Help - Questions about chemicals in vinyl install - foul odor and health problems - Global Gem Flooring

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I am looking for some help from someone more knowledgeable about what chemicals may be involved in a vinyl floor installation. I got vinyl installed in September 2022. Global Gem Flooring vinyl installed by 50 Floor. Since then there has been a very strong chemical odor. I am wondering what chemicals may be involved in a vinyl install, because the smell is horrible and it is affecting my health.

More info:

I have allergies and am sensitive to some chemicals. I thought having vinyl instead of carpet would help. However, there is a very strong chemical smell now. Even when I leave my house I can smell it for hours, so I'm guessing it takes a while to get out of my system. I get sick every day I am in the house, headaches, sinus problems etc. Taking multiple antihistamines a day helps a little, but not much. Because of the foul odor and health problems, I really hate being at home now.

It's just underlayment and vinyl, they didn't glue it down (according to the person I called at 50 Floor). Although I did notice that they left a lot of sawdust and vinyl dust in my floor vents because they cut the vinyl right over the vent. So I tried to vacuum it out of the ducts.

I tried taking some vinyl out of the box and smelling it, and the smell doesn't seem to be very strong, although that was just one piece of vinyl.

Does anybody know anything about the chemicals in vinyl and underlayment / luan? What chemicals might cause this strong odor? Could something like this cause long term health issues? Any recommendations?
 
Some vinyl do emit some strong odors. Usually go away after a while. If it was sheet vinyl without adhesive, probably vinyl-backed vinyl. It can smell really bad.
 
I'm home on medical leave right now following some surgery so I've been a bit lax in checking in. Since I have a wife who is also sensitive to odors (I haven't been able to wear cologne in the 34 years we've been together! :) I saw your post and thought I might try to add some information.

You're probably not going to find much, if anything, in the way of an MSDS (actually just an SDS in today's world) as most actual flooring falls into the category of "articled" items and is exempt from requiring an SDS. In lieu of this most manufacturer's, will simply provide an explanation letter that states the product is classified as an articled item and doesn't require an SDS because it is considered non-reactive and inert in it's finished state.

That being said...

I took a look at the manufacturer's website. Their specifications for their vinyl products show that they are a "rigid" core type of product. This generally means that they are what we refer to in our industry as an SPC (Stone / Plastic composite). These types of floors are constructed in layers. SPC refers to the inner or "core" of the product.

Your product appears to have a foam or closed cell urethane attached cushion. You would have to contact the manufacturer to get specifics as to exactly what they are using. This backing material provides a padding layer to the product that quiets the floor from sound transmission as well as building some minor forgiveness for subfloor imperfections (undulations) into the product.

The next layer would be the core or SPC. SPC's generally are made from only a few components the main one being stone dust (usually limestone), PVC (plastic), and some binding agents. By weight these components are about 85% stone dust and the remainder being PVC and binder (often times clay). Since this type of flooring, as stated, is "rigid" in nature it typically does not use phthalates or esthers (oils) to make the product flexible.

The next layer would consist of films that give the product its appearance. These films are very thin, only thousandths of an inch thick. They are colored but translucent to allow light to pass through to give the product depth visually. There are anywhere from 1-3 "backing" films placed one on top of the other to give the product it's overall color. Then there will be multiple "decor" films that create the pattern for the the product.

Once these layers are heated and fused together then the manufacturer will apply their specific wear layer or topcoat to the product that gives the product protection from wear. The most common wear layer chemically is urethane, either by itself or modified with an aggregate such as quartz, ceramic bead, aluminum oxide, or diamond. There are other types of finish coats besides urethane as well but they are much rarer here in the U.S. They include things such as surlyn, or acrylic as well as a few proprietary topcoats. By nature, these topcoats are incredibly non-reactive and chemically stable so that they don't react to possible stainants.

Looking a bit further...

I also noticed on the company's website that they list their products as being FloorScore certified and pthalate free. This is a good thing. FloorScore is an industry wide, 3rd party certification program that confirms that a product meets certain standards specific to "off gassing" of VOC's (Volatile Organic Compounds) far below even Federal standards. In fact they are in line with SCAQM standards (these are California product emission standards which are much more stringent than Federal regulations). The way this testing works is that the manufacturer pays a fee to SCS services (the company that manages the testing) and then SCS will procure samples from the field (not provided by the manufacturer) - they go out to a dealer and buy random product - this is important to ensure that no "pay for play" is taking place in the certification process. They then test the material and if it passes they issue a certificate for a given period of time.

