I have a bamboo plant(s) in my back yard. I frequently harvest a few pieces here and there for projects that need light, flexible materials. Very convenient.
Why isn't bamboo wood a bigger industry?
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Re: Why isn't bamboo wood a bigger industry?
#52TL;DR answer: because they're different things. Using bamboo for building houses tends to result in using different building methods & architecture. Which can look amazing (see http://ibuku.com/ ). But I doubt it'd make sense to use bamboo to build my house in snowy Norway, rather than locally sourced lumber.
The cold-hardy bamboos I am familiar with are Phyllostachys nuda (running) and Fargesia genus (clumping), and I'm not sure that either would fare well in such high latitudes. It might survive in landscaping, but not as a significant lumber source.
Re: Why isn't bamboo wood a bigger industry?
#53Thank you for sharing this. I have been wondering about bamboo's utility for paper & packaging, to perhaps displace some plastic. This article has a better roundup of the state of things.
FWIW, Last time I asked about this, I found Ecoplanet Bamboo Group is trying to address some of the short-comings:
http://www.ecoplanetbamboo.com
Re: Why isn't bamboo wood a bigger industry?
#54Relatives that lived in Japan brought back bamboo stuff to the US, and it all cracked within a year or so. The reason was that bamboo does well in wet climates where the moisture in the air keeps in flexible. (or something like that) But in the US, it's much drier (most places) than in Japan. This fits with my experience of bamboo furniture over the years as well. It becomes brittle and fragile the older it gets. But…
Can you oil it to prevent this from happening? I have several Bamboo cutting boards that have lasted for years because I oil them frequently. I also do this with wooden spoons and other un-finished wood products.
That is the problem, bamboo stuff actually requires specific care in the US that it doesn't in Japan. I was going to buy some really nice bowls there, and my sister suggested I not do it because they would break in the US, but not in Japan. (with the equivalent care)
Re: Why isn't bamboo wood a bigger industry?
#55Bamboo isn't going to replace lumber for most permanent uses, but it sure is handy when you need to put something together in a pinch. I was once trekking in northern Thailand with some Akha hill tribe guides. When it was time for dinner, they cut down a large bamboo and within minutes fashioned essentially a complete dinner service out of it: * A framework for their overnight hut/lean-to * A pot for boiling rice * A…
Wow, those bowls are great, yet so simple. It's amusing to think they'd probably be about £25 each from John Lewis.
I'd buy them, but it would have to be a set for £25, and on sale during one of the 100 sales they have each year.
Side Note: I don't know why they haven't made their way stateside, they are one of my favorite department stores. Always clean, friendly staff, toilets are impeccable (though that might just be a British thing).
Re: Why isn't bamboo wood a bigger industry?
#56Bamboo isn't going to replace lumber for most permanent uses, but it sure is handy when you need to put something together in a pinch. I was once trekking in northern Thailand with some Akha hill tribe guides. When it was time for dinner, they cut down a large bamboo and within minutes fashioned essentially a complete dinner service out of it: * A framework for their overnight hut/lean-to * A pot for boiling rice * A…
Those pics made my day. And it's helpful to be reminded that, as techies - our skills just aren't that special or useful.
Our skills are special and very useful.
It just sometimes doesnt translate to awe inspiring as other skills in meatspace.
Btw - cool stuff like this is absolutely why boys join the boyscouts
Re: Why isn't bamboo wood a bigger industry?
#57This article makes no mention of biomass per acre when farmed. As a C4 photosynthesis plant, bamboo presumably grows more biomass per year than other trees. If true, that would seem significant enough to outweigh many of the disadvantages.
The impact of shipping bamboo from where it grows to where the lumber is needed might also need be considered for completeness. Now, I don't know how you define biomass but would be inetersting to see numbers. Just from the looks: ok those big bamboo species grow way closer together than oak for instance, but on the other hand an oak tree grows much thicker and the wood per cubic is almost certainly going to be heavi…
Sea freight is remarkably cheap.
Re: Why isn't bamboo wood a bigger industry?
#58Rubberwood. Rubberwood has seen huge growth in use in the last couple decades, particularly in furniture.
Re: Why isn't bamboo wood a bigger industry?
#59Earlier quoted context omitted.
I have engineered bamboo "wood" flooring that I like a lot and after a few years haven't noticed any cracking or warping; perhaps it went through more extensive treatment processes?
Flooring - first it's cut into strips, then boiled in a solution to remove the starchy compounds, then dried and pressed, then planed down for a lamination process, laminated (using typically more epoxy than other lumber-based laminates), then cut into the final form for the end user. Bamboo is a grass, and it's hollow - it neither looks nor handles like real lumber. It's often touted as a "greener" alternative to lu…
I would love to see a website where I could just enter two alternatives and get the greener one. I find it hard to make any decision these days. Should I buy tomatoes in a can a paper+plastic container? Fish sauce from Thailand in a glass or plastic bottle? Should I buy a small item in a nearby shop or drive somewhere a buy bigger packs. Someone should solve it for me.
Re: Why isn't bamboo wood a bigger industry?
#60There's a YouTube channel (0) that uploads videos from a girl in China building things out of bamboo, watching her work is entrancing: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=LTejJnrzGPM [0] I think the channel is fan made and she actually posts them to a Chinese social media site.
The channel is hosted by a fan but owned by the girl, she uploads her actual content to a short-video site
I’m not entirely comfortable with the ethics of this but one great opportunity is going to be content arbitrage, especially between Chinese internet sites and then greater world’s. There are some pretty funny memes coming out of Tik Tok now.