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0 The flooring brand with an industry-record 21 straight years of independent test results showing “effectively zero” off-gassing, year after year. Peace of mind, built in.
Kids crawl, chew, and press their faces against the floor before they can even walk. That’s exactly why we test the way we do - not for a certificate to hang on the wall, but so families can trust what’s under their feet, from day one. It’s the same standard we’d want in our own kitchens, playrooms, and nurseries - because peace of mind shouldn’t be optional when it comes to the people you love most.
Ambient is the only building products brand in America that voluntarily tests every products every single year for indoor air safety and off-gassing, using independent U.S. laboratories. Twenty plus consecutive years of test results below the detection threshold. Cleaner air. Safer homes. Browse our bamboo flooring →
Lower bars are better. The strictest legal standard for indoor air is CARB Phase 2 at 0.05 ppm. Ambient products regularly measure at 2.5x cleaner than the most stringent standard, year after year.
We publish every report, every year. Need a copy from 2006–2017? Email info@ambientbp.com and we’ll send it over in a jiffy.
Independent verification from SCS Global Services that our flooring meets the world’s strictest indoor air quality standards. Peace of mind, in writing.
FloorScore is the most recognized indoor air quality (IAQ) certification standard for hard-surface flooring, adhesives, and underlayments. It means SCS Global Services has independently certified that a product complies with the VOC emissions criteria of the California Section 01350 program.
SCS Global Services is a third-party certification firm that verifies environmental and quality claims across industries. To qualify a product for the FloorScore® seal, SCS:
FloorScore® certified materials help maintain cleaner, healthier indoor air. High VOC exposure has been linked to dizziness, headaches, and longer-term respiratory issues. Architects, designers, and homeowners choose FloorScore products to reduce that risk.
Ambient offers a wide range of FloorScore® Certified products, including luxury vinyl plank and engineered bamboo hardwoods. We’re dedicated to meeting (and often exceeding) the strictest indoor air standards in the world.
Air quality test results show Ambient bamboo flooring with “effectively zero” formaldehyde emissions.
Formaldehyde is a naturally occurring organic compound found in trace amounts everywhere - in the air, in plants, even in our own cells. It’s classified as a VOC (volatile organic compound) because it becomes a gas at room temperature. In manufacturing, it’s commonly used in adhesives and resins, which is why it shows up in many flooring products.
Technically nothing is 100% formaldehyde-free - trace amounts exist naturally everywhere. But Ambient™ bamboo floors achieve what’s called “effectively zero” emissions: less than 0.05 ppm. Our floors meet No Added Urea Formaldehyde (NAUF) standards, meaning we never add formaldehyde-based adhesives during manufacturing.
Ambient’s measured formaldehyde levels - roughly 15× below the OSHA workplace limit, and 2.5x safer than the strictest residential standard (CARB Phase 2 at 0.05 ppm).
When flooring releases formaldehyde into your home (a process called off-gassing), prolonged exposure can cause:
The good news: choosing low-emission flooring eliminates these risks entirely.
When shopping for flooring, always ask about formaldehyde and VOC levels. Look for:
Did you know? Bamboo and hardwood are among the safest options for indoor air quality. Here’s how 17 flooring types rank, from safest to most concerning.
Linoleum (excluding topcoat) is bio-based and free of the problematic additives used in vinyl. All floors include a topcoat that may contain undisclosed substances of concern, but this is industry-wide and doesn’t impact the rating. Some linoleum has optional acoustic or floating-floor layers that can add hazards - though floating floors avoid potentially hazardous adhesives.
Solid pre-finished bamboo and wood floors are among the safest options on the market. Manufacturing happens in a controlled environment with finishes cured before shipping, dramatically reducing in-home VOC exposure. Ambient solid strand bamboo is a representative example: NAUF compliant, FloorScore certified, <0.02 ppm formaldehyde.
USA-manufactured ceramic tiles with confirmed lead-free, non-CRT recycled content are excellent low-emission options. Source verification is critical - ask suppliers about recycled-content sourcing.
Resilient floors made without PVC eliminate phthalate concerns. Look for products that specifically disclose phthalate-free and PFAS-free status in their documentation.
Engineered bamboo and wood pre-finished floors are very safe when manufactured to CARB Phase 2 or stricter standards. Ambient engineered floors test below detection limits and meet FloorScore criteria.
The bamboo or wood itself is safe, but the on-site finishing process introduces VOCs that off-gas during cure. Choose water-based, low-VOC finishes whenever possible, and ventilate aggressively during and after application.
Pure rubber or cork (without recycled crumb rubber filler) is a reasonable low-toxicity option. Avoid products containing crumb rubber, which is sourced from recycled tires and can contain lead and other contaminants.
Laminate ranks moderately due to its formaldehyde-based binders. Newer products meeting CARB Phase 2 have substantially reduced emissions, but they still typically test higher than solid wood or bamboo.
Carpet without fly ash, vinyl backing, or PFAS treatments is far safer than conventional carpet, but its dust-trapping characteristics still concern allergists. Verify all three disclosures from any manufacturer.
Same logic as site-finished solid wood: the substrate is fine, but on-site finishes introduce additional VOCs during cure.
