Top Bamboo Flooring Moisture Questions & Answers
If you’re considering bamboo flooring, or already have it installed, you might be wondering how well it stands up to moisture. From meter settings to humidity control, understanding how bamboo reacts to moisture is the key to a long-lasting, beautiful floor.
In this guide, we answer 17 common questions about bamboo and moisture, from differences between bamboo types to subfloor requirements.
Whether you’re a homeowner, contractor, or flooring professional, you’ll learn how to avoid costly mistakes and keep your bamboo floor looking great for many years.
1. Are moisture meters accurate when measuring the moisture content of bamboo?
Bamboo can be tricky for flooring installers because its density isn’t uniform, so using the right meter setting for the specific product is essential.
Pin meters can work on traditional bamboo if you insert the pins parallel to the grain and at a consistent depth. Pinless meters tend to work better on strand-woven bamboo.
Your flooring manufacturer and moisture meter manufacturer should be able to give you the information you need to set up your meter and test the specific product you’re working with.
2. Where can I find the right moisture meter settings for bamboo flooring?
Standardized grading systems for bamboo flooring aren’t available, so meter settings have to be developed product by product. Wagner Meters has lab-tested samples of specific bamboo flooring products from manufacturers such as Teragren®, Wellmade® Performance Floors, and Cali Bamboo, using the ASTM D4442 oven-dry method, to establish the best settings for Wagner handheld moisture meters.
You’ll find the current settings, listed by manufacturer and part number, on our bamboo flooring settings page. If your product isn’t listed, ask the flooring manufacturer for a recommended setting.
3. Do conductivity characteristics differ from brand to brand or batch to batch?
They can. The adhesives and resins used to make bamboo flooring, especially strand-woven bamboo, can affect its electrical properties, and those can vary between brands and production batches.
4. If they do, how do we set up our moisture meters to ensure accurate moisture content measurement?
Contact your bamboo flooring manufacturer for the most up-to-date meter settings and instructions for the product you’re working with.
5. Is bamboo more sensitive to moisture than other species? Are some types of bamboo more stable than others?
Bamboo flooring moves with changes in moisture like wood flooring does, and how much it moves depends on the type. Strand-woven bamboo, which is made from shredded bamboo fibers compressed with adhesive under intense pressure, is generally considered the strongest of the three main types of bamboo flooring and more resistant to moisture changes.
6. Are different types of bamboo flooring more sensitive to changes in moisture?
Several factors affect how bamboo flooring responds to moisture, including where the bamboo was grown, how old it was when harvested, the grain orientation, and the manufacturing process.
Strand-woven bamboo flooring is harder than traditional bamboo flooring with a vertical or horizontal grain. Because it’s made of shredded bamboo that’s compressed and bonded with adhesive, it’s also more resistant to moisture changes.
7. How do you compensate for moisture sensitivity?
Set your moisture meter with the correct settings for the specific product you’re working with. Settings vary between traditional and strand-woven bamboo, and from product to product.
Acclimating Strand-Woven Bamboo
Strand-woven bamboo tends to take longer to acclimate because it’s a dense material with fibers coated in adhesive. Depending on its starting moisture content, acclimation could take weeks.
8. What is the preferred environment (temperature and humidity) for bamboo flooring?
Because bamboo flooring is hygroscopic, controlling moisture is one of the most important factors in its success. Monitoring conditions in the home and taking preventive measures will reduce movement and improve stability.
Keep humidity levels in the building steady and avoid extremes. A commonly recommended range is 40% to 60% relative humidity, with temperatures between 60°F and 80°F, but always follow the flooring manufacturer’s requirements.
9. What is the strongest type of bamboo flooring available?
Strand-woven bamboo.
10. What is a vertical obstruction, and how does it affect a bamboo floor?
A vertical obstruction is anything fixed that the floor runs up against, such as walls, door frames, cabinets, or a kitchen island. As bamboo flooring expands and contracts with changes in temperature and humidity, it needs room to move at every obstruction.
If there isn’t enough expansion space, or transition pieces aren’t installed between areas and in doorways, the floor’s movement is restricted. That puts tension on the joints and can cause the flooring to pull apart.
