ensuring that your flooring looks absolutely perfect!
We know you might be tempted to install your bamboo as soon as it arrives, but we cannot stress enough the importance of allowing it to acclimate to your climate so that your beautiful new flooring does not expand, shrink, or distort. We recommend acclimating your flooring for a bare minimum of 72 hours, but locations with extremely low or high humidity will require much longer.
Hi, i’m in the St. Louis MO area and with the humidity changes here from summer to winter Im really concerned about the changing seasons. I have a train humidifier and have been work with it to see if i can maintain 40 plus % humidity. It has been very cold over the last month or 2 and it seems hard to get about 40%. It really stays about 33 to 35ish. We have been talking with someone from cali bamboo and ready to go just a little nervous spending all the money if its not going to last. We just love the Vintage Port tongue amd groove nail down but??? What’s your thoughts?
Hi Mike,
The Vintage Port is stunning no doubt. I’m glad to hear you are doing your homework and asking a lot of questions before jumping in, it’s a big decision. First off, the janka hardness and aluminum oxide finish on our solid bamboo floors is second to none, and I’m more than confident it will outperform your expectations. Have you received your free sample yet? Get one of those first and put it thru some real-world abuse and you’ll see what I’m talking about. That said, the only real concern I have is the swings in temp and humidity in your area. Solid bamboo, like any solid hardwood, will expand and contract as the seasons change. Fear not, there’s a whole slew of things you can do to ensure the movement won’t cause any issues for you. First, acclimate. Acclimate the flooring for a minimum of 10 days in the installation area. This will get the planks ready for their new home. Next, use a moisture barrier if you are installing over concrete. If you’re nailing down to a wood subfloor, you won’t need an underlayment or moisture barrier, but regardless of how you install it, you’ll want to leave 1/2″ expansion spaces around any fixed objects like walls and door frames. Floors tend to move less that are nailed or glued down. Lastly, engineered flooring is more resistant to temp and RH fluctuations too, and lucky for you, we have Vintage Port in an engineered option, so I’d probably go with that. Make sure your installer follows our installation guidelines and you’ll be all good. Here’s a video that’s more for floated installs but explains floor movement really well. If you have any more questions don’t hesitate to ask!
Best,
Thank you so much for the help, I would have no problem with the engineered if it was made In nail down?? Im thinking with the lay out of our house and with covering several rooms its probably best to stay with nail down over the plywood subfloor.. Any other suggestions?
Hi Mike,
Just realized I linked to the wrong thing in my original response. Unfortunately, the engineered Vintage Port is click-lock and cannot be nailed down. You could still do solid though, you’ll just want to make sure your installer follows all of the guidelines. Lastly, we do have a color called Malibu in engineered which is very similar to Port.
Mike: I installed 1500 s/f of 5/8 x 3-1/2 x 4’ sold bamboo flooring in Urbana IL in 2006. In the five years that we owned the home we had absolutely no problem with expansion/contraction. This was installed on a new build with a full poured concrete basement. We left the home open in the Spring and fall and during the more moderate periods of the summer.
I realize an anecdote s not the singular of data but thought I would share our experience.
We just received our solid bamboo fossilized wide T/G flooring and are starting the acclimation period. We live in the Minneapolis area and have multiple different seasons. We have a central air and an april aire humidifier. We currently have a maple floor that we are tearing out to install the bamboo. We didnt have any issues with movement in the maple floors. We plan on nailing down the solid floor to a plywood subfloor. How long do you suggest acclimation? Do i need to apply a roll on moisture barrier or can i use felt paper or both? I will be installing myself. Any tips or suggestions would be appreciated, Thanks
Hi Chad,
I would acclimate in the home for 10 days minimum, if your schedule allows longer, go longer. I’m assuming it’s rather dry and cold right now so be sure and allow room for a bit of expansion when the warm, humid summer comes. We recommend 1/2″ around all fixed objects. Since you are nailing down this movement should be minimal, but plan for it all the same. As for underlayment, a felt or red rosin paper is just fine over a wood subfloor.
