I've posted about engineered hardwood floors before, but now that I'm setting in to do it...

[Major Nikon]

5. I did a lot of research on engineered flooring materials several years ago

I finally settled on bamboo, and haven't been sorry. I installed my flooring about 10 years ago.

Engineered flooring, at least some of it, solves some significant problems with solid wood flooring material. Solid wood floors that are hard (like maple) are extremely durable, but tend to expand and contract quite a bit with changes in temperature and humidity. Softer floors (like pine) don't expand and contract as much, but are obviously softer. Engineered flooring solves these problems by using a hard top later (like maple) under sublayers which are designed to prevent as much expansion and contraction.

However, bamboo is extremely hard (about as hard as maple) and it has the expansion/contraction rate of softer woods like pine. The downside of bamboo is that it can't be stained. You can buy darker versions, but these have been steamed until they darken, which does remove some of the hardness. I like the look of natural bamboo and I get a lot of compliments on it.

One thing you want to do when you buy is either make sure the product has been stored in a temperature and humidity controlled environment. If it hasn't, you'll want to store the boxes (unopened) in your home for up to about a month to get the wood acclimated to your environment. If not, you can get warping after the product has been installed and/or it will increase the rate of material that will have to be culled. If you are having the product glued down, buy the very best glue you can get.