New Painting Technology is Green - A painting service today, like every other home improvement service, is expected to keep pace with the green movement. The paint manufacturers are making great strides in producing safer products for residential and commercial use. Even latex paints have substantial amounts of volatile organic compounds or VOC’s that are toxic to humans, pets and wildlife. Manufacturers are now providing paints with little or no VOC’s although the less safe products are still on the market.
A
painting service
today, like every other home improvement service, is expected to keep pace with
the green movement. The paint manufacturers are making great strides in
producing safer products for residential and commercial use. Even latex paints have substantial amounts of
volatile organic compounds or VOC’s that are toxic to humans, pets and
wildlife. Manufacturers are now
providing paints with little or no VOC’s although the less safe products are
still on the market.
The VOC’s in paints are substances such as toluene, benzene,
mercury, formaldehyde and glycols.
Released into the air they can cause headaches, respiratory
difficulties, dizziness and nausea. In
the first four days of drying, these fumes become adhered to curtains and
carpets where they linger for some time. Some research has shown them to cause fetal
distress and low birth weight. Once
released into the atmosphere the vapors contribute the ground level ozone which
causes smog a leading cause of respiratory illness.
To avoid the hazards of VOC’s, which are even higher in oil
based paints than Latex, the right choice of a painting contractor is a good place
to begin. An experienced green painting contractor will be knowledgeable in
green technology and methods. Check for the following when hiring a painting contractor:
·
Use of low VOC latex paint whenever possible.
These paints are readily available from all the major manufacturers like Glidden’s
Lifemaster 2000, Sherwin William’s HealthSpec and Benjamin Moore’s Pristine
EcoSpec TM.
·
When the use of oil base paints or primers is
necessary, which it is at times, what are the painting contractor’s disposal
methods for rollers and empty cans and cleaning of equipment?
·
What is the contractor’s general method of
washing out latex rollers and pans and how does he dispose of empty cans.
Manufacturers of bio degradable paints claim that their leftover paints can be
thrown out with the household trash. Be advised that not all green paints are
biodegradable.
·
Is he certified in lead paint remediation? Houses painted prior to 1978 may contain lead
based paint. These paints as they chip and flake introduce toxic lead into the
living areas of the home. Lead has been known to cause learning difficulties in
children and problems with pregnancy among countless other issues. A green
contractor should have the means to identify and remediate the lead problem if
it exists.
Going green with an
exterior painting service or any home
improvement project says much about a persons concern for the health and well
being of their family and also a concern for their role as a steward for the
planet on which they live. It is fortunate that in this era of global warming
debate that there are green products available that do make a difference in the
overall wellbeing of the Earth and all its resources. There are green roofs
that save energy made from sustainable resources, windows that provide
insulation in summer and harvest sunlight in winter, siding products that keep
out the cold and keep in the heat and now safe, environmentally friendly
paints. When you make your home remodeling a green one the world will benefit
from your caring.
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