With the increasing improvement of quality of life, the concept of green, healthy, and environmentally friendly living is increasingly ingrained in people's hearts. In the process of whole house customization, people's attention to boards is also increasing. But we have to admit that there are a variety of boards in the market, from solid wood boards, ecological boards, particle boards, density boards to particle board, etc., which are really dazzling.

Especially in recent years, the custom home industry has sparked a wave of "formaldehyde free" products, with almost all custom home brands launching formaldehyde free products. However, the current market for environmentally friendly panels is not yet mature, and the production capacity of factories varies, and the quality of panels is also uneven. Many low-quality panels are mixed in, making it difficult to distinguish between genuine and fake ones. Decoration professionals are easily pitted. Here is a guide for choosing decoration materials to avoid pitfalls.

Measurement standards

For consumers, the most important issue when choosing boards is formaldehyde, the top killer of home air environment. At present, there are international standards for formaldehyde evaluation, such as E-level, F-star level, NAF level, ENF level, etc. Below are a brief introduction to several standards:

E-Class: E-Class can be divided into Chinese E-Class standards and European E-Class standards. Among them, the Chinese E-Class is divided into three levels, namely E0 level, E1 level, and E2 level. The emission of E0 grade formaldehyde is ≤ 0.5mg/L, the emission of E1 grade formaldehyde is ≤ 1.5mg/L, and the emission of E2 grade formaldehyde is ≤ 5mg/L. The European E-level environmental standards can be divided into two levels, namely E1 level and E2 level. Among them, E1 level formaldehyde release ≤ 0.5mg/L, E2 level formaldehyde release ≤ 1.5mg/L. The European E1 level standard is equivalent to the E0 level standard in China.

F-star rating: The highest certification standard in Japan, divided into four levels, but relatively higher than the E-level standard.

F ★ Formaldehyde release ≤ 5mg/L

F ★★ Formaldehyde release ≤ 1.5mg/L

F ★★★ Formaldehyde release ≤ 0.5mg/L

F ★★★★★ Formaldehyde release ≤ 0.3mg/L

NAF level: divided into EPA&CARB certification in the United States, it is a formaldehyde free exemption certification in the United States, which means that there is no need for formaldehyde testing when exporting to the US market. At present, only a dozen or so factories worldwide can pass this rigorous testing for their boards.

ENF level: In 2021, the environmental protection standard GB/T 39600-2021 "Classification of Formaldehyde Release from Wood-based Panels and Their Products" was officially implemented, which stipulates that formaldehyde release ≤ 0.025mg/m ³， This is also the most stringent standard for formaldehyde emissions in wood-based panel products at present.