Green Insulation Guide Choosing products with recycled content

and low VOCs

Why Should You Choose Green

Insulation Products?

To Improve Indoor Air Quality

Over the next few years, insulation will be added to

thousands of California homes to make them more

comfortable and energy efficient. When selecting

insulation products, it’s important to consider not just

energy efficiency but also how the product will affect the

home’s indoor air quality.

Insulation materials occupy a large volume of space

inside a home’s walls, floors, and attic or roof area. Some

insulation products emit harmful chemicals such as

formaldehyde. When the air pressure changes between

the inside and outside of buildings, air and chemicals

emitted from insulation can move through walls, floors

and ceilings and pass into the home—a process known

as infiltration.

The products listed in this Green Insulation Guide are a

safer choice. They emit ultra-low or undetectable levels of

harmful chemicals, which helps keep indoor air cleaner

and may help prevent diseases like asthma and cancer.

To Promote Recycling & Recycled-Content Products

Green insulation products with high levels of post-

consumer recycled content require less energy to

manufacture than similar products that don’t have

recycled content. Plus they support consumer recycling

programs by putting discarded materials like glass bottles

to good use.

What Makes These Products Green?

This Green Insulation Guide highlights environ-mentally preferable building insulation for use in residential building energy upgrades and retrofits. The building insulation products listed in this Guide are certified through third-party testing to:

▪ Emit ultra-low amounts of volatile organic compounds (VOCs)*

▪ Have a minimum of 30% post-consumer recycled content

Other chemicals of concern may be present in insulation. New screening criteria may be added to this guide when appropriate hazard evaluation standards are identified.

*Conforms to California Department of Public Health, Environmental Health Laboratory Branch Standard Method V1.1 -2010 (CA Specification 01350) using the single family residence scenario found in Appendix B (www.cal-iaq.org/vocs/standard-method).

Unfaced Fiberglass Roll Insulation – Photo courtesy of Johns Mansville

PROPINK® L77 Loosefill Insulation – Photo Courtesy Owens Corning

Green Insulation Products—Full Conformance

Products listed in this table are independently certified to meet both the ultra-low VOC emissions levels and the 30% post-consumer recycled content criteria.

Manufacturer/

Product Type Product Name

30%

PC

Ultra-

Low

VOC

Johns Manville/

fiberglass batts

Unfaced and Faced (kraft, MR) Batts

and Rolls, ComfortTherm® Batts

and Rolls, Easy Fit® Unfaced and

Kraft-Faced Batts

� �

Johns Manville/

blown-in fiberglass

Attic Protector®, ClimatePro®,

Spider® � �

Owens Corning/

blown-in fiberglass

PROPINK® L77 Loosefill Insulation,

PROPINK Complete™ Blown-in Wall

System using PROPINK® L77

Loosefill Insulation, AttiCat®

Expanding Blown-In PINK

FIBERGLAS™

� �

Green Insulation Products—Partial Conformance Products listed in this table are independently certified to meet either the

ultra-low VOC emissions or the 30% post-consumer recycled content

criteria.

Manufacturer/

Product Type Product Name

30%

PC

Ultra-

Low

VOC

Owens Corning/

fiberglass batts

PINK FIBERGLAS™ Insulation

Unfaced and Faced (kraft, foil, flame

spread 25) Batts and Rolls

�

CertainTeed/

fiberglass batts

Sustainable Insulation™ Unfaced

And Kraft-faced Batts & Rolls �

GreenFiber/

blown-in cellulose Natural Fiber Insulation �

How was the Guide developed?

In 2010, StopWaste.Org invited insulation

manufacturers to provide independent third-

party certification of the VOC emissions and

recycled content of their products. These third-

party certifications were then verified by

Healthy Building Network’s Pharos Project.

More complete environmental information for

each product can be found at

www.pharosproject.net.

Why doesn’t the Guide include Foamed

Plastic?

Spray polyurethane foam (SPF) and other

foamed plastic insulation aren’t made from

30% post-consumer recycled materials. Also,

SPF installation releases highly hazardous

isocyanates—chemicals that are harmful to

skin, eyes and lungs and can be a very

powerful asthma trigger. SPF installation

requires full protective gear for crews and no

re-entry for the occupants for 24 to 72 hours.

For more information on SPF insulation

hazards and recommended protection, see

www.epa.gov/dfe/pubs/projects/spf/spray_poly

urethane_foam.html. For safety information on

all types of insulation, see:

https://www.osha.gov/dep/greenjobs/weather_

spf.html

About this Guide

The Green Insulation Guide is a publication

of Energy Upgrade California in Alameda

County with input and support from U.S. EPA

Region 9. The environmental criteria used to

screen products in this Guide may be modified,

as warranted. Future updates to this Guide will

include newly certified products.

Manufacturers interested in having their

products listed in this Guide should email

Jennifer Love (JLove@stopwaste.org).

For more information about building

energy upgrades, go to

www.EnergyUpgradeCA.org.

Last Updated March 2011

Spider® Insulation – Photo Courtesy of Johns Mansville