Eco Friendly Paint

Part 1 Why conventional home paints and stains are hazardous to health

The walls and ceiling are the largest surface areas in your home. Eco home finishes are not common place on the market. Traditional indoor wall finishes, paints and stains are classed as household hazardous waste (HHW) and are one of the main contributors to indoor air pollution.

Traditional paints and stains contain high levels of chemical compounds, plastics and toxic substances. Paint is made up of; pigmentation, binders (to help the paint stick to the surface), solvents (keep the paint liquid until applied & additives to reduce mildew etc).

There are two stages of vapour release; the first is the evaporating solvent content when the paint is drying. When decorating your home, even though you are using low odour paints, there is still the Â‘fresh paint smellÂ’ that lingers in the air Â– otherwise there would be no need to open the windows, right?

This smell is probably chemically based, the stronger the smell the higher the chemical content. The second stage is the release of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) over a long period of time after the paint has dried. Once a synthetic paint has been applied to the wall or ceiling, it acts as a thin coating of plastic which does not allow the walls to breathe.

Health

Chemical components and VOCs are added to finishes, paints and stains to make them more durable, quick drying, easy to adhere to surfaces and easy to apply. These toxic substances combined reduce the quality of the air, causing air pollution and subsequently are hazardous to your health. These may be made up of carcinogens and neurtoxins such as formaldehyde, kerosene, bezene, toluene, ammonia and xylene.

Solvents which contain alkyl phenols are known to alter hormones. Mildecide is a paint additive which reduces the onset of mildew, however this can cause an allergic reaction. Common paint strippers contain the chemical methylene chloride which is a known carcinogen and may provoke a heart attack in pre existing medical conditions. The release of these VOCs also contributes to climate change.

Despite the name, paints which are water based like matt emulsion and soft sheen also contain chemical components and VOCs.
Alkyd based, alcohol based, chemical, petrochemical and solvent based paints contain higher levels of VOCs than water based and latex paints.
It is safer to use water based and latex paints as they contain lower level of VOCs, however a reduction in VOCs often sees high levels of alternative chemical components.

Water based: vinyl matt emulsion, vinyl silk, vinyl softsheen, contract matt, contract silk, masonry paint, acrylic emulsion, acrylic eggshell, acrylic primer undercoat, latex

Solvent based: gloss, non drip gloss, undercoat, eggshell, satinwood, wood primer, metal primer, floor enamel

Please read my article on VOCs to find out more details about the harmful effects of these vapours.

Embodied energy & waste

Large quantities of chemical compounds which make up finishes, paints and stains result in high embodied energy levels during production. Manufacture of synthetic paints creates an extremely high percentage of waste compared to the amount of product that is produced. Importantly it is a non sustainable process which uses vast amounts of non renewable energy sources. Manufacturing waste from the production of both water based and solvent based paints is classed as toxic chemical waste and is not biodegradable or recyclable. This waste has to be safely and securely stored to prevent contamination of soil, air pollution, destruction of eco systems and damage to human health.

Paint strippers and cleaners

Typically paint strippers and cleaning agents contain chemicals, are solvent based and hazardous to health.

Disposal

Aim to finish the paint tin, rather than having to think about where to dispose of left over paint. Never dispose of any paint products; paints, stains, strippers and cleaners down the sink, drains or into the earth Â– these actions will cause water and earth pollution. Check into your local paint recycling facilities.

Synthetic ingredients to avoid

The following list of chemical compounds are found in a variety of surface finishes from paints, stains, adhesives, strippers to cleaning agents:

Acrylic resin
Ammonia
Ashphalt chlorobenzene
Ethylene
Kerosene
Formaldehyde
Methylene chloride
Petrol
Polyurethane
Trichloroethylene
Toluene
Vinyl chloride
Xylene

I hope you have enjoyed reading Part 1 of my Eco friendly paint guide. As you can see conventional household paints carry a variety of poor eco credentials. Read on to find out what different eco friendly paint types are available.