I am trying to determine if the VOC content in a flooring we used meets LEED standards. It is a Regupol Aktiv floor, and the manufacturer cannot provide a VOC content (as the floor is not a liquid), so it gave me a test report that included the TVOC. Does anyone know where I can reference a TVOC limit?
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Josh Jacobs
Technical Information & Public Affairs ManagerUL Environment
515 thumbs up
September 19, 2012 - 2:32 pm
Matthew,
VOC content minimization is not a compliance pathway for EQ 4.3 - VOC emission minimization is the compliance pathway. TVOC (Total Volatile Organic Compounds) is not one of the criteria that is called out in the compliance options. The best bet is to ask if they have certified to CRI Green Label Plus (if carpet), FloorScore or GREENGUARD Children & Schools (if they are other flooring), or have tested the product according to CA 01350. These are the most common ways of showing compliance in this credit.
matthew convery
Operations ManagerBLM Construction Company, Inc.
8 thumbs up
September 19, 2012 - 2:51 pm
Thank you for explaining why I could not find a TVOC limit to reference. The company we bought the rubber floor from is Australian, and they could only provide an " Good Environmental Choice Australia" License (GECA). They are not FloorScore Certified. They have also provided a third party VOC Emission Test Report from Berkeley Analytical. Is any of that information going to be useful or helpful to me?
Josh Jacobs
Technical Information & Public Affairs ManagerUL Environment
515 thumbs up
September 19, 2012 - 2:57 pm
If the testing report from Berkeley Analytical was done to show compliance with the CA 01350 requirements it should state it somewhere on the test report. If the report shows a passing test, then that can be submitted to the LEED reviewers and should be enough for compliance.
Melissa Vernon
Director of Client EngagementNatural Capital Partners
50 thumbs up
September 19, 2012 - 2:58 pm
Read the test report and it should indicate which test standard was used for the testing. If it matches one of the test methods listed in the LEED credit, then it should be fine for documenting that the product meets the requirements.
matthew convery
Operations ManagerBLM Construction Company, Inc.
8 thumbs up
September 19, 2012 - 3:10 pm
This is what the report said as far as what testing standards were used... "Test Protocol Summary* – This VOC emission test was performed following the guidance of ASTM Standard Guide
D 5116. If required by the test, chemical sampling and analysis for VOCs were performed following U.S. EPA
Compendium Method TO-17. If required, sampling and analysis for low molecular weight aldehydes were
performed following ASTM Standard Method D 5197.". (However, I do not see anywhere on the report anything that indicates whether their product passed or not.) Do these standards coincide with LEED standards? Also, would this type of flooring have to be categorized under option 2 of IEQc4.3? I don't see anything under option 1 that a rubber floor would be categorized under.
Josh Jacobs
Technical Information & Public Affairs ManagerUL Environment
515 thumbs up
September 19, 2012 - 3:24 pm
That ASTM Test Method is what GECA (Good Environmental Choice Australia) uses to show compliance for their emission criteria - which is in TVOC. Unfortunately, the test report does not seem to show qualification to CA 01350 and therefore doesn't help you get the point. For the easiest path in the future look for products that are certified to the programs mentioned in my previous post or obviously products that have shown compliance, through a test report, to the CA 01350 test methodology.
Alfred Hodgson
Research DirectorBerkeley Analytical
6 thumbs up
September 19, 2012 - 5:25 pm
Matthew: For compliance test reports, the test method on the first page of the report should be CDPH/EHLB/Standard Method V1.1 (Sect. 01350). Otherwise, it is a QC report for other objectives. The report should also have acceptance criteria and modeling scenario(s) tables. Screening reports do not usually indicate ASTM D5116-2010 as the test method. However, the emission factor tables can be used to estimate VOCs impact from flooring materials by dividing the emission factor values in ug/m^2-h by the flooring Area- specific flow rate of 2.14 for classrooms and 1.86 for office environments. For pass/fail criteria limits, see Table 4-1 of the standard http://berkeleyanalytical.com/sites/default/files/cdph-iaq_standardmetho...
Michelle Teague
Architect, LEED ConsultantPolk Stanley Wilcox Architects
39 thumbs up
September 25, 2012 - 1:37 pm
Matthew, I also just received a test report on Regupol Activ for a LEED project and have the same problem as you. Spoke with Regupol and will update if I turn up anything useful.
Phillip Cook
WGE5 thumbs up
August 13, 2013 - 11:00 pm
Michelle, I am working on a project that wants to include Regupol. Could you please confirm whether you had any luck obtaining anything useful. I presume your lack of follow up means you didn't :(