What Paint Companies Don't Want You to Know About Their Paint
Low VOC Does Not Mean Non-toxic The elimination of VOC's by paint manufactures does not address the issue of why contaminants not considered VOC's still find their way into paint. For example; some paints contain ammonia and acetone which are highly dangerous chemicals to human health yet they are not required by law to appear on the label. VOC's have been linked to numerous physical problems (see article on " sick building syndrome and see video below").
Fungicides and Biocides are toxic chemicals that are used to prevent mildew growth and extend the shelf life of the product. They may be good for the paint, but they are bad for your health. These chemicals contaminate both indoor and outdoor air for five years or more after the product has been applied! Beware: even low- or no-VOC paints contain these toxins.
Pigments are designed to color the paint, but some of the toxic chemicals in paint come from the substances used to color them. One popular no VOC paints contains crystalline silica which has been shown to produce cancer in rats and perhaps in humans, yet the paint was awarded the "Green" label. Further, some paint companies, in their quest to reduce VOC's, have added chemicals (usually toxic) to mask the offensive paint smell!!!
Obviously, just because a paint company claims to have fewer VOC's does not mean it is totally safe for humans.
Below are two videos by Dan Pompa discussing the where these chemicals are located and the effects of toxic chemicals on our physiology. The first is about Chemical Sensitivity and the second is about common toxins to avoid.
What Happens During Manufacturing and Demolition? Furthermore, the reduction of VOC's does not address the deeper human and environmental issues surrounding the life cycle of paint; its production, use and destruction.
According to William McDonough and Michael Braungart in their landmark book Cradle to Cradle, "...being 'less bad' is no good." They go on. "Cutting the amount of toxic waste created or emitted...is a central tenant of eco-efficiency. But reduction in any of these areas does not halt depletion and destruction--it only slows it down, allowing them to take place in smaller increments over a longer period of time. Current studies show that astoundingly small amounts of dangerous emmissions can have disasterous effects on biological systems."
This is true for paint emmissions during the manufacturing process as well as during incineration. The creation of dangerous particulates during the destruction of older buildings can release a variety of contaminates into the air, water and soil that may go undetected for years--adding to the depletion of the environment.
McDonough and Braungart continue; "air, water, and soil do not safely absorb our wastes unless the wastes themselves are completely healthy and biodegradeable. We have just too little knowledge about industrial pollutants and their effects on natural systems for "slowing down" to be a healthy strategy in the long term."
Consider this: during the normal life cycle of a home or office building which may be a hundred years or so, hundreds or thousands of gallons of primer, paint, sealers, stains and other finishes are spread from floor to ceiling and from wall to wall. A single gallon of low VOC paint contains dozens of chemicals many of which have not been thoroughly researched for their saftey to human health or their impact on the environment. These include: VOC's, Fungicides and Biocides, and Pigments.
A New Approach But let's take a creative approach. Instead of asking how to reduce the problem of toxicity in paint, shouldn't we ask how to create a paint that is healthy? Or, is there an alternative to paint that is better for the inhabitants and the environment now and in the future? Using the Mcdonough/Braungart eco-effective model of waste equals food, shouldn't our wall and floor finishes be made of a material that is totally non-toxic and biodegradeable (not just free of VOC's)?
In the past and even today, there are cultures that finish their floors walls and ceilings with a variety of natural materials such as: organic lime washes, clay plaster, straw/mud combinations, milk paint, natural oils, bees wax and other indigenous resources.
AFM and BIOSHIELD--Healthy Paint Manufacturers Our primary suppliers of finishes are two notable companies - AFM and BioShield. Both of these companies have been making finishes for more than 30 years. Both maintain the highest standards of human and environmental health far beyond most governmental requirements. Both started making non-toxic paint because it was the right thing for them to do. AFM has recently been awarded a Gold Certification by SCS which does third party certification for products. Doctors and chemically sensistive people asked them to please make a healthy paint--and so they did. But they both took different approaches.
Each makes two types of finishes: 1) synthetic formulas which contain low or no VOC's, no fungicides or biocides, and natural pigments and 2) naturally-derived formulas which use only raw materials including citrus peel extracts, essential oils, seed oils, tree resins, inert mineral fillers, tree and bee waxes, lead-free dryers and natural pigments. Most of the ingredients have been used for centuries and are low in toxic substances, renewable, and feature a low environmental footprint.
All of these finishes have been formulated and manufactured with children, the elderly, and the chemically sensitive in mind. Many doctors recommend these paints to their patients suffering from allergies, sick building syndrome, or multiple chemical sensitivity. Our customers tell us again and again how wonderful these eco friendly products are to work with and how much easier it is to breathe during the painting process and after completion .
Sometimes we hear from customers who have tried other low VOC paints yet they still can't tolerate being in the room. This is because they are sensitive to something in the paint that is off gassing into the atmosphere and creating a negative influence. These same people can almost always tolerate our paint products.
Our finishes do NOT contain toxic ingredients such as ethylene glycol, formaldehyde, acetone, crystalline silica or ammonia. For your convenience, we have provided MSDS sheets which are governmental reports about the ingredients of each product. We have also included information about application methods, tips on where to use each product, and a toll free number if you don't wish to read all this. There are also numerous links provided to web sites for further information.
We stock most of the popular finishes. We can mix more than 1,000 colors and can create almost any custom color you wish. FAN DECKS are available, as are sample sizes of certain products. Feel free to contact us about any large jobs for special pricing.
There are many reasons because "Green" and "Green Building" apply not just to products but to construction strategies, building design and orientation, landscaping, building operations, maintenance etc. It is a big question that applies to the impact of buildings on humans and the environment. Below are a few examples.
Air and Water Purification
Natural Flooring
Non-Toxic Finishes
Environmentally Friendly Cleaners
Eco-Cabinets, Countertops, Millwork
Wool & Recycled Carpeting
Energy & Water Conservation
Outlet
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