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Eco Friendly Paint - Why It's Superior To Traditional Options Painting your home is one way to update it, and it's vital if you're doing renovations. Your local hardware store has hundreds of choices, but if you're looking for more than just color, picking one can be tricky. It can be hard to find a dependable, durable paint that's healthy to live around and ecologically friendly. You'll need to know a bit about what paint is made of, and what those ingredients can do. Airborne chemicals, called VOCs or volatile organic compounds, are released during painting, after paint is dry, and while it's coming off the walls. These chemicals may be carcinogenic and are a big contributor to pollution of our indoor air. Paint related chemicals play a big role in the pollution levels in the typical house. The greatest quantity of VOCs is released while painting is going on, but they keep being released even afterward - sometimes for years. Older natural paints have a bad reputation, since they weren't durable and tended to fade. However, newer paints don't have this problem - some are used for conservation and restoration. Increasing demand from consumers and tighter regulations mean that new paints have recently been developed which emit few to no VOCs. Using water as a base instead of solvents permits this, and these paints must have two hundred or fewer grams of volatile compound in a liter of paint. This is less than half the content of an ordinary paint. Paints that bear the Green Seal have even fewer compounds in them - fifty grams or less. Zero VOC paints cost a bit more, but may have five grams or fewer of these compounds in a liter. Remember to look for acetone, ammonia, or formaldehyde, too. These can be a problem, but aren't petroleum derived. Avoid anti mildew and anti fungal paints - they're toxic and tend to off gas for years. Natural paints will contain no heavy metals or VOCs, and are usually composed of waxes, oils, and dyes derived from plants. These products can be found as waxes, stains, sealers, finishes, paints and primers, but they can also be very expensive. Options include clay paints, lime washes and milk or casein paint. All of these products work best indoors, as they can be easily damaged by exposure to the weather. Clay paints are made of minerals, and offer an earth, adobe look. Limewashes are made in the same way as traditional whitewash, and can be used outside, but need to be applied regularly. Lime is also corrosive, so gloves and goggles must be applied, though it's safe once the material has cured. Milk paint is made from a natural protein found in cow's milk, and is available in powder form. It must be used quickly after mixing, but forms a tough, durable indoor finish. Fewer options are available in natural exterior paints, but lower VOC paints are available. Many are lime based. Remember to store low VOC paints in a stable environment, since they can go bad if they freeze or are chilled for too long. Store your cans upside down to make sure lids are on tight, and use separate brushes for oil and water based paints. Shop carefully to find the best non toxic, natural paints for your home, and experience healthier indoor air and a less damaging lifestyle. |
