I don't know if anyone has faced this dilemma before, but for me I'm sick and tired of it. Certain manufacturer sites have products with a "less than or <" VOC content instead of a solid number for content. In the past I have asked the general contractor to follow up with his vendors to find a product sheet with an ACTUAL VOC number in g/L, but they usually respond with "that's how the manufacturer lists their VOC content and there's nothing more we can do". To which then I have to gamble with adding a value that is one number less than VOC content. In other words, if the product has "less than or < 50 g/L", I put 49 g/L in the Low-Emitting Materials calculator.
Do I just add a number below below the limit the product states or do I still hound the general contractor endlessly for some other way to pull out an actual VOC value in g/L?
Michelle Rosenberger
PartnerArchEcology
522 thumbs up
July 22, 2024 - 11:36 am
Hi Edgar,
That is what I do with this situation use 1 number less than the limit. That is not a problem for compliance but cam be an issue when you are pursuing VOC budget compliance because it is very likely that the VOCs are quite a bit less than the limit and that difference can help a great deal in the budget situation. Some manufacturers like Sherwin Williams produce a product data sheet with that basic under the limit language but also an environmental data sheet that has the specific VOC content. Sometimes safety data sheets will have the specific number but not always because it's not a requirement. I certainly prefer the exact number if I can get it. But I don't generally hound the contractor for more if it isn't available. The manufacturer certainly knows what it is.
Edgar Arevalo
Associate19 thumbs up
July 22, 2024 - 11:40 am
Thank you