This is a legacy version of the WELL Building Standard. Please check the latest version here.

VOC reduction

VOC reduction

Intent: 

To minimize the effect of VOCs in building materials on indoor air quality.

Any material/product or part(s) used to contain fire or prevent the passage of fire/smoke through joints are excluded from Feature 4 Part 2. Part 5 is not exempt, because "furniture and furnishings" do not generally exist for the purpose of fire protection.

No, such materials applied off-site are excluded from the scope of Feature 4, Parts 1 and 2.

No, insulation used for purposes of fire safety is not required to meet Feature 4, Part 4.

No, fire coatings are excluded from the scope of Feature 4, Part 1.

Feature 4 overlaps with the LEED v4 Low Emitting Materials Credit closely, however the LEED credit allows project teams to choose categories of products that have VOC testing or to use a budget calculation to determine compliance. Therefore, while LEED v4 and WELL 1.0 both consider paints, coatings, adhesives, sealants, flooring, insulation, furniture and furnishings, there is not a guaranteed overlap between WELL feature 4 and LEED Low Emitting Materials as the chosen categories of products may be different.

LEED 2009 or v3 considers slightly different categories of products than WELL, so there is still not a direct overlap. In LEED 2009 you can choose from categories of paints, coatings, adhesives, sealants, flooring, ceilings, walls, insulation, furniture and composite wood to evaluate for different amounts of points.

The IWBI and USGBC are also working on a WELL and LEED crosswalk to further streamline aligned features for projects that are pursuing both.

California has some of the strongest health-based regulations pertaining to VOC content and emissions of building materials, which is why these standards are used to set specific limits on VOC content and/or emissions in WELL. These standards have been widely adopted in the materials space, and are slowly becoming "industry-standard" in the US.

For international projects, the IWBI approves proposals of best-in-class regional standards. Please review the feature 4 approved equivalencies and alternative adherence paths to find a list of previously approved alternative options. In addition, when a best-in-class regional standard does not meet WELL stringency, IWBI will make outreach to the alternate standard organization to confirm aligned missions and encourage movement toward WELL thresholds.

While it is common for systems furniture to meet ANSI/BIFMA and therefore have VOC testing results, this is not the case yet in the market for ancillary pieces. One way to overcome this challenge is for the project or manufacturer to obtain VOC testing for the individual parts of the furniture, i.e. paints, coatings, adhesives and sealants. With this, you must keep in mind that some products, like composite wood, would have emissions testing accounting for the binder (typically using formaldehyde), however any finishes would need to be evaluated separately.

Furniture and furnishings generally include all stand-alone and built-in furniture items purchased for the project. For example, this may include seating, open office desks, enclosed office desks, cabinetry, storage, white boards and tack boards, carts, free standing screens, tables, partitions, cubicle panels, drapes or curtains. Office accessories (notebooks, monitor arms, waste baskets) are not included in the scope of applicable furniture and furnishings. Custom and built-in furniture such as cabinetry would be included in the scope of Feature 4, Part 5. But generally, millwork items, such as window casings, would not be included.

Applicable materials (at least 95%, by cost) for WELL must meet sections 7.6.1 and 7.6.2 of the BIFMA e3-2011 standard or California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Standard Method v1.1-2010 to comply. Note, for BIFMA e3-2011, anything that isn't seating or a workstation (other finishes), the ""individual components - private office"" VOC emissions limitations should be referenced in A.

Salvaged and reused architectural millwork more than one year old at the time of occupancy is considered compliant, provided it meets the requirements for any new site-applied paints, coatings, adhesives, and sealants.

The IWBI recognizes the following as inherently non-emitting: stone, ceramic, powder-coated metals, plated or anodized metal, glass, concrete, clay brick, natural wool, and unfinished or untreated solid wood flooring. It is important to note that if any of these items have finishes, sealants or adhesives applied, they will require VOC testing either as a whole or in parts, i.e. at least the coating/finish/adhesive requires VOC testing.

No, outdoor furniture is not considered within the WELL project scope, however, we encourage you to extend the WELL feature intent to the outdoor spaces as well!