Are The Fumes From Wood Flooring Finishes Harmful For Kids?
by Alex M. Worked as a Business Development ManagerAdding the
finishes and coatings that add shine and style to faded hardwood is an
important part of the installation process, but some food finishing products
contain chemicals that may cause harm to children if not used correctly.
Some
refinishing products contain high levels of VOCs, or volatile organic
compounds. When the area is not properly ventilated, VOCs may reduce the
quality of the air in your home.
Exposure
without safety measures can cause minor issues, such as nausea or headaches, to
more serious effects.
Hardwood Pasadena flooring experts take every
precaution to ensure your floors are safe. We'll discuss some of the potential
issues with VOCs and how you can avoid their effects.
VOC
Off-Gassing
In most
cases, VOCs are harmful due to off-gassing. As a result, the chemicals in the
finishing product become airborne and are expelled as gas. The vast majority of
VOC chemicals are released as the finish dries.
Most
finishes are mostly dry after 24 hours and fully dry after 4 days. The
potential for harm can be greatly reduced simply by allowing proper ventilation
in parts of the home with finishes applied.
Some homes
with small children, who may be more susceptible to VOCs, may benefit from
improved ventilation in the areas of the home with newly applied finishes since
the finish can take 30 days to fully cure.
Curing is
the process by which the finish adheres to the wood and achieves equilibrium
with its environment.
Depending
on the type of finish being used on Pasadena
flooring, a small amount of particles may continue to be released.
Reducing
VOC Exposure
To reduce
your exposure to VOCs, you should make sure your home is well-ventilated,
especially in areas where the finish was applied.
Depending
on the needs of your family, you can take further steps to reduce your exposure
to VOCs.
Considering
VOCs are a known hazard, there are rules in place to regulate them. Commercial
varnish products must contain less than 450 grams of VOC per liter under
federal law.
Lacquer
has a limit of 350 grams per liter. These laws reduce the amount of VOC in the
home since fewer VOCs mean fewer chemicals are released.
Safe Wood
Finishes
While VOCs
cannot be entirely eliminated, they are present in extremely low levels in a
number of finish products.
If you're
concerned about VOC exposure, you'll want to check out a number of natural and
water-based finishes, as all of them have low levels of VOC.
VOC levels
in water-based finishes are as low as 50 grams per liter. Water-based finishes on
Pasadena flooring are safer for many
reasons.
First of
all, water-based products dry faster, which means that the amount of
off-gassing is greatly reduced and chemicals are released more rapidly.
Second,
these types of products contain fewer VOCs to begin with, meaning they will
release fewer. VOC levels are also reduced in products made from natural oils
such as tung and linseed.
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Created on Nov 17th 2021 05:50. Viewed 711 times.