Do you have any recommendations or experience with the treehouse fossilized wide t&g being installed into travel trailers? We live in Wyoming where there can be large and rapid temperature changes and were wondering if acclimating the floor to the best of our ability depending on the time of year, and floating the floor would be enough to accommodate those changes. We also have two large dogs and it would be exposed to some heavy wear and tear during certain parts of the year. We love the style and look of this type of flooring, but do want to consider the fact that it may not be the best option. Can you give us any recommendations or tips/tricks for this type of situation?
Treehouse is my favorite color too. While people do put solid flooring in trailers and campers, you’re right, it’s probably not the best choice. Between the temperature fluctuations, dirt and grit everywhere and the simple fact that it’s really heavy, there’s plenty of reasons not to choose real wood. I know what it’s like to finally find the perfect color though, nothing else seems right. As far as expansion goes, since it’s a fairly small space you should be fine with 1/4″ to 1/2″ expansion around all fixed objects. Maybe consider glueing down?
If you wanted to play it safe, then our vinyl flooring would certainly look nice and hold up to any adventure. Another option would be cork flooring and we have a similar color called driftwood that may be close enough to Treehouse. Best of luck in your search, if you do happen to go with Cali bamboo, please send us photos I’d like to see them.
Walker
I was told that your solid product tends to warp here in Hawaii and was encouraged to install your hybrid/engineered flooring. Can you comment on this?
I intend to install on a plywood subfloor on the second floor with nail down installation.
If pre-installation steps are not followed very carefully it’s true, solid wood and bamboo flooring can expand in extremely humid environments like Hawaii. To successfully install solid flooring, you will need to acclimate for 2-3 weeks prior to installation, use appropriate moisture barriers and give extra space for expansion especially when floating the floor. While solid flooring can be done in Hawaii, the risk of something going wrong is greater so to lower that risk we recommend engineered, Geowood or vinyl products. Since you plan to nail down over plywood, T&G engineered is your only option.
I will acclimate bamboo in upper 90° temps in Idaho. How does summer acclimation protect against sever cold winters affecting bamboo?
So while temperature plays a small role, humidity is the real factor that affects expansion/contraction. I was looking at Idaho’s average annual humidity and it’s opposite of Southern California. You have high humidity in the colder months and drier summers. If you acclimate during dry conditions, you’ll want to plan for some expansion come winter, especially if you plan to float the floor. This video covers all the basics.role
I have the fossilized Bammboo flooring. It was acclimated properly before it was installed. It is now cupping. What is the problem?
Hi Rosie,
90% of cupping is due to wet mopping the floor. We recommend lightly spraying Bona Professional Floor cleaner and damp mopping with a swiffer type microfiber pad. Moisture on a newly mopped floor should evaporate within 1 minute. If it takes longer, your mop is too wet. If you don’t wet mop, then there’s an underlying moisture issue at play. What is your subfloor? How was the flooring installed? Watch this video, it covers common cupping sources and what can be done. If you’re still not sure what the issue can be, contact our service department at [email protected] and one of our service reps can help you narrow it down.
How long should I acclimate installing July in Georgia. Is 1 week enough?
Hi Craig,
I would acclimate for 10 days. Looks like you guys are heading into warm, humid months so you could experience some shrinkage come winter. If you’re floating, make sure to plan for this. Here’s a video that covers it in detail.
What would you say about an unheated cabin in Alaska? Temps in winter are down to -60, and up to as high as 90 in the summer?
Hi Seth,
This is a good breakdown of our flooring products’ tolerance to extreme temperature and humidity fluctuations.
1) Cali Vinyl
2) GeoWood (coming 3/26)
3) Engineered Bamboo
4) Cork Flooring
5) Solid Bamboo/Eucalyptus
Thanks Walker,
We have sheet vinyl in another place and it cracked in about 6 different spots last year. Is this glue down sheets of vinyl? What is the difference between the pro and the plus?
Thanks,
Seth
This is not sheet vinyl, it’s in a click-lock plank format about 7″x 48″. It lays more like hardwood flooring and can be floated or glued down. The Plus is $3.99/sqft and has a bamboo composite core and features a built-in cork underlayment making it a bit more comfortable. The Pro is $3.49/sqft and has a limestone composite core making it even more moisture resistant, but should be paired with an underlayment, like Cali Complete, as the GeoCore is quite hard.
