Can't answer most of your questions but when we looked there were two types of bamboo at Lowes. One was a composite with a thin layer of bamboo on top. We had to return this type because it stunk and never completed off-gassing. We got the solid all the way through bamboo and didn't have the odor problem.

Maybe to test the weight of your furniture take the little bamboo sample and put it under a leg and see if it dents.

Check out the bamboo at Costco, especially when it's on sale. My floor guy highly recommended it. He also liked the Costco laminate; they have one that has actually individual planks instead the printed on "planks." I ended up going with onsite installed oak to match existing floors.

I wouldn't recommend bamboo in Birmingham unless the house is a ritzy new construction or a loft. It's a very traditional town. And I wouldn't recommend box store bamboo if you were to do bamboo. It's poor quality. I'd recommend that you contact a local floor professional to install whatever wood that you currently have in the bedrooms as well, and then sand the old wood and finish it all in place to look seamless. That will give you great resale! And don't assume you can't afford it. Site finished oak isn't that costly, and from your description, that's most likely what you have.

I've seen bamboo in a house with a large dog. It didn't hold up well to the dog's claws. Lots of scratches and not easy to fix them.

My bamboo from Home Depot is less than a year old and looks like crap. I complained after 2 months and they came out and looked at it and did tests. Of course, they said nothing was wrong with it. It was the worst decision I've ever made.

I don't like my bamboo. Dog nail scratches and black seams were it was wet. Wish we did hardwoods instead.

In my 12 years of selling RE, I have never had a buyer request that their new home have anything "green".
No potential buyer is going to walk into your bedrooms, and get all excited about the floors because they are "green". Either they will like the look or they will not. My experience of watching buyers' reaction to bamboo flooring is that it is not considered an upgrade.

Ncrealestate guy, I'm interested in your comment about buyer's perception of bamboo flooring. We, too, are slowly getting ready to sell. We've had engineered bamboo in our dining room for about 5 years, no problems whatsoever. I'm going to replace the mauve (!) carpet in our bedroom, and was thinking about the same bamboo we have in the dining room. Do you think this will adversely affect potential buyers? Our home has nicer finishes than builder's grade, (GE Profile, not Viking!). It's a nice family home

Kathyinjax

Kathyr,
The biggest complaint I hear is that it is too light in color. I don't know if it comes in darker shades or not.
Let me clarify: Any wood flooring is going to be considered an "upgrade" in general, when compared to carpet. But, I hear from a lot of buyers that they just do not care for the "upgrade".
Also, most buyers, at least in my market, do not expect nor want wood flooring in the bedrooms. They want carpet.
And again, I have never had a single buyer list anything "green" when we are speaking of their criteria.

Sorry I wasn't able to reply--computer trouble and sick all week. But GreenDesigns and NCguy, we will give up the bamboo idea and get an estimate on good carpeting vs. the wood we currently have. We have 3 bedrooms--one being used as an office, so perhaps we can put wood in that one and carpet the master and the guest bedroom. We actually have planks up in the attic so can take that to a flooring place for an estimate.

Thanks for your help, everyone!

I understand about the preference for carpeting in the bedrooms. I have recently started wheezing at night, and was seeking to "de-dustify" the room as much as possible. If it is a big negative, I will suck it up and get new carpet.

I'm at the age where all hardwood or tile looks very attractive to me--I'm so over carpet. but I will do what is best for the market.

KathyinJax

Word to the wise... my responses come from my experience in my market, Charlotte, NC. Your market may differ. Ask your local agents.

Kathy's point was one I had in mind myself--I just forgot about it temporarily. I had thought I could keep the place cleaner (allergy-wise) without carpet. Possibly some small throw rugs at each side of the bed.

Strand bamboo only. It is harder than any hardwood. "Regular" bamboo gets ruined, too soft.

OK, so I just looked at the Costco bamboo floors (recommended by my hardwood guy). They offer a 50-year warranty for residential installation. I tried scraping the sample with a key, and it was incredibly hard to scratch. So, yes, there seem to be differences between bamboos.
Also, in my area, bamboo floors are certainly "in" and would add value.