Hey Everyone - Rob Jones here.
Just to let you know, we’ve moved the posts of this blog to blog.builddirect.com. And this is also where future posts will be published. Really, it’s like we’ve moved next door - not too far away.
So, if you’re a subscriber to this blog, please subscribe to our new feed to get the latest posts to your Google, Yahoo, MSN, or other homepage or the RSS reader of your choice.
Thanks a lot, and I hope to hear from you in our comments section!
Cheers,
Rob.
There has been a lot of important discussion surrounding how various brands/types of bamboo flooring are rated for emissions. I should say this, that my research on this is still ongoing, only because I’ve heard a lot of talk about how some kinds of bamboo flooring have zero emissions. If anyone can point me in the direction of this kind of product, I’d love to read more about it.
What I have discovered is that there are several standards to which bamboo floors are held, all of which with an eye to make improvements to the minimization of potentially harmful emissions.
Here’s a site that talks about the issue of emissions in greater detail. Basically, off-gassing in nearly every type of flooring has been a given, from carpeting to laminate. And in the state of California, there was a standard put in place to measure and restrict emissions for the health and safety of those living and working in the interiors in which the flooring is installed.
The California (CARB) parameters for this are currently in flux, with the goal of trying to reduce the tolerance for emmissions starting this month and projected into 2012. The Californian standard is at 0.20 parts per million, to be improved to 0.18 ppm starting this year.
E1 is a European standard, which accounts for an allowance of 0.14 ppm, has been what our Yanchi brand has been held to. But, more recently the new standard of E0 has been put in place too. According to Teregren, that standard is 0.07 ppm, second only to the Japanese standard of 0.05.
Obviously, the ideal is to have a bamboo floor, or any type of flooring, with zero formaldehyde emissions and have that as a standard. The balance to be struck is a glue and laminate material which is both durable in the long-term and healthy too. And new products are coming out all of the time which are getting us closer to that goal.
Cheers,
Rob.
You’ve heard of Dancing with the Stars? Well, how about Dancing with Bamboo?
OK, not the same thing at all.
But, I found this article about traditional bamboo dance from the Li people who live in Hainan Province, China.
The Li people number in the millions, with their own distinct identity which includes religion, language, and artistic traditions too. Their culture is a based on a folk-tradition, meaning that until recently, their language was not notated, just spoken. They live in a sub-tropical region of China, an agrarian culture with a great deal of emphasis on the arts. They are known for their skills as weavers, a tradition which is thousands of years old. And of course, their use of bamboo in traditional dance is famous.
In reading about the Li people, I found out that bamboo dance is not an isolated thing. There are other cultures in India (the Lushai people), as well as in the Philippines (the Sabah people - watch the video) that incorporate bamboo into their artistic traditions, specifically in dance. The dances are meant to be tests of athletic ability, and more specifically flexibility and coordination. In this sense, the use of bamboo in the dance makes it somewhat of a symbol of this, as well as a symbol of how central bamboo as a material is to their ways of life.
For us, bamboo is connected with how we view our environment too. Bamboo flooring sustainable, strong, and of course looks great. It’s looked upon as a green solution, and something of a symbol of responsibility when choosing flooring, or other building products. But for these cultures, there is an even greater connection, arguably. For them, bamboo provides shelter and materials for all manner of household items. But in incorporating bamboo into their traditions, it also ties their identity to their region. Culturally speaking, they are their environment. And for them it’s something to literally dance about.
Cheers!
Rob.
Bamboo dancers image courtesy of peigianlongAs mentioned in a previous post, Matt Dickinson recently came back from a trip to China to consult with our factory there. Trips to China often involve a big educational element, and this time was certainly no exception. In touring the factory, Matt made a discovery - that our bamboo factory had a sideline in hardwood. But, did they? Nope.
Here’s Matt with the story:
Cheers!
Rob.
Hey everyone,
In my daily journey in scouring the Internet for interesting articles and media, I’ve discovered a series of videos about bamboo, from the point of view of a grower, not a flooring manufacturer.