They have two other certifications listed on their website overall, CARB compliance and Greenguard certification but they do not pertain to the vinyl products they sell but only to the hardwood products they sell.

HOWEVER,

One thing I noticed is that Global Gems FloorScore certificates were last renewed in 2020. Now, this could be due to just poor maintenance of their website (not updating). But, I did do due diligence and try to search for them on in the product lookup on the SCS resource site to check and see if they have a current certificate and I could not find one. SCS's resource site is not the easiest thing in the world to navigate and sometimes this can be due to the fact the product is being "private labeled" and is not listed under Global Gem but under the actual manufacturer's name. Please understand that this does not mean they have changed anything with their product or done anything to be purposefully deceptive. I did not call them as I'm not their customer but you could simply call and ask them to send you a copy of their current FloorScore certification which would clear that up.

Another small interesting oddity is that if you simply do a google search for the address listed for Global Gem, 2295 Towne Lake Parkway Suite 116, PMB 180 Woodstock, GA 30189, that is an address for a UPS store in Woodstock, GA.

All that really boils down to is that the company is most likely another of the literally thousands of "me too" importers of luxury vinyl tile & plank here in the U.S. They are most likely having the product made somewhere in Asia to their specification and then importing by container into the U.S. and selling it under their own private labeled product name. That's not a bad thing it's just the reality of our industry right now.

My point in mentioning this is simply so that you understand that you're most likely not dealing with a large manufacturer who has a staff of hundreds, has done thousands of hours of lab tests under all kinds of conditions, and is going to have people on staff when you call them who are going to know exactly how that product is built from the ground up. More likely, based on the "family" photos on their website, you're dealing with a couple of husband and wife teams who've started a small import business and are simply ordering product from overseas and rebranding it under their own company name. (Little inside industry secret this is also how many of the large big brand manufacturer's work as well, they just have deeper pockets and they have people on their payroll who actually are in the overseas factories making sure that everything is as should.)

The second (in my opinion more concerning) issue is that you used the term "luan". Luan, in many cases, is NOT a suitable underlayment for flooring. Before, all the boojays, chime in, yes I know it's been used for a long time, but it's also infamous for causing flooring failures. Due to the surge in lumber costs, it's made a recent resurgence in the industry again. Luan has it's own set of problems that could be contributing to your issue. One of them being that a huge percentage of luan is imported from Asia where the regulations of using formaldehydes are not as closely monitored. There have been recent (within the last 5 years) lawsuits where product that was supposed to be CARB compliant for formaldehydes has been tested and found not to be in compliance. (P.S. That's what the CARB II compliance standards are for is the non-use of formaldehydes in wood panel constructed products not vinyl flooring)

The stuff is cheap for a reason. The reason the industry has moved away from it over the past 15 years is because of the litany of issues that luan suppliers have been known for. It can be dimensionally unstable because it can contain plies of varying species that don't expand and contract at the same rate, it can contain dyes that can leach into some types of flooring resulting in damage to the floor, it can contain voids resulting in damage to floors, it often times does not meet the minimum of 1/4" thickness, it's susceptible to delamination, etc. etc. etc.

An underlayment panel used for the purposes of floor covering should have a warranty that specifically states that it is acceptable to be used for that purpose. You will pretty much never find this type of warranty with luan because of all of the issues stated above. That being said, you can find luan that meets the minimum standards for underlayment and has a warranty for use as an underlayment but you're going to pay the same as buying an actual plywood underlayment so why use luan?

For the purposes of your odor issue, you might contact the store and find out exactly what they used. Was it luan or was it an actual flooring underlayment or plywood? There is a difference. Most vinyl smell, as you stated from smelling the samples from your attic stock, dissipates within a matter of days. However, formaldehyde can linger.

I'm certainly not trying to scare you by any means but to me the "luan" is the more concerning issue in my mind and where you probably want to do some due diligence in finding out what exactly was used.

