I need to find low-toxic carpet for a church auditorium. What are some reliable brands?

Greetings! In my green projects I have relied on the GreenLabel Plus certification, which is the Carpet and Rug Institute's verification of low VOC carpet, cushions, and adhesives.

I have found that a good way to wade through the myriad of options in carpets is to stick to looking for this label.

Here is a link to the CRI website, which has additional information on GreenLabel Plus and enables you to search specific carpets and brands as well. I hope this helps you in your search.

Remember the padding, too

With a church auditorium, you may be exploring commercial carpets for your application. One thing to remember is that you also want low-VOC padding, if you are planning on using padding.

Recycled content

Another important note: GreenLabel Plus is the industry certification for low-VOC carpet and does not necessarily address recycled content.

• A carpet that has a high recycled content might not be low-VOC, and vice versa;
• a low-VOC GreenLabel Plus carpet might not have much (or any) recycled content.

There may be additional products out there that are low-VOC, but it can be tough to verify this.

A salesperson may have some information on this for you, but I have found it helpful to confirm any sales information with documentation, since there can be confusing information out there.

For more information:

Read "I need to find low-toxic carpet for my rental apartment. What are some reliable brands?" a Q&A answered by David Rodriguez.