A few months ago, we had a client who came into our showroom after they had had a vinyl floor fitted by a local flooring shop in South East London. Immediately after the floor had been fitted, they noticed a strong noxious, plastic smell that made them feel dizzy. They opened windows, but it didn’t go away. Fast forward a few weeks, and the floor was tested, and it turned out it was off-gassing harmful chemicals or VOC (or volatile organic compounds), with the most likely chemical being 2‑EH.
So do these chemicals actually matter in flooring?
Well, general health advice would suggest that in the short-term these chemicals could give rise to headaches, dizziness, nausea, eye/throat irritation (as happened with our clients in South East London). And Long-term exposure (especially in vulnerable populations like children, elderly, and people with respiratory issues) has potential links to many more scary conditions.
Interestingly, however, there are not any widely reported legal cases or high-profile incidents in the UK involving flooring-related off-gassing—however, there is credible evidence and scientific case studies showing indoor air quality problems linked to flooring materials, particularly PVC and cheaper laminate products in Europe, including the UK. One thing, that may have caused this, is a potential regulatory shortfall: harmful formaldehyde exposure inside homes may go under-regulated due work exposure limits being high, in the absence of residential guidelines.
So, what can you do about it?
Obviously, you don’t want to buy a floor that is giving off chemicals and there are strategies you can adopt to manage the risk.
Firstly, you can ask for a flooring data sheet for your flooring, and look for independent certifications
Most flooring that is made by reputable manufacturers will have some form of accreditation in terms of VOC content. These could include eco-INSTITUT, GREENGUARD Gold, FloorScore, CARB Phase 2. Whilst we don’t believe in vinyl floors at Kite, some vinyl manufacturers have these accreditations, showing that it is possible to have a low VOC plastic floor. It’s harder with bespoke floors (and we do sell these at Kite), but even with these there is normally data on the raw materials involved. If there is some form of accreditation on your flooring, whether you buy a floor from us, or somebody else, you will be fine.
Our clients who bought the cheap vinyl floor in South East London would have quickly discovered the floor wasn’t certified.
But, beware!! Look out for self-certification
The wood flooring industry, as a whole, is a master of self-certification. But any person with a grasp of the wider world will know self-certification doesn’t work – look at the water companies, diesel emissions, tuna industry etc. etc.
We see companies all the time saying “Low VOC floors” and then including a made-up logo. But there can be very little science behind the claim. It is so easy to miss this, and the logos look genuine. It’s also very common to see logos of trees and then “sustainably sourced”. We know one large wood flooring retailer that has created their own Sustainability grading system! What could possibly go wrong with that?!
So, what is Kite doing about it?
At Kite, we’re on a mission to be transparent about everything we do in flooring. This started with explaining how floors are priced (so no fake sales). And we’ve also looked at VOC content. Almost all our floors are Carb 2 Compliant. This is a respected level of certification that originates from California and for most of our clients this is sufficient piece of mind that they are buying a properly made product.
However, we also have clients that want even more assurance. For that we looked to source a flooring range that was tested under the strictest possible standards. After a research visit to Germany, we discovered the eco-INSTITUT (Germany). This is the strictest testing process on the world, where the products are left in a sealed chamber for 28 days. After this, the flooring chemicals are tested and they must reach the following standards –
Limits (after 28 days in chamber) for eco-INSTITUT:
- TVOC: < 0.25 mg/m³
- Formaldehyde: < 0.05 mg/m³ (often stricter in practice)
- Carcinogens: Essentially 0 tolerance
- TSVOC (Semi-VOCs): Strict limits
- Odor: Must be “low” to “imperceptible”
These floors now sit in our Newington Plus Range. Finish wise they are just as beautiful as our Newington Range, and come in the same colour and similar grading, but they have been tested in an eco-INSTITUTE chamber.
They’re also slightly wider and longer than our standard ranges, and fully FSC certified (so genuinely sustainably sourced). From a construction perspective, you will also notice that they have a pine core, as opposed to plywood. Whilst we sell many plywood core floors, having a pine core reduces the amount of adhesive in the product. They are also a click system floor, meaning you don’t have to use PVA glue to attach the tongues into the grooves, again reducing the amount of adhesive. Finally, the finish is a water based oil finish.
They’re awesome for clients looking for a beautiful floor, with total peace of mind.
At Kite, we’re proud that we don’t self-certify our floors. We only reference independent, international agencies, and this allows our customers to make the most informed decisions.
If you’d like to do more research on healthy materials, then this is a great place to start
–My Chemical Free House – Choosing a non-toxic engineered wood floor
To discuss this subject, or view any of our floors, the best place to start is our showroom. Or you can view our Newington Plus range here.
Happy Project Planning
