I am documenting the paints and coatings credit and I have one non-compliant paint that I need to offset. I want to do it with a single offset and I know that is allowable. I have gathered the volumes used for both the non-compliant and the offset paint and and input it on the LEED credit form. The form is showing 'no' on the VOC compliance budget and the credit does not show as being achieved. Any ideas of what I am doing incorrectly or how to work around the issue?
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Jon Clifford
LEED-AP BD+CGREENSQUARE
LEEDuser Expert
323 thumbs up
June 7, 2015 - 11:10 pm
Apparently, if the VOC Budget is used, the LEEDonline form wants a positive entry on every line in the “Volume Used” column. This appears to be an error in the form. Technically, the form should only require volumes for any noncompliant products and for just enough compliant products to offset the noncompliant ones.
Try this fix:
. . 1. On the line corresponding to your non-compliant paint, enter the actual volume used.
. . 2. Do the same on the line corresponding to your offset paint.
. . 3. For each remaining compliant product, enter 0.01L (likely far less than the actual volume used).
This should change “VOC Budget Compliance” to “Yes.”
Finally, check the “Special Circumstances” box. Explain the difficulty with the form, describe your offset calculation, and cite Part 3 of LI#1822, which first outlined this procedure. You may also want to upload a PDF of your own spreadsheet of the calculation isolating just the coatings used in the abbreviated budget. I would also upload documentation of the quantities (such as letters from the contractor or applicator).
You might want to shoot an inquiry to USGBC first to confirm whether this approach is acceptable. An inquiry might alert them to the form error and prompt a fix.
Deborah Ebersole
PrincipalStudio D Consulting + Design
6 thumbs up
June 8, 2015 - 9:52 am
Jon - thanks for the assistance. I have done as you suggested and it now shows compliance for both the budget and the credit. I appreciate the quick response and help!