11. How can vertical obstruction problems be prevented?
Leave an expansion gap around the perimeter of the floor and around all vertical obstructions, including kitchen islands, so the bamboo flooring can expand and contract.
A floating floor functions like one large piece, so T-moldings are also needed to separate areas. That lets each room expand and contract without affecting the others.
It’s also recommended to place transition moldings in all doorways and wall openings, with or without a door.
12. What is the recommended acclimation period for bamboo flooring, and what steps should contractors take to make sure acclimation is adequate?
Many installers mistakenly believe bamboo flooring doesn’t need to be acclimated because it’s made from many small pieces glued together. But even though some bamboo flooring is made of many small pieces, they’re oriented in the same direction, so the flooring still expands and contracts.
Traditional bamboo acclimates faster than strand-woven. Strand-woven bamboo is dense and can take weeks to acclimate, depending on its starting moisture content.
To improve your chances of success, take these steps:
- Make sure the job site temperature and humidity are controlled and set to normal living conditions.
- If the manufacturer’s instructions allow, remove the flooring from its packaging and stack the planks with stickers between them so air can flow around each board.
- Wait until the flooring has adjusted to the room’s conditions, and confirm it with moisture meter readings instead of relying on a set number of days.
Bamboo flooring is typically ready to install when its moisture content is within the manufacturer-specified difference from the subfloor’s.
Free Download – 4 Reasons Your Hardwood Flooring Failed
13. Are VOCs and formaldehyde a problem with bamboo flooring?
They can be, depending on the adhesives used to make the flooring. Quality bamboo flooring should have low or no volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and formaldehyde emissions. When choosing bamboo flooring, look for products certified to meet the California Air Resources Board (CARB) formaldehyde emission standards.
14. What type of subfloor would you recommend for bamboo flooring?
To help ensure a successful installation, the subfloor should meet National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA) guidelines:
- The subfloor is flat to within 3/16 inch in a 10-foot radius.
- Appropriate leveling products are used to correct any deficiencies.
- The subfloor is clean and smooth.
- The subfloor is tested for moisture, and any moisture problems are corrected before installation.
Wood subfloors
Follow NWFA and flooring manufacturer requirements for subfloor panel thickness and joist spacing. The bamboo flooring’s moisture content should be within the flooring manufacturer’s allowed difference from the subfloor’s moisture content.
Concrete subfloors
Concrete must be dry enough to meet the flooring and adhesive manufacturers’ requirements, as confirmed by moisture testing such as in-situ RH testing. A moisture barrier helps limit moisture moving from the slab into the bamboo flooring.
15. What should the moisture content of the subfloor be before installation?
The flooring’s moisture content should be within the manufacturer-specified difference from the subfloor’s moisture content before installation.
16. If the entire floor shrinks and catches on a vertical obstruction even though you followed the manufacturer’s guidelines for wall gaps, who is to blame?
Every situation is different, but to stay in compliance with the manufacturer’s warranty, the installer is responsible for checking the material on delivery and for measuring and documenting site conditions and materials before, during, and after installation.
Always follow the manufacturer’s guidelines, and report any problems with the product right away.
17. What are the most important factors for a successful bamboo floor installation?
When a bamboo floor fails despite a proper installation, poor humidity control is usually the biggest cause.
Other factors that help ensure success include:
- Using a moisture meter to properly measure the MC of the flooring and subfloor.
- Documenting subfloor and flooring readings at different stages.
- Taking enough readings. Contractors often don’t take enough. The NWFA recommends a minimum of 40 readings per 1,000 square feet of flooring (and 20 per 1,000 square feet of wood subfloor), and with bamboo’s variability, more is better. Measure boards from different areas of the stack to get an accurate overall picture.
Because bamboo flooring moisture readings can vary so much, get settings and guidance from your flooring and moisture meter manufacturers to make sure your readings are accurate.
Bamboo flooring is an eco-friendly, attractive alternative to traditional hardwoods, but it takes specific knowledge to manage its moisture. With proper installation and maintenance, it can be a long-lasting, beautiful choice for any space.