At any rate, I hope this gives you some information to add to what you may have already learned. Most importantly, I hope that you are able to get some relief soon and get back to a less stressful form of living.
 
Hope this pdf takes. Its a new study by yes, scientists, on off gassing of vinyl floor products. It's the SVOC's thats gonna kill ya faster than VOC's. And yes, they off gas a lot but slowly. I'd never put that stuff in my house. I'm even considering not installing it.

Characterizing Exposure to Indoor VOCs and SVOCs Indoor VOCs and SVOCs using Simple Mass-Transfer Model
 

Attachments

  • Dr. Little.pdf.pdf
    1.4 MB
Sorry, sensing a bit of passive aggressiveness on my end.

Its a new study by yes, scientists,

Sorry if you felt my reply was in some way misleading to the OP since I'm not a "scientist" (I do have a degree though as I used to be an RN a long time ago before I got into the flooring industry :) ) but as I stated in my reply that in researching the product it's stated on the company's website that the product is phthalate free.

I also noticed on the company's website that they list their products as being FloorScore certified and phthalate free.

What you might not have noticed is that in the study you attached they list four main concerning exposure compounds, BBP, benzyl butyl phthalate, DBP, dibutyl phthalate, and Di-ethylhexyl phthalate. These chemical compounds are, as you may have guessed from the names...phthalates. BPA, bisphenol-A isn't typically a compound found in flooring materials. Because it is a clear plastic material, it's most commonly used in things like plastic bottles and food containers. Hmmm....do you drink out of anything made of plastic and do you think you'll be giving that up as well?

I know that many people take a broad stroke approach when they hear the term PVC and tend to label all PVC as bad or assume that all PVC is exactly the same in formulation but that simply isn't true. Things like rigid PVC pipe (or "Rigid" flooring" :)) simply do not contain plasticizers (synonym for phthalates or older terminology "esthers") as that would make them flexible which would make them pretty much useless for their intended purpose. See where I'm coming from there sparky? I may not be a scientist, but I am smart enough to know that if something isn't in the product it cannot leech out.

Sorry, I don't mean to be an ass. It's probably the pain medication from my recent surgery causing my internal filter to be less than diligent, but your post just kind of hit me wrong. Sorry to put it bluntly, but I have known a lot of people on this site for many years and I have several who would probably attest to the fact that I don't get into flame wars and arguments as I see this site and others like it as a place to dispel misinformation about our industry and help people with their issues. I try to be as thorough, and fact based as possible but also share my experiences and my professional training with others as a way to give back what was given to me by so many in my career.

In my original post, which was pretty long winded (sorry guys here's a potato🥔😁), I intentionally didn't get into a great deal about phthalates and their chemical breakdown because the product didn't have them, and I was already being long winded enough. (sorry @DarisMulkin I know I probably gave you the start for a good nap 😁) But, I also didn't bring them up because they are highly misunderstood and controversial, and I was trying to avoid just such a response. There has been a great deal of change over the last 10 years regarding the use phthalates, and more specifically ortho phthalates in all construction materials not only flooring. While some manufacturers used them most of the major manufacturers had gotten rid of them years ago. There are several other types of non-phthalate plasticizers that have been developed, are widely available, and have been used for years.

I'd also like to point out that the term "new" is a bit misleading in reference to the attached study. From the EPA link that I was able to find, this study was posted to their website in August of 2014. In addition, in looking at the citations that the study is based on much of the experimentation was done in the late 1990's and early 2000's. That means that the "real" science part of this study was conducted two decades ago. Hardly "new" in my opinion. If we're accepting of that, then it should be with the caveat that the flooring products have changed a tremendous amount over that same period of time.

I would argue that fifteen years ago, the bulk of luxury flooring was relatively new and in its developmental infancy. It's arguable that sheet vinyl was still the much more dominant player in the marketplace when this actual research was done and that's a whole different set of manufacturing and chemicals than what the OP's post is even talking about.

Again, I'm glad you're here and I'm glad you are posting and contributing to the discussion but I'm certainly going to defend myself when I feel like I'm being called out for questionable information. I'm not infallible, but I do try to put some thought into what I post, and I try very hard to be fair and neutral in what I post to keep the site peaceful and inviting for people looking for help. I just don't feel that the attached study as presented is relevant to today's flooring products. While it may have been correct when the actual experimentation was done, I don't believe it currently represents where we are as an industry today.

