Indoor Air Quality

In today's construction market, architects and builders are continuing to select building materials that support better indoor air quality for their building projects. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the American Lung Association, the World Health Organization, and other public health and environmental organizations view maintaining good indoor air quality as an important issue.

DensArmor Plus® moisture- and mold-resistant paperless interior drywall is the first and only gypsum drywall to be GREENGUARD Indoor Air Quality Certified®. This prestigious certification, awarded by GREENGUARD Environmental Institute, recognizes indoor products that have low emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

In addition, DensArmor Plus received the GREENGUARD Children & Schoolssm Certification. This certification subjects materials to additional emissions testing to identify low emitting products that can be used to provide school children with reduced exposure to indoor pollutants.

The independent third-party certification verifies that these products meet these testing standards. DensArmor Plus with its unique fiberglass mat design, not only provides mold resistance, but has low chemical emissions, both of which can positively impact indoor environments.

To be GREENGUARD Certified means that DensArmor Plus drywall will be regularly tested, as manufactured, to ensure that chemical and particle emissions meet the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute's rigorous emission standards for indoor building materials.

Per a recent agreement between GREENGUARD Environmental Institute and the Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS), products that meet the stringent criteria of the GREENGUARD Children & Schools Program automatically qualify for credits in the CHPS program by meeting the State of California's Department of Health Services Standard Practice (CA Section 01350) for testing chemical emissions from building products used in schools.

An excellent indicator of GREENGUARD's merit in the environmental marketplace is that GREENGUARD Standards for Low Emitting Products are included in many guidelines and specifications as a resource or referenced standard for sustainable design and construction. The following represent some of the places where GREENGUARD certified products are specified and provides an opportunity for inclusion of DensArmor Plus and DensArmor Plus Abuse Guard panels into these buildings that follow these practices.

For the commercial sector, DensArmor Plus may provide points for the following programs:

  • CHPS Best Practices Manual Volume III: EQ 2.2 Low -Emitting Materials.

    This School Construction program recognizes products with the GREENGUARD Children and Schools certification. The program is licensed in CA, WA, NY, and MA.

  • Green Guide for Health Care 2.2: EQ 4.2 Wall & Ceiling Finishes.

    This credit recognizes wall coverings that meet emission standards such as GREENGUARD Children and Schools.

  • LEED Retail for Commercial Interiors EQ Credit 4 low-Emitting Materials Option F. Ceiling & Wall Systems.

    Products that meet GREENGUARD Children and Schools can be used to achieve this point.

  • LEED for Schools: EQ credit 4 Option 6 Ceiling and Wall Systems.

    Products that meet GREENGUARD Children and Schools can be used to achieve this point.

  • LEED for Schools: EQ 10 Mold Prevention.

    This credit addresses mold within schools and recognizes GREENGUARD as a strategy to achieve this credit. The GREENGUARD program is currently under ANSI review, but is favorable to non-paper faced wallboard.

GREENGUARD Children & Schools is a service mark of the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute (GEI).