If your question isn’t answered here, contact Wagner Meters. We’re here to help.
Tony Morgan is a senior technician for Wagner Meters, where he serves on a team for product testing, development, and also customer service and training for moisture measurement products. Along with 19 years field experience for a number of electronics companies, Tony holds a B.A. in Management and his AAS in Electronics Technology.
Last updated on October 20th, 2026
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Is it okay to rack out a strand woven bamboo flooring before it acclimated? Obviously i wouldnt cut anything in, but try and get most of it laid out as it is acclimates? I have it all opened and stacked in a basket weave currently.
Brandon,
Please refer to the manufacturers instructions for acclimation as they can be different by company.
I live in the north east and put a really high grade bamboo flooring in. The first winter it shrunk a lot! 1/2 inch gaps everywhere, so my contractor came and relaid the floor after getting specific directions from the manufacturer. This is the second winter and once again 1/2 gaps – I have a humidifier on the furnace and per my HVAC folks and builders I should not let the humidity in the winter get over 35% or risk mold and condensation to build up in the insulation. Now I read in your article that the humidity should be at least 40% – who I am to believe? I don’t want to damage my house yet I also don’t want to spend another 10k replacing the floors I had installed 2 years ago.
Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated
A lovely article and well written. I would like to add the following if I may – my own opinion.
Moisture levels in strand woven bamboo are a problem and will continue to be a problem. The blocks or logs machined into flooring planks/products by the various factories/brands are bought in from various producers. These are not necessarily consistent in production or ingredients. I have noted in the past that strand woven bamboo can take up to six months to acclimate, depending on climatic conditions and the composition of the product at hand. With the bamboo capillaries torn, cut, impregnated with glues and then compressed; moisture and airflow around these fibers is difficult.
The best advice from my side is to be fastidious in site control and compartmentalize each zone as instructed above or in suppliers’ instructions. I have found bamboo performs well at the coast versus drier climates. One needs to understand that these products come from climates with generally higher RH values and the less manipulation of internal moisture content from the factory to end consumer the better/safer.
Thanks for writing great content.
Barry – Ex international bamboo sales and technical advisor.
Don’t know if it is possible for anyone to answer this question but here does. Recently had a new home built that has mostly bamboo flooring. Although the floor is new (we have not yet moved in), there is a haze on it. Not sure how it got there. Someone did use a diluted vinegar mix on it to clean it. Could this be the problem? Also, I notice that if I rub an area with an old clean sock, the haze seems to disappear. But I am afraid to use a rental buffer since these spin in a circle and I think this is not good to use on any kind of bamboo or hardwood floors. Short of getting on our hands and knees and buffing with a cloth what might we do? Many thanks.
Maya:
Thanks for the question. If the “old sock” method works, then I am sure a soft dry mop of some type would also work, making the job faster. I would find out from the builder where the product was purchased and get specific recommendations from them.
Inside condition of home 55% RH and 68 degrees F. Moisture of bamboo flooring product at 1/4 inch, using lingo scanner set to bamboo product, had moisture present readings of 6.15 to 11.8 . What do these readings mean and is there a moisture problem?
My bamboo floor started to cup about 18 months after it was laid. It is quite noticeable when the light is on it front windows. It has been carefully looked after and is now 3 years old. How do I control the moisture settings so it goes back to original quality?
Thank you
Cupping generally develops gradually and is usually caused by excessive moisture on the underside of the flooring.
This can be caused by a number of reasons, such as leaks, damp or wet basements, concrete subfloors that were not allowed to dry completely, excessive moisture in plywood subfloors, poor or no ventilation, or a problem with your HVAC system.
Cupping can also be caused by not acclimating the flooring properly (this is generally permanent cupping).
Finally, your floor may also cup if there is rapid drying on the surface. Gaps appear as the flooring shrinks.
My recommendation is to get a flooring inspector to your home to find the exact cause of the cupping and to recommend a corrective course of action.
The NWFA-National Wood Flooring Association may be able to help in this. To find a NWFA certified inspector located in your area, please go to:
https://www.nwfa.org/cp-inspector.aspx