Bottom line is, I would not hesitate to use today's vinyl flooring products, in my home, in my workplace, or to recommend in someone else's home or workplace. Now, I'm not naive enough to believe that less than reputable manufacturers don't exist, but I do believe that the majority of our industry does put strong emphasis on how products are produced and that it is done with an emphasis on health safety. I believe we've we made tremendous strides to make products safer, cleaner, more environmentally friendly, recyclable, and decrease the carbon footprint of our industry while doing so. Are we perfect? No. Can we always improve? Yes, and we should always continue to do so. I believe that the health safety of the products, including the installation products we sell has never been better or more important and that importance will only continue to increase with time.

We have a lot of technical information in our industry. A lot of it is very much used incorrectly, and there a ton of "knowledgeable" people in our industry who have some pretty big misconceptions so I try and do everything I can to help people. That's it, that's my whole agenda here.

So, if we're not on the same page, then I'll have to respectfully agree to disagree. ;)

Keep on posting, and I really do sincerely mean I'm glad you're here.
 
Funny side story. Several years ago, I had a complaint on a hospital project about odor. Specifically, that the flooring smelled like, well...urine. They noticed the odor prior to installing while the material was on the jobsite acclimating. Of course, we did a site visit and while I couldn't smell it (apparently, I'm smell impaired 😁), the other technical rep I was with could. We had the flooring contractor take it back to their warehouse until we could figure out what the heck was going on. After a whole bunch of research, we found out that the product had been stored next to something with ammonia in it in a hot warehouse in the middle of the summer and it had picked up the smell. I honestly think it was more the cardboard cartons that had absorbed the smell but either way, it smelled.

The flooring contractor ended up opening the boxes and letting the smell dissipate. After a few weeks we took it up to the facility and let several people do a "smell" test on it and everything was hunky dory. Floor got installed and is still down today.
 
I saw what you posted about the company. Sorry if your offended by science research instead of some lab guy in a flooring company.
Truth be told the newer plastizers used in the products your talking about are just NOT AS toxic then the ones that have phthalates. Yes they are still out there. Didn't say your product, sorry that product still had phthalates.
Just because they say it is free means they could b talking about the core material, thats another story in itself we could talk about.

Science is still science. Just because it was performed a couple years ago doesn't mean it not science anymore. lol

As for recycling, gimmie a break. The land fills will soon be over flowing with LVP. Its a garbage product with weak locking mechanisms. Now were seeing weight limits on some because of the weak locking mechanisms. The substrate has to be exceedingly flat! Not the usual 3/16 in a 10ft radius.
Oh yeah, its WATER PROOF! haha But not from below.
I've caught several companies changing their installation guidelines because they said, yes, yes you can just install it directly over concrete. Uh, NO, no you cannot unless you want a warped mess on your hands.
I was recently involved in a court case where it was all laid direct on top and the man had to replace it. They tried blaming the installer saying their product does not swell, does not adsorb water. False! Even rigid core does. SPC WPC it does not matter.
Oh but wait. This one says the base cannot touch the flooring or the warranty is void! What? Yes, base touching the flooring will stop the floor from expansion of the rigid core thats not supposed to move. Whew, the dung gets deeper and deeper
This is a fad and people are finding out the truth, regardless of people like you who tell them it's the next best thing since laminate! LOL Sport.
 
Last edited:
Oh my God!!! I literally wrote a response so long that I couldn't post it in the regular box! The site wouldn't let me like when you type too much into Twitter! :) Kids, don't do drugs.

See attachment.

Best Regards,

CFR
 

Attachments

  • SPC Response.pdf
    189.1 KB
Hey, wanna know what the industry thought was great after asbestos? Poly Vinyl Chloride Yum yum gimmie it.

Considering most all the LVP is made in china and also over half the PVC/ phthalates do you really wanna trust manufacturers over there to tell the truth?

I've been inspecting vinyl plank since it came out back in or, I dunno, 2011 or 2012. Heres a list of some old inspections I did way back when.

Oh yeah, Metroflor was prolly the first vinyl plank floor I inspected. If I remember correctly the glue skinned over.

