The thing with engineered wood is that it’s very affordable and easy to install. It’s highly popular since it has a slice of hardwood as the top layer.
However, engineered wood uses numerous mixtures of chemicals in the making process. The most prominent chemical in engineered wood is the glue they use to tie all pieces together. Unfortunately, some companies still use formaldehyde as glue.
At one point, it makes a strong glue and ensures the wood’s durability. But at the same time, formaldehyde has carcinogens that can cause cancers when inhaled for too long.
Is Engineered wood floor toxic?
In general, engineered wood is not toxic. But when you break down the chemical compounds and ingredients to make one, you may find some unsavory names. But it doesn’t mean that it is toxic.
Yes, formaldehyde can be dangerous when you inhale it for too long. The EPA website has listed some of the symptoms after inhaling formaldehyde for a long time, including vomit, nausea, and other allergic reactions. They also include in the guide what you can do when it happens.
The main concern that many people has is whether the engineered floor can cause cancer from formaldehyde. But you don’t need to worry since the amount of formaldehyde in a laminate floor can be very low.
If you still have concerns, you can find methods to reduce the amount of inhalation to protect you and your family. For starters, you can choose engineered wood that has already passed the certification for low emissions.
Does engineered flooring have formaldehyde?
Most of the engineered flooring has formaldehyde. Even though they use different chemical names, they often refer to the same thing. So be cautious and understand the chemical names and what it does.
Another thing you can do is look for engineered wood that has already been given Greenguard certification.
This certification shows the wood meets the minimum chemical emission value. And make it deem as safe to use inside the house.
The formaldehyde in the engineered or laminate floor will dissipate over time. But there is no guarantee that you won’t feel any symptoms from inhaling the chemical for too long.
So, you need to know which types of engineered wood are safe to use in your home. You can use several private criteria to find the best one.
Health hazards from formaldehyde in old floors
Formaldehyde is a great material because it kills most germs, dissolves easily in water, keeps organic materials like wood from breaking down, helps paint harden, and even keeps clothes from wrinkling.
Formaldehyde is bad because it can cause cancer and is dangerous in other ways. Also, if this poison is used to treat wooden floors, it slowly gets into the air.
Formaldehyde test for wooden floors
You don’t have to worry if the wood floor in your apartment is a little bit wooden.
But if you often feel tired or sleepy for no reason, get headaches, or get sick without warning, it could be because your wooden floor gives off formaldehyde.
There are no quick tests for formaldehyde on the market that can tell if this is true.
The results of these tests are pretty accurate, but only if you use them exactly as the manufacturer instructs.
List of laminate flooring with formaldehyde
Since it’s impossible to have a complete list of which laminate flooring has formaldehyde and to prevent other legal issues from listing the companies, the CDC only include the summary of their findings in their reports.
Laminate floors produced in China between 2012 and 2014 have a significant formaldehyde concentration, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These floorings are available through the retailer Limber Liquidator.
If you bought a China-made laminate wood from Lumber Liquidator, you should check the production year to be safe.
CDC suggests you seek help only when there is a definite symptom. They also assure you that formaldehyde dissipates over time.
Laminate flooring without formaldehyde
Since laminate flooring is one of the least expensive options, many people think it must contain formaldehyde.
This notion is only half correct since the chemical is very low and may not cause any issues. However, each person may have a different reaction to inhaling any amount of formaldehyde.
Even if that’s the case, you don’t have to worry. The chemical in the floor will dissipate over time. And some manufacturers even have stopped using formaldehyde and only opt for an eco-friendly solution in the making process.
You may want to cut some corners when doing a renovation. Even so, there’s no need to put your health at risk. You can find a laminate floor with the Greenguard Gold Certification label. One of them must still be within your budget.
Reduce formaldehyde in the air
Some tips and tricks can help if you are still worried.
Keeping the room well-ventilated is an easy way to lower the amount of CH2O in the air. This helps to increase the rate of air exchange, which makes the stress much less.
You can also use houseplants, which work just as well, to lower the air’s pollutants and break it down biologically.
As we already know, indoor plants not only make the air more pleasant to live in but also make pollutants harmless.
Formaldehyde in solid wood flooring
The myth that natural wood contains and gives off CH2O is not true. In theory, this could happen if the wood was heated to about 212 degrees Fahrenheit, but no one does that.
Some types of wood, like oak, beech, walnut, etc., can even bind free formaldehyde in the air and make it safe for people to breathe.
This is impossible if the top of the parquet is sealed, as it is with a varnished wood floor, for example. Oiled wooden floors let in a lot more air and are, therefore, more likely to bind formaldehyde.
What is Greenguard Gold Certified flooring?
When doing some wood floor shopping, you may see the GreenGuard logo. This label marks the products that have already passed the certification multi-step process.
Having this logo means the product has passed numerous tests to see whether the product meets the standard or not. Some tests include field validation, multiple temperatures and humidity tests, and many others.
The tests will see more than whether the product has high durability. But also to ensure the quality it provides.
After receiving the certification, the company has to re-submit the product for annual testing to keep the certification.
You should know by now that there are two types of Greenguard certifications. There is the regular Greenguard certification and the Greenguard gold one.
Products with the gold certification went through more arduous tests to ensure they had the best quality. Having a Greenguard gold-certified floor means taking good care of your house and family.
How healthy is wood flooring?
Indoor wood and wooden floors affect people’s health which can’t be denied.
Many things have shown that the good effects are real and important. On the other hand, there isn’t much information about the bad effects, and when there is, it’s easy to exaggerate them.
But the most important thing you should learn from this article is that nature and being a natural win. Raw materials, such as solid wood, do not hurt people and can only help them mentally and physically.
We suggest keeping your buildings and floor coverings as natural as possible. This doesn’t mean you have to buy solid wood flooring that hasn’t been treated.
There are numerous multi-layer parquets that you can lay with emission-free adhesives and provide with pollutant-free oils.