We have also had other people up here that have had problem with the luxury vinyl planks separating at the seams when they went into colder months.
We haven’t had any issues with our vinyl, but the GeoCore Pro is extremely stable even with extreme temperature and humidity fluctuations.
I need to order the underlayment for floating install. what do you recommend and can I order from this website. I love in Florida where it is quite humid
Cali Complete, it’s available here: https://www.calibamboo.com/floor-installation-supplies.html
I live in central NJ in Somerset county. Is there a particular season (summer, spring, winter, fall) to buy solid bamboo that optimizes the 2 to 3 week acclimation period?
Hi Mel,
We recommend acclimating between seasonal extremes when possible.
We live in the Midwest (Iowa), and are looking at installing Natural Fossilized Wide Click Bamboo in our upper level (think converted attic space) master suite. The biggest concern we have after all of our research and reading is the dramatic temperature and humidity swings in that space. We do have central air and a whole house humidifier, but in the summer, it gets sweltering up there if the window AC unit is not running, and in the winter, we typically use a space heater and electric blankets. I feel like this may be too large of a spectrum to expose this bamboo flooring to, as compared to a traditional hardwood type floor. Can anyone confirm or debunk this amateur opinion? Thoughts? Anything?
Hi Kelly,
Yes, your concerns are real, but apply to all solid flooring not just bamboo. In extremely dry or humid climates, it can do unexpected things or it can do nothing at all, we’ve seen plenty of both happen and proper acclimation can minimize it. If you find yourself in one of these areas, I would look at our Engineered bamboo flooring, it’s specifically designed for these situations. You’ll lose some of the Janka hardness that the solid flooring is known for but you’ll gain peace of mind knowing the floor is less likely to expand or contract season to season.
Best,
Would it be okay to install this flooring over ceramic tile? I live in the plains of Colorado with low humidity.
Hi Diane,
You can float the flooring over the tile, but we’d recommend a moisture barrier to protect the hardwood. Cali Complete with the seam tape will give you complete moisture protection and add some comfort and sound/thermal insulation.
What is your success rate for places like Las Vegas or Phoenix? You cite Reno, but Reno is like Salt Lake City or Boise and not a desert location. I can acclimate flooring for six months if necessary. I can give a 1.5 inch expansion perimeter. If I install in summer, when the material should be at its most expansive, I can leave a half inch perimeter and allow for one inch shrinkage. My room is 28×38 feet. Please advise.
Hi Chandler,
First off, thank you for understanding the importance of acclimation! Hugely underestimated by most homeowners. Phoenix is very dry, I lived there for 25 years. Shrinkage is going to be your concern, not so much expansion unless you have a moisture problem. For solid bamboo or eucalyptus (or any hardwood for that matter), 2 weeks acclimation is the minimum, but I’d acclimate for 3 or 4 if possible. Make that hashtag shaped (#) stack with the planks and stack it on a pallet in the middle of the room under your normal living conditions. Maybe avoid the late summer monsoon season when acclimating, as that’s really the only time of year relative humidity gets up there and stays high. If you want to skip all the acclimation, and we have the color you like in our Engineered line, I’d lean this direction as engineered products tend to resist expansion and contraction more than solid flooring. Reno is technically high desert and gets just as miserable as Phoenix in the summer (sorry, I’m a total weather snob since I moved to San Diego) we went there in early September to shoot that video, never again. Sorry about the rant. So back to flooring. Did you have an installation method in mind? Nailing or glueing down the flooring will give you that “solid” flooring experience but it fights contraction and you can end up with gaps between planks that are impossible to correct. Floating the floor has that unfortunate “hollow” flooring feeling that only some people mind, but it has the advantage of working with expansion. You may only see gaps at the perimeter of the floor which can be easily concealed with a quarter round, problem solved. Floating is also easier if you plan to install it yourself. I hope my ramblings have been useful, I can get into greater detail on anything you may have more questions about. Best of luck to you Chandler on your new flooring adventure!
Walker