Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) refers to airborne organic chemical compounds which can adversely affect the environment and human health. Formaldehyde, benzene, and phenol are particularly dangerous and are listed as Hazardous Air Pollutants by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Major sources of household VOCs are: construction materials; cabinets, furniture, and rugs; paints, stains and finishes; and, gasoline, kerosene and fuel soil. Mold also emits harmful VOCs.
The EPA has found that indoor air can be 5 to10 times more polluted than outdoor air. Indoor VOCs are suspected as a factor in the recent increase in asthma occurrence.
The best way to prevent VOC pollution is to buy products which are labeled and certified as being low VOC or no-VOC products. For example Green Seal certifies, building products, household products, and paints and coatings. When painting, check for “low VOC” on the label and use water-based paint and sealants.
Consumers can avoid rug VOC emissions by leasing the least amount of carpeting possible. Also by using “green” wool and cotton carpets instead of rugs made from synthetic materials.
The carpet industry and the Carpet and Rug Institute developed a Green Label Plus certification for low VOC carpets, cushions, and adhesives.
It is advisable to use solid wood for floors, cabinets and counters. If composite wood materials are used, VOCs can be sealed inside with a water based/low toxicity sealant. Green criteria for wood products are set by the Forest Stewardship Council and certified by Scientific Certification Systems and Smartwood.
Avoiding high-VOC products is especially important in tight well-sealed and insulated buildings. These will need a ventilation system (such as a heat recovery ventilator) to exhaust indoor air and replace it with fresh outdoor air. Recommended ventilation rate is for one-third of the air in the home should be exchanged per hour. Exhaust fans in kitchen and attached garage also prevent the accumulation of VOCs in the home.
Oil based paints contain large amounts of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). These airborne organic chemical compounds can adversely affect the environment and human health.
The EPA has found that indoor air can be 5 to10 times more polluted than outdoor air. Indoor VOCs are suspected as a factor in the recent increase in asthma occurrence.
Paint is typically made of three major components:
1. Pigment: gives the paint its color.
2. Binders: help the pigment stick to the applied surface.
3. Solvents: keep the paint in liquid form, making it easier to apply. Solvents are mostly oil-based (high VOC content) or water-based (low or no VOC content).
Of these three components, the oil-based solvents contribute the most to the paint’s level of VOCs. That’s because the solvent (a liquid) is designed to evaporate quickly, leaving only the pigment and its binder (the solids) behind on your walls. Paints with a greater percentage of solids typically leave more pigment behind, thus requiring fewer applications.
Common oil-based paint solvents include white spirit, formaldehyde and toluene, along with a variety of other alcohols, ketones, acetates and aromatic compounds. Painters exposed to these solvents are at risk for severe brain disorders, cancers, and kidney disease.
The best way to prevent VOC paint pollution is to buy products which are labeled and certified as being low VOC or no-VOC products. For example Green Seal certifies, low-VOC, non-toxic paints. When painting, check for “low VOC” on the label and use water-based paint and sealants.
Green home products are selected for their low toxicity – in their production, use and disposal. They are often old fashioned products used before the industrial revolution and its arsenal of toxic chemicals.
The list of potential chemical threats in the home is long and frightening, and it takes considerable effort to avoid them.
Fortunately, the user-friendly Earth Easy website http://www.eartheasy.com/live_reducing_indoor_toxins.html
lists dozens of ways to lower the toxic level of a homes interior.
Toxic products include: volatile organic compounds or VOCs (e.g. rugs, particle board, high VOC paints), phthalates and polyvinyl chloride or PVC (e.g., food containers, shower curtains, vinyl flooring); heavy metals (e.g., Teflon cookware, lead paint, treated wood); polybrominated diphenyl ethers or PBDEs (e.g., flame-retardant children’s clothing, polyester and foam products).
To keep home toxin levels low, it is crucial to use to use natural products for cleaning, indoor and outdoor pest control, and lawn maintenance http://www.eartheasy.com/grow_lawn_care.htm. It is important to use low VOC paints, caulks, finishes, and carpeting. Also it is crucial that homes be properly ventilated, especially in the winter, in well-insulated modern homes designed for air tightness.
Everyone (including pets) benefits from a non-toxic home and yard environment, especially those who are chemically sensitive. The greatest health impact is in keeping interior air pollution levels low.
…Live like your ancestors lived. No power line, transformer, microwave, cell phone, cell phone tower, computer, TV, Wi-Fi hot-spot, water bed, or electric bedroom clock will zap your vigor. And you will eat organic food, sip pure limestone spring water, breathe forest-fresh air and swim in pristine waters….The Source Eco-resort, ca. 2020 A.D.
An increasing body of health statistics and alarming stories from EMF hyper-sensitives are warning us that we should take precautions against over-exposure to EMF. The forward-looking Swedes have established a low EMF community outside of Stockholm. It’s the fallout from a modern age, yet another kind of pollution.
What is EMF? Electricity and magnetism are eternal dancing partners. Moving electron generate a magnetic field. And magnetic-fields deflect the path of any electrons which they encounter.
The human body can be viewed as an dynamic electro-chemical system. The movement of electrical impulses in brain, nerves, and heart…and every cell… generate a weak but measurable magnetic field. The trouble comes when strong EMF fields in workpaces, homes, and near power lines and cell towers, impinge on your body’s natural magnetism with unpredictable results. EMF is suspected to cause brain tumors, leukemia, birth defects, miscarriages, chronic fatigue, headaches, cataracts, heart problems, stress. nausea, chest pain, forgetfulness, cancer and other health problems.
Are you at risk? The best strategy is the seek an environment where EMF is close to natural levels of 0.5 mG (milliGauss). This is the level at which the biosphere and the human body evolved.
A specialist in healthy homes can measure the levels of EMF in your home, neighborhood, and workplace to determine your level of risk. National and international standards for EMF exposure have been developed. The current consensus is that EMF values of 1.0 mG, twice the natural background, is considered “safe.”
What precautions can you take? Precautions range from common sense to high-tech. A lot can be done to keep you safe. Proximity is key. Every doubling of distance from an EMF sources (like your computer and TV) reduces magnetic field strength four times. Ideally, position EMF generators on the periphery of your home.
Some EMF sources are best eliminated, e.g., electric blankets, bedside electric clocks and water beds. Turn your electronics completely off when you are not using them with a smart strip or green switch. This will save you energy too.
There are some advanced techniques for avoiding EMFs. For example, you might rewire your bedroom, in such a way that you can switch off all current traveling through the walls. You don’t have to be using a light or appliance for the pulsing live wiring to affect you. You could go farther and shield the room with aluminum foil wallpaper. Keeping your bedroom at or below background EMF is very prudent because you spend a third of your life there. People very sensitive to EMFs and workers in high EMF workplaces may choose to wear protective clothing with silver-threads woven into it.
EMF Summary: Yet another pollution begins in mystery. We really know very little about EMF and its ultimate effects. It could even be shortening our lives, but we don’t know. We cannot spend all our lives at trendy eco-resorts and avoid it altogether… but, we can take prudent steps. We can avoid certain technologies like electric blankets altogether. We can keep our distance from EMF sources like computers and TVs. It is also beneficial to completely switch off EMF sources, including electric wires, when not in use. Also we can adopt shielding measures for our home and clothing, if we are EMF sensitive and/or exposed to high levels.
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