Metroflor3/20/20123/21/20123/22/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.4/17/20124/19/20124/20/2012Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind4/20/20124/24/20124/25/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.5/2/20125/8/20125/8/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.5/8/20125/10/20125/10/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.6/14/20126/18/20126/18/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.7/6/20127/7/20127/7/2012Approved
Unilin7/9/20127/13/20127/15/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.7/10/20127/13/20127/15/2012Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.7/12/20127/17/20127/16/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.7/18/20127/27/20127/28/2012Approved
Armstrong World Industries7/18/20127/19/20127/19/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.7/25/20127/27/20127/28/2012Approved
Unilin7/25/20127/27/20127/30/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)8/6/20128/6/20128/7/2012Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind8/6/20128/7/20128/8/2012Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.8/17/20128/23/20128/24/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.8/23/2012.8/23/2012Approved
Unilin9/10/20129/13/20129/13/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.9/14/20129/18/20129/19/2012Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.9/17/20129/18/20129/19/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.9/21/20129/24/20129/24/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.9/24/201210/15/201210/15/2012Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind9/26/201210/1/201210/1/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)10/9/201210/15/201210/16/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)10/12/201210/12/201210/12/2012Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.12/7/201212/26/201212/26/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)12/11/20121/17/20131/17/2013Approved
Halstead New England Corp.12/12/201212/13/201212/14/2012Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind12/13/201212/14/201212/14/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)12/26/201212/26/201212/28/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)1/15/20131/18/20131/20/2013Approved
Metroflor1/17/20131/18/20131/22/2013Approved
Metroflor1/18/2013.2/18/2013Approved
Unilin1/29/20132/8/20132/9/2013Approved
Pergo (Lowes)1/30/20131/31/20131/31/2013Approved
Unilin2/6/20132/8/20132/10/2013Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.2/7/20132/8/20132/10/2013Approved
Pergo (Lowes)2/15/20132/20/20132/20/2013Approved
Halstead New England Corp.2/21/20132/22/20132/23/2013Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind2/21/20132/22/20132/23/2013Approved
Pergo Inc.3/26/20133/29/20134/4/2013Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind4/4/20134/8/20134/8/2013Approved
Pergo Inc.4/4/20134/8/20134/8/2013Approved
Pergo (Lowes)4/16/20134/16/20134/16/2013Approved
Pergo Inc.4/19/2013.5/17/2013Approved
Diamond W - Private5/9/20135/20/20136/5/2013Approved
Halstead New England Corp.5/23/20136/6/20136/10/2013Approved
Columbia Flooring6/18/20136/24/20136/25/2013Approved



 
Go on line to the manufacturer of your product and request a Safety Data sheet. That will tell you what chemicals are in it, when requested they have to give you that information, it is the law.
Unless it is manufactured by Lumber Liquidators, umm, sorry, the "post lawsuit" name is LL Flooring. They just made up the Safety Data Sheets.
 
Hey, wanna know what the industry thought was great after asbestos? Poly Vinyl Chloride Yum yum gimmie it.

Considering most all the LVP is made in china and also over half the PVC/ phthalates do you really wanna trust manufacturers over there to tell the truth?

I've been inspecting vinyl plank since it came out back in or, I dunno, 2011 or 2012. Heres a list of some old inspections I did way back when.

Oh yeah, Metroflor was prolly the first vinyl plank floor I inspected. If I remember correctly the glue skinned over.

