Laminate flooring and formaldehyde

[Garry Sorrells]

Has anyone had an occasion where a client has expressed concern about formaldehyde in conjunction with laminated flooring during or after an inspection?

[kurt]

Yes.

[Steven Hockstein]

Especially after they saw the episode about a national flooring supply company and their products on 60 minutes.

[Jim Katen]

It's just another in a long line of what I call Media-Induced Illnesses.

[Trent Tarter]

There's been allot of media coverage about toxic laminate flooring from China, just search the web and you will find plenty of info.

[Marc]

No, not any client of mine but 55,000 folks claimed respiratory issues from formaldehyde exposure in FEMA trailers and won settlement from the manufacturers after hurricane Katrina in 2005. These are my neighbors in whose midst I worked for 5 months following Katrina as SBA Loss Verifier.

Arguments in links between formaldehyde exposure and respiratory issues seem to mirror issues between mold exposure and similar health issues. A question in each seems to weigh on whether or not HIs should take the same position as scientists as opposed to simply following their gut.

Marc

[kurt]

Formaldehyde is in everything. There are studies showing it doesn't bother folks for a while, but continued exposure builds up an amount in their system, and some folks get pretty messed up. It's a believable and quantifiable issue.

The news item about this stuff set off a spark, for sure, but there's something more to this than there is with mold.

[Jim Katen]

. . . The news item about this stuff set off a spark, for sure, but there's something more to this than there is with mold.

I find it much easier to believe that gases from formaldehyde could cause health problems than gases from mold. And I could easily see how living in a FEMA trailer, which consists of pretty much nothing but formadehyde-containing materials, could make you sick.

What I'm skeptical about is when Meg and Hamilton Swan, who have 150 square feet of laminate flooring in their 3,500 square foot house, get all worked up about it after watching an episode of 60 Minutes.

[kurt]

I agree.

[mlparham]

If you were to dig a little deeper into the laminate flooring issue you would likely find that the testing procedures used by the retailer and the TV show are different.

It is my understanding that the retailer tested its product in its final, delivered form. The TV show disassembled the products than tested the individual components.