Masonry Magazine September 2008 Page. 30
CLEANERS AND SEALANTS
California, the VOC regulations are the strictest in the country for masonry sealers. The VOC limit a couple years ago was lowered to 100 VOC when most of the country is allowing 400 to 600-and we've introduced a product that meets those requirements and has literally lowered the VOC at least 75 percent from our previous products," says Adams.
The sealant industry, then, is at the forefront of the green movement within the masonry field. Jennifer Crisman, technical marketing manager for Euclid Chemical in Cleveland, Ohio, explains, "The most significant impact on the masonry sealer/sealing business is the ever-changing VOC regulations, which become more strict and widespread every year. The Federal AIM (Architectural and Industrial Maintenance) Coatings Rule went into effect nationally in 1999, placing limits on the VOC allowed in many types of concrete and masonry construction products, including sealers. The Federal AIM Coatings Rule is applicable throughout the United States, but states or locales with more stringent VOC requirements override less stringent provisions of the National Rule, as is the case for most of the rules in California and in the Northeast."
The VOC limits of the Federal AIM Rule are high enough that they allow for solvent-based masonry sealers, but the more strict local laws on the east coast (from Maine down to northern Virginia) and in California do not. In these areas, contractors are restricted to using water-based sealers or sealers formulated with "exempt" solvents. The EPA is currently revising the AIM Coatings Rule, and VOC limits are expected to drop to levels such that solvent based concrete and masonry sealers would be illegal nationwide. The new Federal AIM Rule is expected to go into effect in January 2009.
Crisman notes, "The only new chemical formulas in masonry sealing involve the use of 'exempt' solvents, such as acetone and tertiary-butyl acetate (TBAC) as the liquid carrier. Acetone and TBAC are considered exempt from VOC calculations, because they do not cause air pollution. Where traditional solvent-based masonry sealers might use xylene as the carrier (xylene is a VOC), the sealers using an exempt solvent are VOC compliant and can be used in the strict VOC regulated areas of the US"
Dave Maietta, president/CEO of Multicoat Corp. in Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., adds to the discussion of VOC. "Water-based sealers that are less than 50 grams per liter will get you LEED credits and be considered green friendly," he says. "We make a pigmented sealer, and we make a clear sealer for masonry that fall well within the standards of the VOC regulations. I know those rules are going to get stronger within the next couple of years."