Metroflor3/20/20123/21/20123/22/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.4/17/20124/19/20124/20/2012Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind4/20/20124/24/20124/25/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.5/2/20125/8/20125/8/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.5/8/20125/10/20125/10/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.6/14/20126/18/20126/18/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.7/6/20127/7/20127/7/2012Approved
Unilin7/9/20127/13/20127/15/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.7/10/20127/13/20127/15/2012Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.7/12/20127/17/20127/16/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.7/18/20127/27/20127/28/2012Approved
Armstrong World Industries7/18/20127/19/20127/19/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.7/25/20127/27/20127/28/2012Approved
Unilin7/25/20127/27/20127/30/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)8/6/20128/6/20128/7/2012Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind8/6/20128/7/20128/8/2012Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.8/17/20128/23/20128/24/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.8/23/2012.8/23/2012Approved
Unilin9/10/20129/13/20129/13/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.9/14/20129/18/20129/19/2012Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.9/17/20129/18/20129/19/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.9/21/20129/24/20129/24/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.9/24/201210/15/201210/15/2012Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind9/26/201210/1/201210/1/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)10/9/201210/15/201210/16/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)10/12/201210/12/201210/12/2012Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.12/7/201212/26/201212/26/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)12/11/20121/17/20131/17/2013Approved
Halstead New England Corp.12/12/201212/13/201212/14/2012Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind12/13/201212/14/201212/14/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)12/26/201212/26/201212/28/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)1/15/20131/18/20131/20/2013Approved
Metroflor1/17/20131/18/20131/22/2013Approved
Metroflor1/18/2013.2/18/2013Approved
Unilin1/29/20132/8/20132/9/2013Approved
Pergo (Lowes)1/30/20131/31/20131/31/2013Approved
Unilin2/6/20132/8/20132/10/2013Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.2/7/20132/8/20132/10/2013Approved
Pergo (Lowes)2/15/20132/20/20132/20/2013Approved
Halstead New England Corp.2/21/20132/22/20132/23/2013Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind2/21/20132/22/20132/23/2013Approved
Pergo Inc.3/26/20133/29/20134/4/2013Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind4/4/20134/8/20134/8/2013Approved
Pergo Inc.4/4/20134/8/20134/8/2013Approved
Pergo (Lowes)4/16/20134/16/20134/16/2013Approved
Pergo Inc.4/19/2013.5/17/2013Approved
Diamond W - Private5/9/20135/20/20136/5/2013Approved
Halstead New England Corp.5/23/20136/6/20136/10/2013Approved
Columbia Flooring6/18/20136/24/20136/25/2013Approved






What is it about LVP, or floating floors, that you don’t like? Is it the product itself or is it the botched installations that you see all the time because of improper installation? Maybe both?

If it’s the chemicals in the product that you don’t like then do you also feel the same way about basic carpet and rebond pad? You know how many dead flies I would see in a house on the second day of multiple day installs, something in the air was killing them. If I loaded up pad the night before, my van smelled like a formaldehyde fart the next morning so I can only imagine what the customer will be breathing for the next umpteen years.
 
Unless it is manufactured by Lumber Liquidators, umm, sorry, the "post lawsuit" name is LL Flooring. They just made up the Safety Data Sheets.
Most pros won't install LL (Lumber Liquidaters) flooring because of all the shorts. There are just too many short pieces. And their stuff is crap anyway.
 
Hey, wanna know what the industry thought was great after asbestos? Poly Vinyl Chloride Yum yum gimmie it.

Considering most all the LVP is made in china and also over half the PVC/ phthalates do you really wanna trust manufacturers over there to tell the truth?

I've been inspecting vinyl plank since it came out back in or, I dunno, 2011 or 2012. Heres a list of some old inspections I did way back when.

Oh yeah, Metroflor was prolly the first vinyl plank floor I inspected. If I remember correctly the glue skinned over.

