Bamboo as

Building
Materials

Why should we study about bamboo?

Bamboo has a long and well-established tradition as a
building material throughout the worlds tropical and subtropical regions. It is widely used for many forms of
construction, in particular for housing in rural areas. It is
estimated that there are 1200 species growing in about 14.5
million hectares area. Most of them grow in Asia, Africa and
Latin America.

What is bamboo?
Bamboo
are the largest members of the grass
family. In bamboo, the intermodal regions of
the stem are usually hollow and the vascular
bundles in the cross section are scattered
throughout the stem instead of in a cylindrical
arrangement.
It grows approximately 7.5 to 40cm a day, with world
record being 1.2m in 24 hours in Japan. Commercially
important species of bamboo usually mature in four or five
years time, after which multiple harvests are possible every
second year, for up to 120 years in some species and
indefinitely in others. It has been used successfully to
rehabilitate soil ravage by brick making in India, and
abandoned tin mine sites in Malaysia

LIFESPAN
Bamboo is useful for various applications at
different ages :
30 days - good for eating
6-9 months - for making baskets
2-3 years - for bamboo boards or laminations
3-6 years - for construction
6 years - bamboo gradually loses strength up to 12 years
old

Characteristics of bamboo
Bamboo characteristics suitable for various end uses
Plant part used

Example of Uses

Characteristics required

Whole Plant

Ornamentals

Appearance, growth habit

Whole Plant

Environmental

High-growth and

services
erosion control
and water shed
protection
Environmentalservices
carbon
sequestration

establishment rate

Whole plant

Rapid-establishment high
processing value to ensure
sustainable management of
forest

SPECIES OF BAMBOO
There are existing 500 different species of bamboo with partial some
hundred subspecies. Bamboo species can be divided into clumpers
and runners. Clumpers grow from the soil in a slowly expanding tuft.
Runners send underground rhizomes to produce shoots several meters
from the parent plant. Here are some that are prior base on their
species.

4 Main Species found in the Philippines

Dendrocalamus merrillianus
Merrillianus is an erect, clump-forming,
evergreen bamboo producing culms 10 - 25
meters tall. The culms, which bend as they
mature, can be 4 - 12cm in diameter. The culms
are used for house construction, furniture,
Shrafts, handicrafts, paper pulp, baskets, mats,
fuel, toil handles, fencing, coffins, ties, and rope.
The shoots are edible. Bayog is native of the
Philippines.

Bambusa vulgaris
vigorous medium-large bamboo with
relatively open clumps. Culms are up to 20
m tall, internodes 2535 cm long, 510 cm
diameter, walls up to 1.5 cm thick. Culms
are not straight, internodes often zigzagging.
Bambusa vulgaris is known as the only pantropical bamboo. Common known as
kawayan kiling

Bambusa Blumeana
Blumeana is of the same diameter but with thinner
walls and is used for secondary components of a
structure such as rafters and flooring. It may also be
used for furniture. The Ilocano term for tinik is
siitan, which literally means thorn. Common
known as kawayan Tinik

Schizostachyum lumampao
Lumampao is an evergreen bamboo, forming
dense clumps of culms 10 - 15 metros tall from
short, woody rhizomes. The thin-walled, woody
culms can be erect or arching; they are 4 - 8cm in
diameter with internodes 25 - 50cm or more long.
Also know as kawayan Byuyo (buho).

Dendrocalamus merrillianus
Merrillianus is an erect, clump-forming, evergreen
bamboo producing culms 10 - 25 meters tall. The
culms, which bend as they mature, can be 4 12cm in diameter. The culms are used for house
construction, furniture, Shrafts, handicrafts, paper
pulp, baskets, mats, fuel, toil handles, fencing,
coffins, ties, and rope. The shoots are edible. Bayog
is native of the Philippines.

