While plywood and other manufactured wood products have long been a source of formaldehyde in our indoor environments, now formaldehyde-free plywood is available.
We do not strictly control Google ad content. If you believe any Google ad is inappropriate, please email us directly here.
Formaldehyde is a naturally occurring, colorless, strong smelling gas used in many household products including paints, varnishes, adhesives, cleaning products, and cosmetics. It is the key ingredient to many plastic resins such as phenol formaldehyde and urea formaldehyde – both commonly used as finishing treatments for many textiles and paper products, and in many building materials such as plywood and MDF. It is perhaps most commonly known as the chemical used in embalming. Other known sources include cigarette smoke and the burning of fossil fuels such as kerosene. There are trace amounts of naturally-occurring formaldehyde in wood itself. Even people off-gas a little formaldehyde!
The best way to reduce your exposure is by eliminating it at the source. When building or buying cabinets, request urea formaldehyde-free products. One example is PureBond® plywood manufactured by Columbia Forest Products.
Founded in 1957, Columbia Forest Products is the largest manufacturer of hardwood plywood and hardwood veneer products in North America. Its products are sold through a network of wholesale distributors, mass merchandisers and original equipment manufacturers.
Have you tried formaldehyde-free plywood?
The Healthy House Institute (HHI), a for-profit educational LLC, provides the information on HealthyHouseInstitute.com as a free service to the public. The intent is to disseminate accurate, verified and science-based information on creating healthy home environments.
While an effort is made to ensure the quality of the content and credibility of sources listed on this site, HHI provides no warranty - expressed or implied - and assumes no legal liability for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, product or process disclosed on or in conjunction with the site. The views and opinions of the authors or originators expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of HHI: its principals, executives, Board members, advisors or affiliates.
(Note: The views expressed in this blog post are those of the author, and do not necessarily represent those of The Healthy House Institute, LLC.)
