Cali Bamboo flooring has been gaining quite the attraction  in the flooring industry lately. The company is known for its eco-friendly flooring products made of Moso bamboo, which are sourced from within the Anji County of southeast China. Cali Bamboo flooring processes its boards through a manufacturing procedure called Cali Bamboo Fossilized®. 

If you’re looking for an alternative sustainable flooring option, then you might consider looking through Cali Bamboo flooring products. This article will take a closer look at Cali Bamboo flooring’s brands. We’ll break things down to help decide if this flooring option will suit your needs and preference. 

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    Our Overview of Cali Bamboo

    Cali Bamboo started as a concept in 2004 when two college friends Jeff Goldberg and Tanner Haigwood worked part-time in Kauai, Hawaii. In 2004, Cali Bamboo was officially founded when they offered bamboo fencing in Southern California.

    Today, Cali Bamboo manufactures building materials, including bamboo, vinyl, and hardwood flooring, decking, fencing, bamboo plywood, and other home improvement products such as area rugs, poufs, flooring tools, and supplies. 

    Cali Bamboo has five eco-friendly flooring brands: Cali Hardwoods®, Cali Bamboo®, Cali Cork®, Cali Vinyl®, and GeoWood®. These brands are made of Fossilized® bamboo combined with sustainable materials like eucalyptus hickory, maple, and oak. 

    Cali Hardwoods® features two collections, namely Meritage and Odyssey.

    Meritage Collection offers nine veneer finishes: Lost Coast Oak, Chardonnay Oak, Barbera Oak, New World Oak, Sauvignon Oak, Knotty Barrel Oak, Mendocino Oak, Carmel Valley Oak, and Syrah Oak, while Odyssey has eight rustic shades: Delphi Hickory, Apollo Maple, Helios Hickory, Calypso Maple, Corinth Hickory, Athena Oak, Ithaca Oak, and Mykonos Maple.

    Cali Hardwoods® also comes in four milling options: Click Lock, Rapid Click-Lock – Valinge 2G, T&G, and Tongue-and-Groove with Extra Wide, Standard, Wide, and Wide+ as its width options.

    Cali Bamboo® has 12 texture variations: Bordeaux Bamboo, Vintage Java Bamboo, Treehouse Bamboo, Bourbon Barrel Bamboo, Antique Java Bamboo, Java Bamboo, Mocha Eucalyptus, Mocha Bamboo, Napa Bamboo, Boardwalk Bamboo, Natural Eucalyptus, Natural Bamboo with Distressed, Hand Scraped, Smooth Surface, Water Resistant, and World’s Hardest Floors as its feature options. 

    It also has six plank width options: 3-3/4”, 4-7/8”, 5-1/8”, 5-19/32”, 5-3/8”, and 5-5/16” with 4 thickness options, including 1/4”, 5/8”, 7/16”, and 9/16”.

    Customers can also choose among 100% Waterproof GeoCore® (SPC Composite), Engineered, and Solid as the bamboo material type.

    Cali Bamboo offers corking flooring with the brand name Cali Cork®. It features Pura Cork Flooring, El Natural Cork, Brisa Cork Flooring, and Classico Cork Flooring as available engineered cork options with Rapid Click-Lock – Valinge 2G as its milling option. 

    For vinyl flooring, Cali Vinyl® has five available collections: Cali Vinyl PRO ® Classic, Cali Vinyl Legends, Cali Vinyl Plus, Longboards™, and Mute Step®. 

    Cali Vinyl PRO ® Classic features 13 hardwood grain patterns: Aged Hickory, Blonde Ale, Classic Acacia, Gray Ash, Hickory Brook, Koa Accent, Mesquite, Nantucket Harbor, Redefined Pine, Saddlewood, Shadowed Oak, Walnut Creek, and Monterey.

    Cali Vinyl Legends comes in six available hardwood grain patterns: Outrigger Oak, Golden Hour Oak, Laguna Sand, Dawn Patrol, Saltwater Oak, Diamond Head, Uprush, and King Tide, while Cali Vinyl Plus has Natural Elm, Aged Hickory, White Aspen, and Gray Ash as the available hardwood grain pattern variations.

    Longboards™ Collection offers 12 wood grain variations: Sandbar Oak, Coastline Cliff, Reefwood, Salty Strand, North Shore Oak, Oceanic Oak, Offshore Oak, Osprey Oak, Point Break Pine, Seaboard Oak, Whitewater Oak, and Windswell Hickory.

