Who can help to clarify? I am in a discussion with consultants who state that for paints and coatings, wet-applied on-site on walls, floors and ceilings, the VOC emissions requirements and the VOC content requirements stand as alternatives.
But I read from rom the credit: Threshold "At least 90%, by volume, for emissions; 100% for VOC content". And I read "In addition to meeting the general requirements for VOC emissions (above), on-site wet-applied products must not contain excessive levels of VOCs, for the health of the installers and other tradesworkers who are exposed to these products."
In my reading, the VOC content requirements are not an alternative, they are additional to the emissions requirements; and I remember from my time in EQ TAG that this was the intention when we wrote this wording.
My discussion partners now say that the LEED APs are satisfied if paints and coatings fulfil the VOC content requirements and then they do not require compliance with the VOC emissions criteria. In Europe this means that all paints and coatings would qualify automatically because they all have to comply with European law, here with the European Decopaint Directive (2004/42/EC), which is one of the options to show compliance with the VOC content requirements - even if they are emitting large amounts of VOCs.
Is there any official US GBC statement on this? And - do the LEED APs know about this change from LEED 2009 to LEED v4? How would GBCI handle project documentation regarding paints dealing only with VOC content, not with VOC emissions?
And one additional question: I am hearing that almost no paints had been AgBB-like VOC emissions tested. Well, I know of some ... but please would you kindly report your experience whether you are receiving documentation on VOC emission testing of paints and coatings when you ask for it?
Paula Melton
Editorial DirectorBuildingGreen, Inc.
LEEDuser Moderator
180 thumbs up
December 16, 2015 - 9:04 am
My read is the same: that BOTH content and emissions testing are required. Doesn't look optional to me.I'm afraid I can't help on the AgBB question, but I might suggest posting it separately so it gets more attention.
Michelle Halle Stern
Senior Sustainability ConsultantGreenwood Consulting Group
120 thumbs up
December 16, 2015 - 11:35 am
Paula is correct. General emissions evaluation is required for everything. The content requirement for wet-applied materials is an additional requirement.
Reinhard Oppl
Independent consultant on VOC issuesformerly with Eurofins Product Testing A/S
332 thumbs up
December 17, 2015 - 11:08 am
Now I am told that, if you apply the "budget calculation method" then you only would need to take care of the VOC content, not of the VOC emissions of paints and coatings. Can that hold true? Please help.
Paula Melton
Editorial DirectorBuildingGreen, Inc.
LEEDuser Moderator
180 thumbs up
December 17, 2015 - 11:48 am
That doesn't sound right to me. To be "compliant" with the criteria, wouldn't a wet-applied product have to meet both content and emissions criteria? That said, the budget method is very complicated and seems to be done by assembly, and it's not clear to me how you account for the content part of the VOCs in the formula provided.... Looks messy.
Paula Melton
Editorial DirectorBuildingGreen, Inc.
LEEDuser Moderator
180 thumbs up
December 17, 2015 - 4:41 pm
Just confirmed with USGBC: in order to count as "compliant" in the budget calc, a wet-applied product will need to meet both the content and the emissions criteria.
Reinhard Oppl
Independent consultant on VOC issuesformerly with Eurofins Product Testing A/S
332 thumbs up
December 18, 2015 - 2:05 am
I do not feel that the budget calculation method is too complicated.
First you follow this rule: Calculate the surface area of assembly layers based on the manufacturer’s documentation for application.
Then you evaluate which products used are compliant, and how high percentage of their applicable surface (e.g. of the walls) are covered by these products. Compliant means for wet-applied products such as paints, adhesives and sealants, also in my understanding, compliant with both VOC content and VOC emissions criteria.
That information goes into equation 2 or equation 3 for each surface. If 90% of an assembly (e.g. of all products used in the wall) meets the criteria, the system counts as 100% compliant. If less than 50% of a system meets the criteria, the system counts as 0% compliant. If between 50% and 90%, then the number counts.
Next you use equation 1 to calculate the total percentage of compliant surfaces counting for all involved surfaces (floor, ceilings, walls, thermal and acoustic insulation, and furniture if included in the project). In the last step, you read the points achieved from table 2.
Maybe I am biased, but this should be doable for technically educated people. Or did I miss anything?
Paula Melton
Editorial DirectorBuildingGreen, Inc.
LEEDuser Moderator
180 thumbs up
December 18, 2015 - 6:01 am
I didn't mean to suggest that it's "too" complicated, just that it's going to require a different way of looking at things (by percentage of assembly) than the completely straightforward option 1. Who measures sealants by surface area? Do two coats of paint count as one layer or two? Overall, I think it's awesome that the budget method is available, and hopefully the online calculator makes it reasonably simple to do, but it's certainly a completely different animal from Option 1.
Michelle Halle Stern
Senior Sustainability ConsultantGreenwood Consulting Group
120 thumbs up
December 18, 2015 - 8:23 am
More than being complicated, it's a lot of work, depending on how many different materials and unique products you have - even more so than with v3.
Oliver Bate
Sustainability Consultant5 thumbs up
March 30, 2020 - 6:07 am
Hi all,
I have a flooring screed which demonstrates 0 g/l of VOC Content tested to - EU Pains Directive & Rule 1168, however these are both VOC Content testing standards - As the flooring category only needs General Emissions Evaluation requirements, am I able to use these testing standards to demonstrate compliance?
If not (because these standards aren't listed as options/or alternatives) I'm assuming i'd have to raise this directly with the USGBC?
Thanks