How should you install bamboo flooring around kitchen cabinets and islands?
If you have solid, secured bamboo flooring, then it can be installed across the whole of your kitchen floor. Then you can secure both kitchen cabinets and your kitchen island directly onto the new floor using either nails or adhesive. However, if you are going to install floating wood floors as part of your renovation project, just install the panels around the cabinetry. You can cut the wooden panels for a snug, tailored fit around their corners and edges, but the floor can’t be installed under them. Securing down just a portion of any floating floor when the boards have been designed to allow for breathing and expansion and contraction can limit their natural settling and damage connection points between the secured and floating portions. This is referred to as a pinch point and will eventually result in buckling.
If you’re completely remodeling your kitchen with new cabinets and an entirely new design with a floating floor, level the concrete subfloor and install the cabinets before you install the bamboo floor. Installing the floor in this order will give you an easier time of leveling and preparing the surface, and it also means no portion of your cabinets or a kitchen island will accidentally rest on and restrict the floors.
Bamboo floors are a beautiful addition to a kitchen and all throughout a house. But, whether you’re installing a solid, secured flooring or a floating bamboo floor, knowing how to approach tricky corners and installments before you get started is the best way to make your completed project look sharp, neat, and sellable for years to come. Go to First US Floors to get started.
