Carpeting can fill household air with volatile organic compounds vocs including probable carcinogens like formaldehyde benzene and stain repellents.
Luxury vinyl plank with no voc.
Vinyl flooring is resistant to stains.
Almost all flooring manufacturers are now making some form of lvt.
After about 10 days the vinyl will no longer be a source of indoor air pollution because most of the voc s that were going to escape have been emitted.
In our comprehensive luxury vinyl plank flooring buying guide we rate each lvp brand in a number of categories.
There is a new trend away from laminates towards a flooring called luxury vinyl tile flooring lvt.
It is very low voc and most of it is phthalate free now though those were replaced with alternate plasticizers.
Shaw earned a rating of 4 75 out of 5 based on quality range of options installation ease and low voc content.
There are a few safer carpet options available but there are also alternatives to carpet including tile hardwood linoleum and vinyl.
What are luxury vinyl plank lvp floors.
Luxury vinyl planks usually have 4 layers.
Made in glue down tiles and planks as well as floating versions popularity of this flooring have been sweeping the us and the globe.
Summary of shaw vinyl plank flooring.
A primary concern of indoor air quality is the emission level of specific volatile organic compounds vocs.
If one plank suffers damages it can be easily replaced without the need of changing the entire floor.
Luxury vinyl plank flooring can be installed over any floor in good condition.
Not great for wheelchairs because it s a floating flooring option and the planks are not glued to the subfloor the planks can shift a little if a wheelchair is being used.
Poor indoor air quality is caused by inadequate ventilation poor cleaning and or excessive emissions of vocs from surfaces and finishes.
Low voc vinyl plank flooring has an additional advantage as well.
Floorscore is a third party certification that tests and measures the risks to indoor air quality.
A recent study that was conducted found that vinyl flooring contains toxic chemicals that include phthalates lead flame retardants and vocs like formaldehyde that will off gas into the air after the installation process in a home and taint the indoor air quality to hazardous levels.
Certain types of vinyl planks such as sheets and printed vinyl tiles have a protective layer above that just needs to be cleaned.
I know most of us think vinyl is one of the worst options.
This saves time and money because you don t have to rip up old flooring a huge expense when it is ceramic or stone tile or install a new subfloor.
Luxury vinyl plank lvp is much lower in offgassing than people generally think.