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The bamboo floors are being installed by Chris Lamb + crew of Foothills Wood Floors. Aaron (left) carefully cut the first pieces of bamboo to fit the uneven edges along the plaster walls and Chris glued them to the primed concrete floor. After leaving the first few rows to dry overnight, the room was finished the next day.

The manufacturer recommends leaving a edge gap, covered by baseboard for expansion in humid weather, but we've reduced the space considerably to avoid baseboard. The bamboo might buckle with humidity, but we are willing to take that chance here in the desert. Each piece of bamboo is carefully glued in place then blue masking tape is used to hold them in place until the glue sets.

They used the same technique in the bedroom, beginning by gluing the first few strips along a wall, then returning to finish the room the next day. They are doing an expert job custom cutting the edge pieces so they follow the uneven plaster walls very well. Chris (left) has been installing all types of hardwood floors for several years. He's installed several bamboo floors as well and is impressed by how hard bamboo is. He explained that the glue used to attach the bamboo to the subfloor remains flexible so the bamboo can expand an contract without breaking the glue joint. With the small expansion joint, he suggested that we turn on the radiant floor heat gradually so the bamboo is allowed to acclimate slowly.

After the bamboo is laid and the glue has set, Chris and Aaron came back and removed the blue tape, cleaned up any wayward glue and cleaned and polished the floors. We chose the horizontal grain, natural color bamboo and are very happy with the way it looks. The grain is distinctively bamboo but the color is similar to maple or many other light hardwoods. Unlike our current cherry floating floor, our dogs nails don't make noise on the bamboo since it's glued to the floor and the surface seems very, very hard. We've been walking over it in work shoes (protecting only the traffic areas) and we haven't seen a scratch anywhere.

The master bedroom looks great with the bamboo. It's light and sunny and the warm colors of the clay make this room eye catching indeed! If you plan to have hardwood or bamboo floors installed in Albuquerque or the surrounding area, we highly recommend Chris at Foothills Wood Floors. Besides being skilled, prompt and doing what he says he's going to do, he's also friendly, honest and pleasant to have around. Aaron was great too, as were the couple others who helped get the job done.See our subcontractor links page for contact information.