Phthalate-free vinyl removes one major class of hazardous additives, but vinyl manufacturing remains chemically intensive. Look for full ingredient disclosure.
Imported tiles with unknown lead status or with cathode-ray tube (CRT) recycled content can introduce significant lead exposure. Choose tiles with verified lead-free certification.
Post-consumer recycled vinyl frequently carries legacy contaminants from prior product lives. The recycled-content marketing pitch obscures real chemical risk.
Conventional vinyl typically contains phthalate plasticizers that can leach, migrate, or evaporate into indoor air and house dust. Avoid where possible, especially in homes with young children.
Crumb rubber is sourced from recycled tires and frequently contains lead, hydrocarbon processing oils, and other undisclosed hazardous materials.
Carpet combining any of these three contains the worst-case hazard profile: PFAS stain repellents, phthalate-laden vinyl backing, and fly ash with heavy-metal contamination.
Worst of both worlds: legacy phthalate chemistry plus unknown contaminants carried over from prior consumer products.
These substances show up in conventional flooring products. They’re what we’ve spent 21 years engineering our products to avoid.
Used in stain-repellent treatments for carpet fibers. Exposure has been linked to:
Used to make vinyl soft and pliable for roofing, wall coverings, and flooring. Phthalates aren’t chemically bound to vinyl, so they leach, migrate, or evaporate into indoor air and house dust.
Used as filler in carpet backings. A waste product from coal combustion, often contaminated with mercury and other heavy metals.
Rubber sheet flooring made with crumb rubber is not a healthy option. Crumb rubber is sourced from recycled tires and can include lead, hydrocarbon oils, and undisclosed hazardous additives.
Avoid tiles with non-specific post-consumer recycled content. These may include old CRTs from televisions and monitors - high in lead.
Avoid products with high-hazard antimicrobial additives like triclosan, or products marketed as having a “health benefit.”
These ultra-small particles aren’t well understood and can pass through cell walls in the body. Products described as “antimicrobial” claiming health benefits are best avoided where possible. Nanoparticles have shown lethal and sub-lethal effects on cell development and longevity via ROS-mediated stress responses.
Five quick checks that will keep you from buying anything you’ll regret breathing.
Some vinyl floors contain additives that pose health concerns, so it’s not the safest option on the market. Rapidly renewable and eco-friendly flooring made from bamboo or eucalyptus is among the safest. If you do go with vinyl - or carpet with vinyl backing - make sure it’s free of phthalate plasticizers, which can migrate from products and affect residents, especially young children crawling on floors.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are commonly used in stain-repellent treatments for carpets. They’re a high priority to avoid: PFAS chemicals can be toxic, persist in the environment, and accumulate in body tissues. Many carpet brands now offer PFAS-free options.
Recycled content can add significant hazards if sourcing is unknown. Avoid fly ash in carpet backings, crumb rubber in recycled rubber flooring, cathode ray tubes (CRTs) in ceramic tile, and post-consumer recycled vinyl, which often contains legacy contaminants.
Avoid products with high-hazard antimicrobial additives like triclosan, or products marketed as having a “health benefit.” Most antimicrobials simply preserve the product, not your health. Worse: they can migrate out of products into household dust where people end up exposed.
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) emission certification is a standard method for testing and evaluating VOC emissions. It helps you eliminate the worst actors, but keep in mind this testing only covers 35 specific VOCs - many other volatile, semi-volatile, or non-volatile hazardous chemicals can still be present in certified products. FloorScore certification, CARB Phase 2 compliance, and TSCA Title VI compliance are stronger combined signals.
The straight answers we wish every flooring brand would give.
We get this question often. As with virtually all flooring manufacturing, trace amounts of formaldehyde are used in producing bamboo flooring. While high concentrations can be hazardous, the minimal amounts released by high-quality bamboo floors are well below any toxic threshold. Bamboo flooring has been used safely worldwide for three decades in homes, offices, restaurants, schools, and hotels - we’re unaware of any documented health problems. Reputable manufacturers test annually for VOCs.
Some web articles question bamboo safety, usually with no supporting data. We’re transparent about our products’ safety - this entire page is dedicated to it. Bamboo floors have become the most-tested hardwood floors on the planet for toxicity, which is, in the end, a good thing for consumers.
High-quality bamboo floor brands have formaldehyde levels so low they’re virtually undetectable - less than 0.02 parts per million. That’s much safer than CARB Phase 2’s strict 0.05 ppm cap, OSHA’s 0.30 ppm workplace standard, and every other indoor air quality standard in the world.
VOCs (volatile organic compounds) are chemical particles that vaporize at room temperature. They can come from plants, animals, and microbes, or be manufactured in paints, varnishes, cleaning products, refrigerants, and tobacco. Formaldehyde is a naturally occurring chemical used in many building materials and disinfectants. Inside the average home, you’ll find trace formaldehyde in paints, paper, insulation, varnishes, adhesives, cosmetics, fertilizer, medicines, furniture, cleaning products, gas stoves, wallpaper, cabinets, permanent-press fabrics, fireplaces, and kerosene heaters.
