Bamboo Flooring

[Wendy and Myla]

This has nothing to do with doodles but I was hoping that some of you might have had experience with bamboo flooring.  We are going to renovate our bedroom in the next few months and I have fallen in love with a Bamboo Flooring with a vertical carbonized finish.  We have a very small bedroom and I was hoping to do the floor in bamboo and put a grass wallpaper on one wall.  Myla does sleep in the bedroom with us (on her dog bed on the floor).  When looking online there are a lot of poor reviews on bamboo flooring but it seems most of those reviews are from people who have put it on concrete floors.  I was hoping that some of you might have bamboo flooring and can let me know how you feel about it.  I am mostly concerned about the peeling and the cupping.  The flooring has gone on sale starting today at 20% off so we have to make our decision soon.  Thanks!

[Linda, Charlie Brown and Beau]

We have tile throughout living area except for carpet in the bedrooms, but I can tell of our experience with the doodles and wood floors.  Charlie slipped on my daughter's kitchen floor and he refuses to walk through there now.  When we visit he stays in family room.  At night, I have to carry him through the kitchen to our bedroom and put him on the bed (both kitchen and bedrooms are wood).  They also have wood floors at their cabin and 5 years ago our standard poodle fell in their cabin and hit the top of his rear knee on the floor.  It really was a fluke accident, but in partially tore his cruciate ligament.  Because of our experiences, I probably could not do wood floors.  Her floors are not bamboo, so maybe the bamboo is not as slippery as others.  Good luck with whatever your choice may be.  It sounds like a beautiful project and I will be watching for end result photos.

[Wendy and Myla]

Thanks Linda - we do have oak flooring throughout the rest of the house except tile in bathrooms so Myla is definitely used to wood flooring and we could do oak in bedroom also but I love the look of this bamboo - it makes me feel like I'm in a grass hut - lol.  Isn't it funny how dogs will not do something if they don't want to - Myla does not like going down stairs - I had to carry her down our friends stairs (she went up no problem) and that was pretty hard to do - she is 63 pounds and I couldn't see where I was going!

[Bonnie and Kona]

I have 90 pound and 65 pound doodles. We had oak flooring in our last house and Brazillion cherry here. Maybe because they have always had hardwood flooring there have been no accidents from slipping or falling on the floors. I have no experience with bamboo, but I have read there are a variety of qualities. I would be careful not to get the cheapest, rather the most durable. 

[Wendy and Myla]

I would love Brazillion cherry hardwood - when DH retires we're redoing the main floor and that might be an option - I guess maybe he should work a few more years! lol

[Bonnie and Kona]

It really is beautiful but I can see the wear and tear on it from 8 doodle paws more than I could on the oak. I think it's because it is such a fine finish and less rustic. I'm not sure. It was one of the prettiest things about the house when we looked at it in April. We moved in July 4 and I can see that it is not as pristine as it was before doodles. ;o) 

[Gail and Bailey]

My friend has bamboo floors in her house.  One of the rooms had cement floors and it did buckle and had to be replaced with carpet...but the rest of the house is fine.  When I visited... my mini doodle (30 lbs) had no problem running around with their Schnauzer on the bamboo floor.  It is pretty much the same as running around on wood floors....some slipping when they get crazy but just walking around is no problem.   I was told that the room with the cement floor was an add-on and that may be the reason for the moisture coming up through the cement and causing the problem with the bamboo in that area.

We have a house with all hard wood floors and I would give anything to have more carpet for my girl to run around on!  

Good luck with whatever you choose....and let us see pictures when you are done!

[Wendy and Myla]

Thanks - that is basically what I was hoping for - we don't have concrete underneath and it is a very low traffic area - I have no idea why I fell in love with the look - maybe I should have gone to Mexico for a vacation this spring - first time we haven't for years and maybe I'm just missing that "feel"!  DH is going to buy it tonight - we won't install for a few months but I will let you all know how it goes!   

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Wendy, I hope you love your floors. The Doodle Lover's group is going to Mexico this year. Keep that in mind for your vacation :)

[Wendy and Myla]

I know! I was trying to figure out how to swing it but the timing isn't right!  It sounds like so much fun!!  Mind you, if we're in the middle of reno's I may have to leave DH for a while.....  ;)

[Bonnie and Kona]

I highly recommend running away during remodeling. My DH and I always do it all ourselves and honestly, Going to Mexico sounds like the perfect scenario.

[Deborah Brown]

My dog sitters put in bamboo flooring a year ago. They sit for lots of dogs and it has held up well from the dog standpoint.  They just told me, however, that it is buckling now.  They installed it over their old beat up wood floors.

[Wendy and Myla]

Oh dear! We just picked it up!  We are installing it over a crawl space! I will let you all know!