Our custodial team uses White and Apple Cider Vinegar Cleaner as a part of their cleaning procedure. How does LEED qualify the use of non-chemical cleaners without established sustainable criteria?
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Dwayne Fuhlhage
Sustainability and Environment DirectorPROSOCO, Inc.
168 thumbs up
April 1, 2013 - 12:03 pm
I hope this topic has already gone through an interpretation review. The credit language defaults to third-party certified products.
As a clarification, cider vinegar is a common name for a chemical solution. It contains a mild, organic acid in a typical concentration of around 8%. If a manufacturer were to repackage cider vinegar labeled for sale as a commercial/institutional cleaning product, a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) or Safety Data Sheet (SDS) would disclose the presence of acetic acid as an OSHA hazardous material. Acetic acid has an established Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) for respiratory exposures and is an eye and skin irritant. Other organic acids that would require MSDS disclosure in this percentage range include citric, phosphoric and glycolic acids.
For reference, this link leads to a GHS conformant Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for vinegar with a concentration of 3-7%:
http://webfiles.acuitysp.com/MSDS/2248_1_EN1_CDN.PDF
It appears that this manufacturer did not classify the solution as causing “serious eye damage”; a classification that would preclude certification under GS-37.
Erin Nuckols
Sustainable Building AssociateInstitute for the Built Environment
4 thumbs up
April 10, 2013 - 4:31 pm
Thank you for your response. I have looked at the product and it is a kitchen-style vinegar for both the cider and white vinegar. Nothing different from what a person purchases at a grocer to cook with. I know that LEED requires the third-party certified review, but I do not know how to account for something that is not chemically-based.
Does everyday vinegar fall into the category of these chemical solutions? If not, is it required to track the purchase of a non-chemical cleaner? If so, how is it to be accounted for in the tracking?
It seems like there should be a separate category for sustainable purchasing if the product is a truly natural, non-harmful, non-chemical (therefore, not certified by a third-party) cleaning product? IE. We shouldn't be acquiring a negative when the product is neutral or even good.