We can’t avoid VOCs entirely, so the goal is monitoring concentrations and choosing low-emission products. Bamboo flooring is not toxic on the whole. Humans even produce formaldehyde naturally - though that’d be a weird reason to evict a roommate.
Ambient’s solid strand woven bamboo floors use phenol-formaldehyde resins, which don’t produce emissions considered hazardous. Engineered bamboo - like all engineered hardwoods - uses trace amounts of urea-formaldehyde, but in very small, safe quantities equivalent to those used in everyday household furniture and cleaning products.
No - formaldehyde is a naturally-occurring organic compound found everywhere, including our breath and cells. But many products meet the “No Added Urea Formaldehyde (NAUF)” standard, including most quality bamboo flooring in the U.S.
Exposure to large quantities of VOCs and formaldehyde over a prolonged period can harm health, especially for people with weakened immune systems or breathing difficulties. That’s why we’re told to avoid smoking around children and to open windows when painting.
Researchers report that indoor air can be more polluted than outdoor air. Most Americans spend the vast majority of their time indoors, often breathing recirculated air. Concerning emissions can cause:
The World Health Organization lists formaldehyde gas as a known carcinogen. Most serious health effects, however, come from occupational exposure (morticians, lab techs, industrial workers), not everyday home use. There’s little evidence that the safe, low levels found in modern certified bamboo floors create meaningful risk.
Don’t panic. The smell is almost always light off-gassing from the polyurethane finish - common to all pre-finished floors (hardwood, vinyl, bamboo) - and dissipates in a few days to two weeks. Prefinished floors are packaged right off the finish line, trapping vapors in the plastic wrap. If your brand meets CARB Phase 2 and FloorScore certification, the smell isn’t hazardous.
Federal law caps varnishes at < 450 g VOCs per liter and lacquers at < 350 g/L. These levels are not dangerous at typical home concentrations for healthy individuals.
If you experience persistent headaches that you don’t normally get, consult a doctor. Otherwise, ventilate the space with open windows and fans - the smell typically clears within a week or two.
Bamboo flooring actually reduces allergens like dust and mites compared to carpet. Its smooth surface gives allergens nowhere to hide.
Want a sample? Order one free, or call 866-710-7070. More questions? See the Essential Guide to Bamboo Flooring.
Ambiente is Spanish and Italian for environment. In English, ambient describes the thing that surrounds and envelops you – the air you breathe, the light in a room, the quiet atmosphere holding the moment together. Both definitions point to the same idea: the space around you matters.
We picked the name on purpose. Since 2005, we’ve believed that what you breathe inside your home and what we leave behind in the world outside of it are two halves of the same responsibility. Safer products on this side of the door. Better practices on the other.
Here’s how we live that out – the standards we hold ourselves to, and a few of the small choices we make so the ambient out there stays a little greener for the ambient in here.
The certifications, standards, and acronyms you’ll see on safer-flooring labels - what they actually mean and where Ambient stands.
An independent nonprofit established to promote responsible management of the world’s forests. FSC 100% certification means the highest social and environmental criteria are followed when harvesting bamboo. Learn more about FloorScore certification.
The California Air Resource Board’s Composite Wood Products Regulation. Phase 1 took effect in 2009 to reduce formaldehyde emissions; Phase 2 took effect in 2010 and tightened the standard to 0.055 ppm. CARB is the strictest formaldehyde measure because it caps emissions where most standards only average them.
Ambient floors fall within CARB Phase 2
Urea-formaldehyde resin is a thermosetting synthetic resin used widely in wood products manufacturing. Europe, Japan, Canada, and several U.S. states regulate its use. NAUF-compliant materials may still contain naturally occurring formaldehyde, but no urea formaldehyde is added during manufacturing.
All Ambient floors are NAUF compliant
Standard-setter for LEED IEQ Credit 4 (Low-Emitting Materials). LEED - Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design - was created by USGBC in 1993 and is now the world’s leading green-building rating system.
Ambient floors meet all USGBC requirements
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration sets workplace indoor air quality standards. Their formaldehyde permissible exposure limit (PEL) is 0.30 ppm.
Ambient floors far exceed OSHA standards
European regulatory standards for formaldehyde. E0 caps emissions at ≤ 0.07 ppm; E1 at ≤ 0.10 ppm.
Ambient floors meet E0 with “effectively zero” emissions
The international standard for an effective environmental management system (EMS). Provides a framework rather than fixed performance requirements.
Ambient’s factory meets ISO 14001 requirements
The international standard for a quality management system (QMS). Organizations use it to demonstrate consistent ability to meet customer and regulatory requirements.
Ambient’s factory meets ISO 9001 requirementsSustainability isn’t just about the product. Here’s how every Ambient order arrives at your door.
We strongly encourage you to reuse or recycle our shipping packaging.
FDA-approved cornstarch packing peanuts that decompose in water with zero toxic waste.
Pallets wrapped in stretch wrap made with post-industry recycled content.
Biodegradable boxes made of 35% recycled content. We reuse them whenever possible.
All corrugated packing material is 100% recycled content and 100% recyclable.
Manufactured with environmentally-friendly methods and entirely recyclable.
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