Allison Walker, Your Home

The harmful gases some of your household items give off are two to five times higher indoors than outdoors, and can make you sick, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

So, why not buy items that won't emit bad gases?

News 13's Allison Walker explains how one tile and stone company is trying to prove its materials won't hurt you. 
    
Florida Tile says it's the first company ever to have its stone and tile certified by GreenGuard, meaning you and your family won't have to worry about breathing in potentially harmful chemicals."

During the recent Coverings show in Orlando, Florida Tile's Daniel Marvin explained how the tile doesn't give off chemicals that could get your family sick.

"We have no organics. Everything has been fired through a kiln at 1200 degrees, so all that organic stuff has come off. So everything you're left with is just the tile," Martin said.

The fancy term for the bad gases is Volatile Organic Compounds, or VOCs.

"That's what comes off carpet and vinyl, pretty much every other flooring you've put in your house," Martin said.

According  to the EPA, a bunch of chemicals are in the gas which may affect your health --  from throat irritation to kidney damage.

Florida Tile wanted a non-profit certification system called GreenGuard to verify that its tile doesn't emit high levels of VOC's.

Compared to carpet or vinyl, "... they might be 100. We're, essentially, a zero," Martin said. 

But, unlike Energy Star appliances, the name GreenGuard may not instantly grab your attention.
 
"I think you'll see it happening more and more. There's also a lot of competition between GreenGuard and other certifications," Martin said.

To see more Your Home stories, go to News 13 On Demand, Digital Cable Channel 313.

 
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