Indian word- Mambu or Bambu

Geographic Distribution, Climatic and
Condition
The main area of distribution are the tropics,
in particular, South East-Asia.
Growth
The growth pattern of bamboo is a single
combination of grass, leaf-bearing tree and
palm. Like the grasses they have tubular
blades, lancet shaped cover leaves and
particular leaves and particular flowers and
from a subterranean rootstock branch
extensively to form dense to lose bushes.

Root
Bamboo has a durable
rootstocks, the rhizomes. It is only
after twelve and more years that
canes of full thickness will be
produced. A rhizome stolon will
grow in length by 1-6 m per
annum with an average life span
of ten years.
Cane
The basic form of the bamboo
plant consisits of a branch system
of segmented axes. There is a
regular succession of nodes and
segments in rhizomes, canes and
branches. The shape of canes
varies between straight

And exactly vertical, overhanging or zigzagged, curved or creeping. The average

length of the cane amount 8-15 with a
diameter of 5-12 cm and a wall thickness of 10
mm. The numbers and lenghts of the segments
per cane differ according to species. Smaller
species have canes consisiting of 15-20
segments, whereas lrger species can have up
to 55 segments. Most bamboo species have an
average segmental length of 35 cm.

Branch and leaves

The cane remains free of
branches for a period not
more than year until
develop its full height. They
have strong connection
between the diaphragm
and the nodal bead.
Because of its low weight
the load-bearing
strructural elements are
only subjected to minimal
addition loads. Long and
broad bamboo leaves are
also used for roofing.

Life Span
The canes die and fall to the ground only, a
few weeks after the production of flowers
and fruits. With the large species the life spn
is determined by the flowering period which
can be up to 100.
Bamboo Preservation
With increasing moisture of
the bamboo increases the
danger, that the bamboo will
be attacked by the animals
or vegetable pests like fungi,
beetles and termites. So the
best time for harvesting is the
drier and cooler season with
the insects are less active.

Passive Methods
Simple constructive measures like lifting up
the pillars or an out jutting roof can help to
extend the life time of the bamboo
distinctly.
Active Methods
Smoking
Heating
Immersion
Impregnating Coatings

Aim
These methods prevent the invasion of pests
during changing the surface of the
bamboo r removed the nourishments of the
insect. To protect the bamboo from fungi
and mould, the moisture must be kept
away. To preserve the bamboo inside of the
pole, all diaphragms have to be perforated
or all segments drilled. The life time of notpreserved bamboo will be 2 years, of
preserved bamboo 10 years.

Properties
Tensile Strenght: The fibers of
the bamboo run axial. In the
outer zone are highly
elastic. The tensile strenght
of these fibers is higher than
that of steel.
Fire Resistance: The fire
resistance is very good
because of the high
content of silicate acid.
Elasticity: The enormous
elasticity of bamboo makes
it to a very good building
material for earth-quake
endangered areas.

The Working Bamboo

Bamboo can be worked with the
simplest tools which must be
especially sharp because of the
highly silicified outer zone.
Shaping: Bamboo which grows in
a box gets a square shape. So it
can be used for connections.
Bending: Freshly cut, bamboo
can be bent and will keep this
shape after drying.
Scopes
Bamboo materials offers a
surprisingly large number of
application and uses. Bamboo
as a building material in a
bamboo architecture is using for
several constructions.

In the following some of these construction will

be represent.
Bamboo Houses
Bamboo houses are without exception
skeletal buildings having raised floors
with main posts which are anchored in
he ground. Typical bamboo elements
are canes, halved canes, laths, beading,
bamboo boards and rope ties.
Roofing
The simplest roof covering is formed by
bamboo shingles which are as long as
the rafters. To produce the shingles the
bamboo canes are halved along their
length and the diaphragms are removed.

Scaffoldings
Because of the favorble relationship
between load-bearing capacity and
weight, bamboo can be used for the
construction of save scaffoldings
even for very tall buildings.

Footbridges and Bridges

Footbridges and bridges are also
constructed from bamboo material.