Bamboo is a unique natural material that has found its use in cooking, fabrics and footwear, construction and finishing works, as well as in interior design. Craftsmen can use bamboo to make a wide variety of beautiful and useful crafts. But when working with it, it is necessary to take into account the properties of this type of wood. The trunk of a bamboo is hollow and when you try to bend it, it folds, and if improperly processed, it cracks in the longitudinal direction.
Instructions
Step 1
Choose a bamboo Bending the trunk of a bamboo is a tough task. There are two main points to consider when choosing a bamboo. First, it is advisable to choose fresh bamboo trunks. It will be much easier to bend them than dry ones. Secondly, it should be borne in mind that thick bamboo trunks bend much worse than thin ones.
Step 2
Heat the bamboo trunk To bend the bamboo trunk, you must first heat it to a temperature of more than 107 degrees. At this temperature, the pectins and lignin soften and the bamboo fibers begin to slip. This method makes possible the bending radius of the bamboo trunk by an amount equal to about 60 the diameters of the bamboo trunk. In this case, you should know that it has a rather low thermal conductivity and, as a result, heats up very slowly. The heat should be evenly and slowly distributed along the entire length of the barrel. Care must be taken not to get too hot on the surface of the bamboo. It is not recommended to use open fire for heating, since this can lead to scorch marks.
Step 3
Bend the stem Bend the stem between the annual rings. The bent barrel must be fixed in the desired position and allowed to cool completely, periodically wiping it with a damp cloth. It should be borne in mind that when trying to bend the bamboo at an acute angle, its stem can fold - break without breaking. In order to avoid this, it is recommended to use sand. Drill out all the baffles of the bamboo trunk. Fill it completely with fine sand. Seal the ends of the bamboo stem tightly to prevent sand from spilling out. Heat the sand-filled barrel. Bend the trunk of the bamboo slowly and gently. This technology allows you to create sharp bends.
Step 4
Thin bamboo sticks bend quite easily when heated. To avoid burn marks, it is recommended to use an electric lamp for heating. It should be remembered that work on heating and bending bamboo splinters does not tolerate haste and requires patience and caution.
