On the coattails of the recent 60 Minutes story regarding formaldehyde emissions in Chinese manufactured laminate flooring sold at Lumber Liquidators, big box store Lowe’s has halted sales of some of its Chinese manufactured laminate flooring products. This move by one of the nation’s most popular flooring retailers is reinforcement that quality standards for laminate flooring products are more important than ever.
The North American Laminate Flooring Association (NALFA) wants to assure retailers that laminate flooring products carrying the NALFA Certification Seal of approval have passed rigorous ANSI performance tests for quality and are also CARB 2 compliant.
“Ultimately, we want consumers to have peace of mind that the products they place in their homes are safe,” said Bill Dearing, president of NALFA. “When retailers place NALFA certified products on their shelves that goal is achieved and both retailers and their customers can rest assured that a good decision has been made.”
Prior to earning the NALFA Certification Seal, laminate floors must pass a series of 10 rigorous performance tests including static load, thickness swell, light resistance, cleanability and stain resistance, large ball resistance, small ball resistance, water resistance, dimensional tolerance, castor chair resistance and surface bond. An independent laboratory completes the testing and submits the results to the NALFA board for final approval. Only then may a product bear the certification seal.
All NALFA Certified products comply with formaldehyde emissions regulations for laminate flooring core board set forth by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) sections 93120-93120.12, title 17, of the California Code of Regulations.
For more information and a list of NALFA certified products, visit nalfa.com.
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About NALFA
The North American Laminate Flooring Association (NALFA) was formed in 1997 by U.S. and Canadian manufacturers and importers of laminate flooring. Since its inception, NALFA has been dedicated to creating voluntary product performance standards for laminate flooring in North America. For more information, visit www.nalfa.com.