    For the Mute Step® Collection, it features 18 wood grain variations, including Natural Elm, White Aspen, Aged Hickory, Classic Acacia, Gray Ash, Redefined Pine, Afterglow Oak, Breakwater Oak, Cantina Oak, Castaway Oak, Coastal Eucalyptus, Deep Sea Eucalyptus, Dockwood Oak, Huntington Hickory, Long Shore Pine, Palm Grove Oak, Seascape Hickory, and South Seas Oak.

    Mute Step® also has four feature choices you can choose from: Attached Acoustic Insulation, Extra Long Planks, Extra Wide Planks, and Waterproof with two construction types, including Bamboo Composite, and Stone Composite. You can also choose among several width options: 7 ⅛, 7 1/8”, 7-1/4”, 7-1/8”, and 9”.

    Last, is Cali Bamboo’s GeoWood® brand which can be shopped by three species, including bamboo, maple, and oak.  GeoWood® has 13 engineered hardwood variations: Pacific Oak, Tawny Oak, Wildwood Oak, Wildwood Oak, Idyllwild Oak, Copperstone, Aged Amber, Jasperstone, Antique Iron, Half Moon Maple, Newport Dunes Maple, Capistrano Oak, and Old Grove Oak. 


    What Are The Pros And Cons of Cali Bamboo Flooring?

    Benefits:

    Cali Bamboo features sustainable and durable flooring products made from fossilized strand bamboo, which scores up to 5000+ on the Janka Hardness Test. Their engineered hardwood floors are highly resistant to humidity and moisture due to their layered construction, making them an ideal option for high-traffic areas and commercial applications.

    Their plank floors also have a myriad of available brands and collections and come in multiple colors, milling styles, and width options. Cali Bamboo flooring also uses a UV oil finish that provides surface protection coating that adds more strength and stability to their hardwood floor planks.

    All Cali vinyl lines are 100% waterproof with a 20mil commercial-grade wear layer and built-in cushioning cork underlayment that dampens sound and provide superior thermal insulation. They also feature the most realistic hardwood grain patterns and texture using HiFi Imaging® technology.

    Cali Bamboo flooring products are also pet-friendly and high-heel safe due to the fact that their fossilized floors are scratch-resistant and paw-tested. Their flooring products, underlayments, and adhesives are also 100% Ultra-low VOCs, which protect consumers from harmful chemicals and emissions upon contact. 

    Moreover, Cali Bamboo flooring offers multiple installations and warranty options per collection, giving customers flexibility in their buying choices. 

    Disadvantages:

    Since bamboo flooring is made of organic materials, it is much more prone to shrinkage and cracks due to changes in humidity. It is also susceptible to mold and damage from standing water bamboo naturally absorbs water. 

    Though Cali Bamboo flooring offers standard pricing for flooring products, it has a lot more restrictions when it comes to installation methods than other types of flooring. Specific guidelines must be met to guarantee the best flooring results and warranty coverage conditions. 

    Cali Bamboo flooring also requires maintaining specific environmental conditions to ensure the flooring’s overall strength and durability against damages

    Interested in other types of flooring? Get a quote from flooring experts near you.

    Hardwood Flooring
    In general, the cost of hardwood flooring tends to range between $3 and $10 per square foot before labor costs.
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    Carpeted Flooring
    In general, the cost of carpet tends to range between $2 and $10 per square foot depending on the material and style.
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    Laminate Flooring
    Laminate floors will cost anywhere from $2 to $8 per square foot depending on the thickness of the fiberboard base layer.
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    What Is The Price And Hidden costs of Cali Bamboo Flooring?

    Cali Bamboo flooring doesn’t specifically include the online pricing on their website but they provide a Flooring Quote where you can fill out the form and get insights from their green building experts about the most accurate estimate possible. It also includes any accessory pieces, essential underlayment, or adhesive needed. 

    Moreover, you can buy Cali Bamboo flooring products from retail companies such as Lowe’s. In Lowe’s company, the prices range from $4.49 per sq. ft (lowest) to $7.51 per sq. ft (highest).

    Cali Bamboo flooring products with a price of $4.49 per sq. ft have one coverage option: 22.69 sq. ft. The purchase price is $101.87.

    Flooring products with a price of $4.99 per sq. ft have two coverage options: 21.50 sq. ft and 25.88 sq. ft. The purchase price that covers 21.50 sq. ft is $107.28 while a flooring with coverage of 25.88 sq. ft is $129.14

    Flooring products with a price range of $7.51 per sq also have one coverage option: 21.50 sq. ft. The purchase price is $161.45. 

    The overall purchase price may vary, depending on the price range and the square feet it covers. 


