Center for Sight Building Materials
North Office Details
FLOORING
Concrete Slab
Only clean, natural mineral aggregate was used. No admixtures were used the concrete such as super plasticizers, air-entrainment admixtres, water-reducing agents, retardants, or accelerants.
Tile
All stone tile was installed over a clean concrete slab using an additive-free thinset. The grout was free of latex additives, and the grout sealer is an odorless, zero-VOC, water-based sealer.
Carpet
Untreated wool carpet with natural jute backing was installed. This carpet unlike other wool or synthetic carpets contains no synthetic dyes, mothproofing pesticides, biocides, fungicides, nor stain resistant chemicals. It was installed on top of the concrete slab using a solvent-free adhesive as well as a solvent-free seam sealer.
Marmoleum
There are no synthetic chemicals used in the linoleum. It is made from linseed oil, flax, wood flour, rosins, limestone, jute and natural pigments. This does have a noticeable odor when it is newly installed.
Baseboards
You will notice that there are no vinyl baseboards used in the office. Currently, there is no supplier of healthy baseboards so we opted to use the flooring as our baseboards throughout.
WALLS
Insulation
Steel studs are sandwiched by formaldehyde-free, natural fiber insulation, which contains recycled denim and cotton fibers. The fire-retardant process (Class 1 fire rating) utilizes borates, which also act as excellent pest and mildew inhibitors. No protective clothing or respirators need to be worn when installing.
Joint Compound for Gypsum Boards (Drywall)
Unlike drywall mud used in most construction, the drywall mud used in Center for Sight contains no formaldehyde, preservatives or vinyl acetate polymers.
Spackling
The spackling used, unlike typical spackling, contains no formaldehyde, asbestos, solvents or mercury.
Caulking
Most solvent-based caulking compounds contain acetone, methyl ethyl acetone, xylene, and toluene. We used a water based elastic emulsion that contains none of the above.
Paints
All paints and primers used are non-toxic and seal in outgassing from any substrate. These paints, unlike other "no or low" VOC (volatile organic compounds) paints, contain no masking agents, acetone, ammonia, formaldehyde precursors, nor crystalline silica.
CEILING TILE
Contains no organic compounds to support growth of mold, mildew, fungus or other microorganisms. Contains no paint or chemical coatings. It will not burn or emit toxic smoke in a fire because it is made mostly of volcanic perlite and ceramic clay.
DOORS
Doors constructed of wheatboard (straw-based particleboard with a non-formaldehyde, emission-free binder) and a cherry wood veneer adhered using a solvent and formaldehyde-free adhesive.
CABINETRY AND COUNTERTOPS
Cabinetry
The cabinets are extra special! The cherry used is first growth wood that Michael Behforouz's grandfather bought forty years ago in upstate New York. Custom cabinetmakers built the cabinets to "healthy" specifications using wheatboard and poplar wood inside the cabinet box. There are two finishes on the cabinets. On the cherry wood there is a hardwax finish that is lead and cobalt free with a blend of organically sourced natural oils and waxes. Inside the cabinet boxes, there is a lacquer finish, which contains neither solvents nor petrochemicals.
Countertops
All countertops are nonporous Corian and are mechanically fastened to the cabinets using no substrate.
FURNITURE AND UPHOLSTERY
Upholstery
The fabric content of all upholstered items in the office is a mixture of wool collected during the natural shedding process from free-range sheep and ramie, a natural plant fiber grown in pesticide-free environments. A study of more than 8,000 chemicals used in textile manufacturing revealed only 38 to be "clean" enough to use in a healthy building. The upholstery on the chairs in our office is by far the cleanest and healthiest fabric on the market today- free of carcinogens, toxic chemicals, and any known pollutants.
Furniture
All chairs in Center for Sight have a powder coat finish that will not off-gas volatile chemicals.
WOOD WINDOWS
Most wood windows are dipped in a fungicide to inhibit fungal growth. The windows in this office were sealed on all surfaces exposed to the interior so that no fungicide would offgas into the space.