more savtrythan ever on choosing healthier products

By Marc Richmond

II/ITH green building hitting a fever pitch in the Y Y national media, including everything from daily newspapers to 24-hour broadcasts of home improvement shows pushing green, consumers are also becoming more aware of what types of building materials can provide more sustainability while making their home more comfortable and less toxic.

One issue that has risen to the top of the green list is indoor air quality (IAQ) It's an important health issue. With more and more homes being built more tightly, and with many materials used to build a home containing dangerous chemicals, it's crucial that homes use building materials that contain fewer toxins that could permeate the interior. It is also important that homes provide adequate fresh air ventilation to dilute possible contaminants.

How vital is IAQ to homeowners? According to a survey by Professional Builder, STVo of homeowners rate IAQ as "extremely or very important." With volatile organic compounds (VOCs) causing such ailments as headaches and skin, nose and throat irritation, it's no wonder IAQ plays a major role in green building practices.

Through the supply chain, the response to consumer concerns by offering low/no VOCs and formaldehyde-free building products has been enormous. Needless to say, builders are increasingly interested in buying chemical-free or lower chemical-based materials. Some of the popular items include low/no-added formaldehyde insulation, no VOC paints, formaldehyde-free MDF doors, and cabinetry.

Dennis McCullah is one of many builders in the San Francisco Bay Area who offers a better, healthier home. "If a client is going to make a smart choice between a green product and a non-green product, and if it's going to affect the IAQ and what their kids and grandkids are breathing," he said, "it just makes sense to use, say, a formaldehydefree product."

One product he recommends to his clients is an insulation material by Johns Manville that doesn't use formaldehyde-based binders. "It's a product you can easily substitute in as your standard specification," he said. "It doesn't cost any more, and it's healthier."

D.BLAZE

Johns Manville's Sandi Black agrees that concerns over indoor air pollution are growing, which is one of the main reasons they changed to an acrylic binder without formaldehyde a few years ago. "We started out by making a few SKUs formaldehyde-free, and pushed the product to hospitals, schools, and places where the elderly or sick people were," she said. "The response was so good that we moved to use that binder in all of our building insulation products."

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They now get the word out about the product by working with architects to get the products specified. She also recognizes that consumers and, secondarily, architects are a big part of the rapidly increasing demand for IAQ-sensitive products. Builders are a bit of a harder nut to crack. "Many builders know about it, but it's not really a price concern with them," she said. "They might have a longterm relationship with an insulation contractor, and they're going to go with them no matter what product they use'" She said that educating the homeowner is extremely important since the homeowner is often the one making the recommendation.

Paints are another major indoor pollutant with the potential to release VOCs into a home. Bob Guerin, a Benjamin Moore distributor in Vacaville, Ca., who sells directly to retailers, has seen an upswing of customers, from builders to homeowners, asking for low/no-VOC products. "Demand is increasing," he said, while admitting it's slow, but steady. "Though it's typically only sold when it's requested, which is more these days, every one of my dealers carries the Eco Spec no-VOC line."

Consumers wanting a healthy home are also concerned about the effects of weather on their IAQ. A big concern is using the proper housewrap and flashing against moisture intrusion that could lead to mold and mildew. "If a homeowner gets mold in their walls, they have trouble breathing. That's an IAQ issue," said Marc Silveira, Dupont Tyvek/Orepac Building Products.

Silveira said he gets numerous calls from customers inquiring about housewrap because of allergies or those concerned about VOCs. (Manv housewraps. including Tyvek. contain no VOCs or formaldehydes.) "People have breathing problems or have kids with allergies, who are very susceptible to those kinds of building products," he said.

Silveira noted, "You've got to get fresh air throughout a house and you have to keep the water out of the wall, keep the air from going wind washing through the wall, and keep the mold out. That's a major secret for IAQ."

Issues of healthier IAQ are becoming of high importance to homeowners. Although many builders, architects, manufacturers and suppliers are paying attention, many are still behind in their product and service offerings and missing a growing market reality.

In a recent report, The International

Agency for Research on Cancer concluded that formaldehyde can cause nose and throat cancer. Merely offering formaldehyde-free products as a niche might not be an option-in the near future it could be a necessity.

- Marc Richmond, a former green builder, is director of green programs for What's Working, a nationally recogniTed green building consulting firm. He can be re ac hed at marc @ w hat sw or kin R.c om.

Helping Builders Go Green

(Continuetl .fntn paga 381 plan-check level," she said.

Builders acknowledge the challenges of trying an unproven product. Naturally, the home building industry is slow to change-for good reason. "Because of litigation, especially in California. builders are afraid of trying something nerv in their homes," said Babbitt. "It's one more thing that needs to have a warranty...it's one more thing that can go wrong...it's one more thing someone can sue us over. We're a behemoth industry, and like a giant luxury liner, rvhen you get a big boat in certain directions. making changes is challenging."

It's also a challenge convincing subs and trades to switch over to a green product. "He might be concerned about the perfbrmance," Jacobs said. "If I use another product, and it doesn't work. the sub doesn't want to have to come back. Thcy really don't want to change."

Builders who are buildins thou- sands of homes a year and have to comply rvith a niche product available through only a small manufacturer is hopefully a thing of the past. These days. having a major brand backing a new product is necessary. "lf a product fails. you've got a major company behind it," Jacobs said. "If it's manufactured in Joe's garage and it fails, Joe will not be-as much as he'd like to-able help you out."

Babbitt said he has already "gone green" with framing and painting materials. "Making the choice for more environmentally friendly materials was easy," he said. "The real issue is getting your trades to gain a comfort level with the materials you're now requesting them to use."

"As a small homebuilder, I'm really looking to grasp this-as a niche and to build better, healthier homes," Babbitt said. "I might start doing 50 to 100 units ayear. That's why I want to embrace this stuff as fast as I can. When we stafi to grow I want to start putting this stuff into my houses."

- Mr. Percivalla is sales & murketing director for EarthSource Foresl Pnxlucts, a wholesale distributor ol FSC-ce rtified wood produt:ts. Reuch him ut :;clluv'otnl@ tahoo.t'om or wtvtt.e u r I h so u rc e vt xtd.t' ottt.