    What Is The Installation Process of Cali Bamboo Flooring?

    Before beginning the installation, it is important to test the subfloor moisture prior to installation

    and prepare the sub-floor using a moisture barrier on concrete. For Geowood and Vinyl planks, prepare the subfloor by using a 6mil plastic on concrete as an appropriate moisture barrier.

    The next step is acclimation to allow the floor to adjust to the customer’s living conditions. Make sure to acclimate hardwood planks for at least 5 days and 7 days for eucalyptus by cross-stacking planks on a pallet and mixing boards from each box close to the installation area. 

    For Engineered flooring, acclimate planks for 72 hours by laying the boxes on the floor and only opening box ends close to the installation area.

    Only one to two days of acclimation period is required for Cali Vinyl Plus, while for Cali Vinyl Legends and GeoWood, it has to be for 24 hours prior to installation. Planks should also be stored at room temperature, unopened, and in their original packaging.

    Moreover, no acclimation is needed for Cali Vinyl Pro, Longboards, or Mute Step Collections. 

    As a general rule, controlling the environment is also necessary. For hardwood flooring, ensure that the relative humidity is at 40-60% during acclimation. The ideal indoor humidity range for GeoWood is 35-65% relative humidity. GeoWood planks can be used in areas ranging from 50°F to 100°F. 

    Cali Vinyl Legends and Plus flooring can be used in areas ranging from 32°F to 113°F, while for Cali Vinyl Pro and Longboards can be used in areas ranging from -25°F to 165°F. Cali Vinyl Mute Step flooring can be used in areas ranging from -25°F to 140°F.

    Another important step that must be accomplished prior to installation is to leave expansion gaps, as bamboo tends to contract and expand due to changes in temperature and moisture levels.

    For Cali Vinyl Collections Pro, Longboards, Mute step, and Plus— make sure to leave at least 1/4” for expansion space between flooring and all vertical objects, including walls, cabinets, and pipes among others.

    The expansion spaces should be at least 3/8” for Cali Vinyl Plus and Cali Geowood, while expansion gaps should be at least 1/2” between the flooring and all vertical objects for Hardwood flooring.

    Moreover, Cali Bamboo Flooring can be installed in three methods: Nail-Down Installation Method, Glue-Down Installation Method, and Floating Click-Lock Plank Installation. The method used may vary, depending on what flooring will be used and the conditions of the installation area. 


    What Is The Care And Maintenance of Cali Bamboo Flooring?

    Cali Bamboo flooring products are easy to clean—using just a vacuum or broom to sweep the floor and remove dirt, sand, or grit on a regular basis.

    For general cleaning, Cali Bamboo recommends using Pro Hardwood Floor Cleaner and Bona Pro Hardwood Floor Mop instead of a steam mop or wet mop because standing water may cause permanent damage and dull the finish due to excessive moisture. Also, a dry mop or towel is preferred for spot-cleaning and soaking up spills.

    Also, it is required to maintain relative humidity, depending on the required range in the installation guide mentioned above. 

    Cali Bamboo offers a 50-year residential warranty and 15-year commercial warranty for their flooring brands: Cali Bamboo®, Cali Hardwoods®, Cali Vinyl®, and GeoWood®. For the Cali Cork®, they offer a 25-year warranty for resident purchasers and a 5-year light warranty for commercial applications. 


    So, Is Cali Bamboo Flooring Right For Your Home?

    For eco-conscious residential and commercial buyers, Cali Bamboo flooring products are an ideal flooring option to alternative wood flooring. Their flooring products are also suitable for customers who want to have affordable and durable flooring with a comprehensive range of colors, sizes, widths, and installation options. 

    For areas with high levels of relative humidity, investing in a humidifier or humidistat will be a good way to control the humidity and prolong the life of your floor. Another key ingredient is to follow the guidelines in acclimation properly to make sure the planks have adapted to the area’s normal condition. 

    Get a Flooring Installation Estimate From Local Experts
    Typical Cost: $6 – $24 per sq foot
    Editorial Contributors
    avatar for Matt Greenfield

    Matt Greenfield

    Matt Greenfield is an experienced writer specializing in home improvement topics. He has a passion for educating and empowering homeowners to make informed decisions about their properties. Matt's writing focuses on a range of topics, including windows, flooring, HVAC, and construction materials. With a background in construction and home renovation, Matt is well-versed in the latest trends and techniques in the industry. His articles offer practical advice and expert insights that help readers tackle their home improvement projects with confidence. Whether you're a DIY enthusiast or a seasoned professional, Matt's writing is sure to provide valuable guidance and inspiration.

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