Good morning. I have a CA client who is pursuing CHPS MW 4.1 Rapidly Renewable Materials. They’ve opted for the prescriptive approach, and will require 50% of the area of casework to contain a minimum of 25% rapidly renewable materials.
I’m having a tough time finding panels which contribute to this credit, must be using the wrong Google search words! Does anyone have experience in this area which they’d be willing to share?
On a related note, what’s your opinion on the most cost-effective way to achieve this credit? Since I don’t know the actual cost or weight of these materials, is it best to specify the required outcome and let the GC determine the best way to achieve it?
I’ve seen wheat board used in casework - not sure if it is still available. Check out Kirei Board made from sorghum straw or Kirei Bamboo. https://kireiusa.com/
Chris,
OUAT there was a large casework manufacturer in the midwest who pledged to use only agrifiber board in their products. Then the agrifiber board manufacturer was sold to Masonite International and, POOF, there went the supply chain.
I believe there is a market for agrifiber-based casework, but the panel core is not available.
I would be cautious about the fastener holding capability unless you have long experience with these panels. I had a project (granted a while ago) where after about 6 months, the casework doors started hanging sort of tipsily, and eventually most of the casework started to pull itself off the wall. We used agrifiber panels that lost their screw holding capacity, and I don’t use them anymore.