Laminate flooring is less expensive than solid wood, but there have been concerns that the flooring emits formaldehyde. It's a colorless gas that’s considered a human carcinogen by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer.
Formaldehyde is in many types of household products and was in the news last year when some laminate flooring from Lumber Liquidators was reported to emit worrisome levels of formaldehyde.
So Consumer Reports bought a variety of wood-based flooring products and ran lab tests over the past year.
“It was a small study, but we did find that laminate and engineered wood had consistently higher levels of formaldehyde emissions compared to prefinished solid-wood samples that we tested,” explained Urvahi Rangan, Ph.D., with Consumer Reports Product Safety and Sustainability.
If you’re putting in new flooring, Consumer Reports says prefinished solid-wood flooring is a better choice for reducing formaldehyde exposure.
If you’ve had laminate or engineered wood flooring for several years, there’s less cause for concern because formaldehyde is a volatile chemical that will dissipate over time.
“The problem is lots of products can emit formaldehyde, especially when they’re new. Things like permanent-press fabric, upholstery, plywood, particleboard, paints, and cigarettes all can emit formaldehyde," Rangan said.
READ: Free guidance from Consumer Reports about formaldehyde
To lower formaldehyde levels in your home:
- Open windows to let in fresh air
- Wash permanent-press clothing and curtains before using them
- Choose wood furniture without formaldehyde-containing glues
- Ban indoor smoking
But Consumer Reports says forget about using an air purifier. It probably won’t lower formaldehyde levels. Nor will putting a rug over your floor.
In June, Lumber Liquidators reached a settlement with the Consumer Product Safety Commission and has agreed to continue testing some of its laminate floors free of charge. You can get more information at 800-366-4204.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Wednesday, finalized a new rule to reduce exposure to formaldehyde vapors from certain wood products. Starting next year, wood products that comply with the new federal standards will be labeled, making it easier for consumers to make informed choices.
According to the EPA, next year, composite wood products that are sold, supplied, offered for sale, manufactured, or imported in the United States will need to be labeled as TSCA Title VI compliant. These products include: hardwood plywood, medium-density fiberboard, particleboard as well as household and other finished goods containing these products.
READ: New EPA rule on formaldehyde
The agency worked with the California Air Resources Board to help ensure the final national rule is consistent with California requirements for composite wood products.
“We are carrying out important measures laid out by Congress to protect the public from harmful exposure of this widely used chemical found in homes and workplaces”, said Jim Jones, EPA’s assistant administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. “We have worked with the state of California as a partner to help ensure consistency in our requirements. The new rule will level the playing field for domestic manufacturers who have a high rate of compliance with the California standard and will ensure that imported products not subject to California’s requirements will meet the new standard and thus, not contain dangerous formaldehyde vapors.”