Metroflor3/20/20123/21/20123/22/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.4/17/20124/19/20124/20/2012Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind4/20/20124/24/20124/25/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.5/2/20125/8/20125/8/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.5/8/20125/10/20125/10/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.6/14/20126/18/20126/18/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.7/6/20127/7/20127/7/2012Approved
Unilin7/9/20127/13/20127/15/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.7/10/20127/13/20127/15/2012Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.7/12/20127/17/20127/16/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.7/18/20127/27/20127/28/2012Approved
Armstrong World Industries7/18/20127/19/20127/19/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.7/25/20127/27/20127/28/2012Approved
Unilin7/25/20127/27/20127/30/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)8/6/20128/6/20128/7/2012Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind8/6/20128/7/20128/8/2012Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.8/17/20128/23/20128/24/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.8/23/2012.8/23/2012Approved
Unilin9/10/20129/13/20129/13/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.9/14/20129/18/20129/19/2012Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.9/17/20129/18/20129/19/2012Approved
Halstead New England Corp.9/21/20129/24/20129/24/2012Approved
Pergo Inc.9/24/201210/15/201210/15/2012Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind9/26/201210/1/201210/1/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)10/9/201210/15/201210/16/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)10/12/201210/12/201210/12/2012Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.12/7/201212/26/201212/26/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)12/11/20121/17/20131/17/2013Approved
Halstead New England Corp.12/12/201212/13/201212/14/2012Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind12/13/201212/14/201212/14/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)12/26/201212/26/201212/28/2012Approved
Pergo (Lowes)1/15/20131/18/20131/20/2013Approved
Metroflor1/17/20131/18/20131/22/2013Approved
Metroflor1/18/2013.2/18/2013Approved
Unilin1/29/20132/8/20132/9/2013Approved
Pergo (Lowes)1/30/20131/31/20131/31/2013Approved
Unilin2/6/20132/8/20132/10/2013Approved
Kronotex USA,Inc.2/7/20132/8/20132/10/2013Approved
Pergo (Lowes)2/15/20132/20/20132/20/2013Approved
Halstead New England Corp.2/21/20132/22/20132/23/2013Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind2/21/20132/22/20132/23/2013Approved
Pergo Inc.3/26/20133/29/20134/4/2013Approved
Lowes- Armstrong World Ind4/4/20134/8/20134/8/2013Approved
Pergo Inc.4/4/20134/8/20134/8/2013Approved
Pergo (Lowes)4/16/20134/16/20134/16/2013Approved
Pergo Inc.4/19/2013.5/17/2013Approved
Diamond W - Private5/9/20135/20/20136/5/2013Approved
Halstead New England Corp.5/23/20136/6/20136/10/2013Approved
Columbia Flooring6/18/20136/24/20136/25/2013Approved




Remember the Chinese drywall that was full of formaldehyde
 
What is it about LVP, or floating floors, that you don’t like? Is it the product itself or is it the botched installations that you see all the time because of improper installation? Maybe both?

If it’s the chemicals in the product that you don’t like then do you also feel the same way about basic carpet and rebond pad? You know how many dead flies I would see in a house on the second day of multiple day installs, something in the air was killing them. If I loaded up pad the night before, my van smelled like a formaldehyde fart the next morning so I can only imagine what the customer will be breathing for the next umpteen years.
The worst thing about them IMO is the cheesy locking mechanisms. So small and easy to break. I get calls to fix them all the time.
Just last week this guy kept bugging me and bugging me to come fix his laminate that popped right at the hallway and livingroom.
I look around, instantly see cupped LVT all over. I asked if they used 6 mil? He said no. Exterior sliding door casings caulked in place, front and garage door threshold screwed down tight.
I said see ya. Handyman job who already came to fix it once, surprisingly. But wont return calls now. 6 months old.
Secondly I don't like the sawdust from it. I wear a mask so my lungs don't get filled with plastic chips.
Thirdly, all the lies about it.
 
The worst thing about them IMO is the cheesy locking mechanisms. So small and easy to break. I get calls to fix them all the time.
Just last week this guy kept bugging me and bugging me to come fix his laminate that popped right at the hallway and livingroom.
I look around, instantly see cupped LVT all over. I asked if they used 6 mil? He said no. Exterior sliding door casings caulked in place, front and garage door threshold screwed down tight.
I said see ya. Handyman job who already came to fix it once, surprisingly. But wont return calls now. 6 months old.
Secondly I don't like the sawdust from it. I wear a mask so my lungs don't get filled with plastic chips.
Thirdly, all the lies about it.
2 and 3 are non issues as far as I’m concerned. I have a HEPA vac for dust containment so that takes care of 2. As far as 3 is concerned, life itself contains a fair amount of lies and bullshit so some over exaggerated claims on a box of LVP doesn’t bother me enough to shun it.

Now number 1, you got a very valid point. Thin locking mechanisms and poor installations are not a good combination. Even so, I’m not ready to write off LVP yet. It can still be a solid money maker if you play your cards right.

As far as failures go, I actually welcome that shit. Bring it on, they’re a necessary evil in the industry. What better way for someone to learn a lesson than when they’re looking at and living on their own botched floor.

Same sorta thing with repairs, I don’t do em. I’ll gladly tear your floor up and install a new one correctly for you but I’m not fixing someone else’s work. I find that disrespectful on a personal level and it just pisses me off so much so that I’m better off just staying home for the day.
 

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