I thought it might be interesting to find out about bamboo as a plant, and how it’s use has been in parallel with civilizations all over the world, and for thousands of years. I really do find the idea fascinating. Bamboo is material that was used five thousand years ago in China, is being used today here in Vancouver, and in many other parts of the world, in the twenty-first century. That’s staying power!
I love history, and the idea that people have remained basically the same across the ages, and across cultures too. In the building materials, textiles, and artistic spheres too, bamboo has been a proven material to count on. Heck, we even eat the stuff! The videos talk a bit about this history, plus something about how many subspecies of bamboo there are, how it contributes to eco-systems, and more. Enjoy, and tell me what you think, good people.
Cheers!
Rob.
Bamboo plant image courtesy of Morning Glory.
Bamboo is a versatile material. You’ve heard it here from Matt and me quite a bit of course. And you’ve heard it elsewhere too, by now. It’s good the look, the functional benefits, and the advantage of sustainability too. But, bamboo has something else too - artistry.
Take a look at this story that talks about bamboo in non-functional works of art, which proves the point. Each piece uses bamboo differently too, revealing the talents of the artists, but also shows something about how many forms bamboo can take; smooth surfaces, rough ones, conical ones, flat ones. The results are, to my untrained eye, pretty cool!
As a marketer, I’ve written a lot about how great bamboo as flooring is. But, it’s interesting to note that bamboo is also a useful raw material for those who are going for pure conceptualism.
The show the article talks about is being held at the Japan Society in New York City from October 4 to January 11. If anyone out there gets to go, I’d love to hear a review!
Cheers,
Rob.
Creativity really turns my crank. And apart from the obvious benefits of building green and using green building materials like bamboo flooring, one of the things that comes out of this shift in consciousness when it comes to designing and building homes is how architects and interior designers are applying ideas that I as a layman can only describe as supercool.
Take a look at this article about a green building project in Seattle that uses all kinds of innovative ideas that make it a property which ‘responds to the surrounding environment’. That is, the property is incorporated into its surroundings, rather than just being slapped on a piece of land. For instance, the home has what they’ve called a rainwater harvesting system, which basically funnels rainwater (and remember, this is Seattle…) into large concrete tanks. From here, the rainwater is plumbed into the house, used for toilets and for laundry. The tanks are tastefully integrated into the design of the home, less water is used for amenities, and the water bill for the residents is significantly lowered too - everybody wins. Genius. Supercool.
The design utilizes other green building practices too: natural daylight enabled by the layout, reclaimed materials (doors, fixtures, etc), and of course bamboo floors which we’ve talked about at length on this here blog - fast growing, durable, best use of raw materials, etc, etc. Of course, the function enabled by the design doesn’t sacrifice on visual results. Actually, the two seem to work in conjunction with the other. Sustainability may be the goal, but I love that the visual effect pans out to be pretty impressive too. I only hope that some of these ideas hit the mainstream too.
The company responsible for the design is Fivedotdesignbuild.com, a Seattle firm who make sustainability a specialty.
Cheers!
Rob.
image of ‘The Orchard’ courtesy of seattlepi.nwsource.com
It’s curious that a lot of rhetoric promoting ‘green’ as far as homeowning goes is largely based around financial gain these days. Still, it’s a pretty compelling reason to do it. Take a look at this article about going green, which talks about a recent survey of the National Association of Realtors.
The results of the survey showed that 9 out of 10 realtors reported that their clients were interested in green building features. Additionally, 90% of those realtors agreed that even more interest in properties which feature green building materials and enable green practices is likely a year from now. When looking to sell a home, it seems that the issue of sustainability and energy efficiency are big ticket selling points. So, even if you think that global warming isn’t a man-made problem, apparently money talks anyway!
Cheers!
Rob.
Hey good people - Rob here.
I’ve found an interesting 8 minute video about how bamboo flooring is made, with some footage of each stage. Here it is!
While the death tolls rise from the massive earthquake last Monday in China so does the support being sent to the area. The Chinese government deployed 100,000 troops to the hardest hit regions. To put the magnitude of this number into prospective the US government sent 17000 troops to the Gulf after Katrina hit in 2005.
Mother Earth News - Green Homes and Green Building Information
