# Flooring: laminate vs. hardwood vs. bamboo **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 6, 2008, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flooring-laminate-vs-hardwood-vs-bamboo/444141 "2008-04-06T01:23:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Carson\_O\_Genic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cdc98d/32.png) [@Carson\_O\_Genic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carson_O_Genic)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2008, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flooring-laminate-vs-hardwood-vs-bamboo/444141/21 "2008-04-06T17:52:52Z")
You might be interested in this,[http://www.figuredhardwoods.com/](http://www.figuredhardwoods.com/). They had an item in the local paper about a “new” product, end grain laminations in different placement shapes.End grain is the toughest orientation of wood grain.If the product isn’t featured on the site they would likely respond to query. I’ve had good service and pleasant dealings with them,though not in flooring. Using quotes on “new” since this is old tech done better. Something I prefer about real wood besides the look is the sound,though if you go shoeless inside that’s moot. ---
**Author:** ![NinetyWt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/cc9497/32.png) [@NinetyWt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinetyWt)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2008, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flooring-laminate-vs-hardwood-vs-bamboo/444141/22 "2008-04-06T19:28:30Z")
[QUOTE=Brynda] **NintyWt** , your floor looks gorgeous, [/QUOTE] Thank you. We were so very pleasantly surprised that it turned out that way. And yeah, I know, it isn’t for everybody. You’d probably have to wax it once a year anyway, on account of scratches/scuffs. ---
**Author:** ![Brynda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Brynda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynda)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flooring-laminate-vs-hardwood-vs-bamboo/444141/23 "2008-04-07T13:40:34Z")
Thanks for the links! I have some questions about cleaning, too. With 4 cats, I forsee some kitty hair dust balls. Vacuum or dust mop? If vacuum, any recommendations? Our vacuum is on its last wheels, so we need a new one. ---
**Author:** ![NinetyWt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/cc9497/32.png) [@NinetyWt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinetyWt)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flooring-laminate-vs-hardwood-vs-bamboo/444141/24 "2008-04-07T15:10:35Z")
[QUOTE=Brynda] If vacuum, any recommendations? [/QUOTE] Are you going to have any throw rugs, or drapes hanging onto the floor? If not, I suggest a [Roomba](http://www.irobot.com/sp.cfm?pageid=122). Since our flooring is 80% ‘hard’, I use one. Just turn it on and let it go - it takes about an hour for mine to finish (LR, DR, kitchen, Laundry room, two hallways) but it gets up dust like you wouldn’t believe. They have a ‘pet hair’ model if your kitteh sheds a lot. However, we used to have a Lab and the regular model did a great job picking up all that hair. I had to run it every other day during that time. Now I run it about once a week. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flooring-laminate-vs-hardwood-vs-bamboo/444141/25 "2008-04-07T15:53:49Z")
My parents just got bamboo floors in their house in Florida. They’re absolutely gorgeous, but they are a little slippery in socked feet. I’ve also heard you shouldn’t put them in kitchens, but they already had tile in the kitchen so it wasn’t an issue. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flooring-laminate-vs-hardwood-vs-bamboo/444141.md?page=1)