Allowing your new bamboo flooring to acclimatise before installation is extremely important. You should, in fact, treat it as part of the installation process. By acclimatising your bamboo you are reducing the risk of the planks moving and becoming damaged weeks, months or years down the line.
What does it mean to acclimatise my floor?
Acclimatising your bamboo floor, means to allow it to adapt to its new surroundings. If you do not allow this to happen, the planks of flooring may try to adjust once they have been installed, which could cause shrinkage or expansion and result in noticeable damage.
Bamboo is a natural product so will naturally adapt to the surrounding environment. E.g. with increases in temperature, humidity or moisture, the bamboo will expand slightly. And when the air becomes drier, the bamboo may lose moisture and shrink slightly. These changes are completely natural and will be on a minimal scale, so nothing to worry about as long as you have allowed the bamboo top acclimatise.
How do I acclimatise my bamboo?
Follow these simple steps:
1. Plan ahead - order your bamboo floor with enough time to allow it to acclimatise at home
2. Finish any building works at home, especially any wet trades (e.g. plastering or concreting). The room where the flooring is going should be completely dry.
3. Once your bamboo arrives, leave the flooring in the unopened boxes in the room where you are going to install it.
4. Never leave the boxes of flooring in a garage, outside or in a damp area.
5. If you have underfloor heating, you should raise the bamboo off the floor to acclimatise (you could put it on some wooden batons)
6. Be careful to leave the boxes of bamboo flooring flat, don’t lean them up against anything as they could warp.
7. Never leave the bamboo flooring to acclimatise next to a heat source or radiator.
8. Ensure the relative humidity in the room is between 45-65%, with an ambient temperature of 17 – 22°C.
9. Now leave your bamboo to acclimatise for at least 48 hours.
If these is anything you are unsure of, please contact us for help and advice.
